Topics in Psychology (350-CN-62)

Topic

Psychology of Film

Instructors

James W Anderson
I have taught this course on the Psychology of Personality more than 20 times total, not only in the School of Professional Studies but also in Northwestern's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and the University of Chicago. In addition to being a professor, I am a psychotherapist, and I draw heavily on my experience in teaching this course. My main interest in my writing is psychobiography: the use of psychological perspectives in studying the lives of historical, political, literary, and artistic figures. Some of the people I have published papers about are William and Henry James, Edith Wharton, Sigmund Freud, D. W. Winnicott, and Frank Lloyd Wright.

Meeting Info

University Hall 102: Mon 6:15PM - 9:15PM

Overview of class

In this course, we will be studying film from a psychological perspective. There are three aspects to this perspective: the psychology of the characters, of the viewers, and of the creator. Readings that present these three aspects of the psychology of cinema will be a part of the course, as well as readings about each of the individual movies. All of the films viewed in the course are psychologically insightful and have received critical acclaim, and include Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock), Ordinary People (Robert Redford), Autumn Sonata (Ingmar Bergman), Blue Velvet (David Lynch), and Hannah and Her Sisters (Woody Allen). The chief assignment is writing a paper on a movie of your choice. Carries social science credit.

This course was formerly PSYCH 314 Topics in Psychology.

Registration Requirements

Prerequisite: PSYCH 110 or equivalent.