FACULTY RESOURCES - ENGLISH
Course Outline - FA 263
| COURSE TITLE: | Film of the Fifties | COURSE HOURS PER WEEK: | |
| COURSE NUMBER: | FA 263 | Lecture: | |
| COURSE CREDITS: | 4 | Lec/Lab: | |
| COURSE PREREQUISITES: | Suggested prerequisite: WR 121 | Lab: |
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course introduces students to the 1950's as a complex decade in American history through films from and about the era that epitomize the cultural tensions and darker currents that define it, demythologizing the fifties as a golden age of innocence and simplicity. Historical and critical readings supplement the screening of classic films and provide direction for class discussion, exams, and critical essays that help students develop critical skills and cineliteracy.
GENERAL COURSE OUTCOMES:
| Upon completion of this course, the successful student will be able to: | These outcomes will be verified by the following assessments: |
| A. Develop a basic understanding of film aesthetics and the elements of film language, acquiring the technical and critical vocabulary of film studies to discuss the films we view. | Class discussions, quizzes, midterm and final examinations, analytical essays, formal segmentations and/or shot lists, presentations, and/or group work. |
| B. Describe the Hollywood mode of production, its classical visual and narrative style, and the interrelated crises that the industry underwent in the 50's, along with the ways that these crises reshaped the industry and its products. | Same as above. |
| C. Describe the basic lines of historical development in the 50's, especially as they relate to the Cold War and to the forces and effects of rapid economic expansion—and the ways these historical themes show up in the films of the era. | Same as above. |
| D. Describe film genre theory and recognize some of the distinctive conventions of those genres that were especially popular in the 50's | Same as above. |
| E. Demonstrate cineliteracy and develop critical skills through careful analysis of films and videos in class and through essays that analyze the films. | Same as above. |
| F. Write meaningfully about the formal and ideological issues of the films studied during the quarter. | Academic essay(s) and/or exams. |
Course outline by major topic: (See course calendars for other examples)
- Historical Overview of the Fifties: - Culture of the Bomb - McCarthyism - Class and Material Culture - Gender and Family Relations - Race Relations - Film Culture Film, Form, and Style: - Classical Hollywood Narrative and Style - Basics of Film Language - Mise en scene
- Aesthetics: the Shot - Montage Aesthetics: Editing and Sound - Genre Theory and Fifties' Films Theoretical Approaches to Film could include: - Formalism - New Historicism - Feminism - Marxism - Critical Race Theory - Psychoanalysis Typical Outline of Film Text - Pleasantville - Rebel Without a Cause - The Atomic Cafe - The Invasion of the Body Snatchers - High Noon - On the Waterfront - The Defiant Ones - All About Eve - Sunset Boulevard - Kiss Me Deadly