Topics in Literature, Film, and Media (215-0-01)
Topic
Obsession and Melodrama
Instructors
Julia Ann Stern
847/491-3530
University Hall Room 415
Office Hours: Mondays 1:1:50; Tuesdays 10-11; and Thursdays 12:20-1
Meeting Info
Lutkin Hall: Mon, Wed 11:00AM - 12:20PM
Overview of class
This course surveys melodrama, film noir, and the psychological thriller, some of the most powerful genres of Hollywood cinema's "classical" era, the period of studio production from the advent of sound in 1929 to about 1960. Psychological obsession is the affective mode that runs through all the films we will explore. This class introduces the study of classical Hollywood film making as a mode of industrial cultural production at the dynamic intersection of art and mass culture. Our approach will be to study one film per week with an emphasis on formal analysis. You must view each film twice, taking notes in your required notebook during your second screening. We will study Rear Window (1954, d. Alfred Hitchcock); Rebecca (1940, d. Alfred Hitchcock); In This Our Life (1942, d. John Huston); Gaslight (1944, d. George Cukor); Double Indemnity (1944, d. Billy Wilder); Sunset Boulevard (1950, d. Billy Wilder); and What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962, d. Robert Aldrich).
Teaching Method
Lecture and follow-up discussion.
Evaluation Method
Students will do frequent short in-class writing assignments and complete a mid-term and a final exam.
Class Attributes
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
SoC Humanities and Fine Arts Distro
Associated Classes
DIS - University Library 4722: Fri 11:00AM - 11:50AM
DIS - University Hall 318: Fri 11:00AM - 11:50AM
DIS - University Hall 418: Fri 12:00PM - 12:50PM
DIS - Parkes Hall 222: Fri 12:00PM - 12:50PM
DIS - Locy Hall 301: Fri 11:00AM - 11:50AM
DIS - Locy Hall 301: Fri 12:00PM - 12:50PM
DIS - University Hall 121: Fri 11:00AM - 11:50AM
DIS - University Hall 218: Fri 12:00PM - 12:50PM
DIS - University Hall 312: Fri 12:00PM - 12:50PM
DIS - Kresge Centennial Hall 2-440: Fri 1:00PM - 1:50PM
DIS - Annenberg Hall G29: Fri 12:00PM - 12:50PM
DIS - Annenberg Hall G29: Fri 1:00PM - 1:50PM