Radio/Television/Film Genre (322-0-20)

Topic

Romantic Comedy

Instructors

Miriam B White

Meeting Info

Helmerich Auditorium: Mon, Wed 3:00PM - 4:50PM

Overview of class

"Boy meets girl; boy loses girl; boy gets girl." This is the classic, if banal, formulation of the prototypical romantic comedy. This class considers American romantic comedy films from the 1930s to the early 2000s with particular consideration of: 1) mistaken identities, reversals, and masquerades and 2) the norms, normative boundaries, and pliability of the genre, especially when it comes to race and sexuality. Many of the films we will see are based on confusions about who is whom, based on accidental misunderstanding, willful deceptions, or unruliness. Films include: The Shop Around the Corner, You've Got Mail, Just Wright, The Last Holiday, Bread and Tulips, among others.

Students will be encouraged to research other aspects/variants/formulas of romantic comedy films (and other films) as an integral part of their class work.

Evaluation Method

Class participation, research and writing assignments building toward a final research project.

Class Materials (Required)

All required readings will be available through the class Canvas site. Students may need access to films (of their own choosing), based on their research project topic.

Class Attributes

Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Reserved for Radio/TV/Film Major and Minor Students until the end of preregistration, after which time enrollment will be open to everyone who has taken the prerequisites.