Symposium: Issues in RTVF (398-0-24)
Topic
The Weird & the Fantastic
Instructors
Daniel Bashara
Meeting Info
Louis Hall 119: Tues 5:00PM - 8:50PM
Overview of class
Our experiences with cinema often hinge upon notions of "making sense," whether in terms of plot, character, or plausible world-building. When we say that a film "makes sense," we really mean that it fits our preconceived notions and our unquestioned assumptions; everything we watch in this class will test those notions and those assumptions. We will explore other modes of understanding based on uncertainty and unreason. Across the nine weeks of the quarter, we will encounter various ways of thinking beyond the strictly sensible: the weird and the fantastic, the imaginary and the irrational, the speculative and the wondrous, the terrifying and the absurd. We will view films as expressions of inner states, as explorations of the impossible, and as revelations of the utter strangeness of our world. You'll experience existential despair, flights of cosmic fancy, and everything in between as we explore film's potential to unsettle everything we think we know.
Learning Objectives
After taking this course and successfully completing its requirements, students will be able to:
• Interpret film through lenses beyond the narrative and/or the stylistic
• Place cinema in connection with philosophical questions about knowledge, meaning, and the self
• Formulate arguments about the value and/or interest of uncertainty
• Analyze visual and narrative strategies of film and literature and form cohesive, persuasive arguments about them
• Conduct on-the-spot oral analyses of audiovisual material"
Class Materials (Required)
Computer for screening films at home and written work. That's all!