OSU American Studies Program



AMST 3513 (H credit)FILM & AMERICAN SOCIETY: ANALYZING HOLLYWOOD CLASSICS Spring 2020 (Wed 4:30 pm-7:10pm)Dr. David Gray 085090How do movies speak to us? How have they defined culture and society during particular moments in American history? This course offers an introduction to the study of Hollywood film. Beginning with the rise of film as a popular art form in the early twentieth century, we will trace major developments in film production and subject matter through to the mid-1970s. Throughout, we will analyze a number of “classic” films as case studies about film language, imagery, and representation. At the center of our investigation will be a consideration of how films construct ideas about race, class, gender, and sexuality, and how they inform and challenge dominant national ideologies during their periods of production and reception. Films analyzed include several of the following: Birth of a Nation (1915); The Jazz Singer (1927); King Kong (1933); The Great Dictator (1940); Best Years of Our Lives (1946); The Searchers (1956); In the Heat of the Night (1967); Easy Rider (1969); and Taxi Driver (1975). Required texts: Robert Sklar, Movie-Made America; Harry Benshoff and Sean Griffin, America on Film (2nd edition); Karen Gocsik et al., Writing about Movies (4th edition); and a selection of other readings on Canvas. For more information e-mail Dr. David Gray at david.gray11@okstate.eduFor more information e-mail Dr. David Gray at david.gray11@okstate.edu 00How do movies speak to us? How have they defined culture and society during particular moments in American history? This course offers an introduction to the study of Hollywood film. Beginning with the rise of film as a popular art form in the early twentieth century, we will trace major developments in film production and subject matter through to the mid-1970s. Throughout, we will analyze a number of “classic” films as case studies about film language, imagery, and representation. At the center of our investigation will be a consideration of how films construct ideas about race, class, gender, and sexuality, and how they inform and challenge dominant national ideologies during their periods of production and reception. Films analyzed include several of the following: Birth of a Nation (1915); The Jazz Singer (1927); King Kong (1933); The Great Dictator (1940); Best Years of Our Lives (1946); The Searchers (1956); In the Heat of the Night (1967); Easy Rider (1969); and Taxi Driver (1975). Required texts: Robert Sklar, Movie-Made America; Harry Benshoff and Sean Griffin, America on Film (2nd edition); Karen Gocsik et al., Writing about Movies (4th edition); and a selection of other readings on Canvas. For more information e-mail Dr. David Gray at david.gray11@okstate.eduFor more information e-mail Dr. David Gray at david.gray11@okstate.edu Haro ................
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