Fachbereich 7

Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft


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Vorheriges Semester

Public Sphere and Popular Culture in the United States


DozentIn: Jatin Wagle

Veranstaltungstyp: Seminar

Ort: 41/E08

Zeiten: Di. 14:00 - 16:00 (wöchentlich)

Beschreibung: “Publics are queer creatures,” states Michael Warner (2002), perhaps because they are simultaneously the spheres of rational deliberation and political contestation. Furthermore, ever since the advent of print media, modern publics are more imagined than real spaces of public interactions. But the public jostling of diverse views and competing interests in democratic societies assumes common grounds of civic interaction, or at the very least, shared senses of reality and facticity that appear to have eroded rapidly over the past several years. By the same token, popular culture which often used to foster our sense of community in the past, not least by virtue of a shared idiom, seems just too broken into silos to address us as a collectivity. In other words, the drift toward fragmented publics appears inexorable. This course in American Studies seeks to comprehend this critical juncture in the current dynamics of the modern publics by exploring the relationship between popular culture and the public sphere as it has evolved in the United States.
In order to take and enjoy this class, you should be willing to read, analyze, and discuss theoretical and analytical texts. Please note that this course can only be taken as a Cultural Studies [Kulturwissenschaft] course and is not being offered under Literary Studies. Moreover, this seminar is recommended for fourth and fifth semester students of American Studies, since it builds upon students’ awareness and understanding of the basic tools and concepts of cultural studies.
We will review our progress, revisit and amend the course schedule, our strategies of classroom interaction as well as the seminar contents on a periodic basis. Readings will be made available in a “Readings” folder via links or as pdfs under the “Files” tab.
This course shares requirements and guidelines with all other American Studies courses taught at IfAA. The “American Studies Tool Kit” in the Stud.IP “Files” section outlines these requirements and guidelines. Please see the “Guidelines for Seminar Papers” for information on the formal requirements for the final paper. The “Abbreviations Key” and “Grading Rubric” are used in the grading and feedback process and will enable you to better judge your own paper even before handing it in. Please check the course webpages on Stud.IP regularly for updates announcements, and changes.
Prerequisites for participation: B1 module


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