German Film (228-0-1)
Topic
Cinema and the City
Instructors
Anna Maree Parkinson
847/467-5173
1880 Campus Drive, Kresge Hall, Rm 3321, Evanston
Office Hours: By appointment
Meeting Info
Kresge Centennial Hall 2-325: Tues, Thurs 12:30PM - 1:50PM
Overview of class
What draws us to the metropolis? Why did crowds flock to film palaces? Is there an intrinsic link between modern cities and the cinema? With Germany as our point of departure, we will analyze a range of classic German films from the Weimar period until now, seeking answers to questions including: How are space and social relationships are imagined and negotiated in the metropolis? In which ways does urban space influence how we think about forms of national, gendered, ethnic, sexual, and class identity? How do urban space and cinematic form influence our view of the political and social networks we inhabit? What is the place of national cinema in our transnational culture? Each week we will consider a film from the past century and students will learn how to analyze formal and aesthetic components of cinema taking account of the cultural and historical context from which it emerged. Discussion of the films will be accompanied by select readings of classical texts on modernity, mass society, cosmopolitanism, cultures of memory, and globalization.
Learning Objectives
• Analyze films using technically appropriate terms and concepts.
• Develop interpretative skills through visual analysis of the form and content of films.
• Elaborate a critical approach through interpreting and writing about films in their specific cultural contexts.
• Explore a select body of significant German films from Weimar Germany to the present moment.
• Understand and critique central discourses on the relationship between cinema and the city from Weimar through to post-unification Germany.
• Articulate different and interrelated representations of (trans)national, gendered, ethnic, sexual, and class identity.
• Hone writing and speaking skills through a series of discussion questions and analytical papers.
Teaching Method
lecture
Evaluation Method
Attendance
Class participation
Discussion section
Exams
Homework
Papers
Peer assessment
Quizzes
Readings
Writing assignments
Class Materials (Required)
• Stephen Brockmann, A Critical History of German Film. Rochester: Camden House, 2010. ISBN 978-1571134684
Individual articles/essays will be available as pdfs through CANVAS
Class Attributes
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area