Abstract
This course examines popular culture and the emergence of mass culture in the United States. It
starts from the premise that popular culture, far from being a frivolous or debased alternative to
“high culture”, is in fact an important site of popular expression, social instruction, and cultural
conflict, and thus deserves critical attention. We examine theoretical texts that help us to “read”
popular culture, even as we study specific forms and artifacts of popular culture: from television
shows to Hollywood movies, graphic novels to advertisements, and popular music to fiction.
Throughout the course, we ground what we call “culture” in political, economic, and social
contexts. We pay special attention to the ways popular culture mediates and produces pleasure,
disgust, satisfaction, and fear and to how popular culture influences and is influenced by political
and social structures.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| State | Published - 2019 |
Disciplines
- Communication
- Broadcast and Video Studies
- Communication Technology and New Media
- Critical and Cultural Studies
- Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication
- Graphic Communications
- Mass Communication
- Public Relations and Advertising
- Social Influence and Political Communication
- Social Media