Asian Americans and Popular Culture (247-0-1)
Instructors
Helen H Cho
Meeting Info
Parkes Hall 224: Mon, Wed 12:30PM - 1:50PM
Overview of class
When it comes to pop culture, there is an endless fascination with questions of representation: what is authentic representation? Do we have enough representation? In this survey course, we problematize these questions by critically examining the production, content, and reception of Asian American representations in pop culture. What do cultural productions by/for/about Asian Americans tell us about power, resistance, and the social construction of difference? We use historical and contemporary cultural forms, including memoirs, documentaries, film, music, video games, and social media, to answer these questions.
Learning Objectives
Engage with the way ideology is embedded into the structures and institutions that shape Asian American popular culture
Examine how the intersection of race and other socially constructed categories, such as ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality are produced and interpreted by/for/about Asian Americans
Gain an understanding of how power, including sociocultural and economic forces, shapes historical and contemporary media
Develop the ability to critically analyze cultural productions by and about Asian Americans
Reflect on your own positionality as it relates to the structures, processes, and practices that produce Asian American media
Class Materials (Required)
Crying in HMart
ISBN-10: 1984898957
ISBN-13: 978-1984898951
Class Notes
Attendance at first class is mandatory.
Class Attributes
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area
U.S. Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity