FILM 47.21 Scenes from the City: Urbanism and Modern American Visual Culture

From silent films to Mad Men, the American city has been the site through which “modern” identities have been imagined and created. This course draws on Cultural Geography and Film and Media Studies in order to interrogate this development. Through a variety of readings and screenings of films and TV shows, we will be examining American downtowns, suburbs, and homes as sites for the construction of classed, racialized, sexualized and gendered identities in three different time periods: the early 20th century, the post WWII era, and the contemporary period. We will interrogate such topics as: the real and imagined role of “shopping” women and gender in the shaping of modern downtowns; the relationship between the American suburb, new sexual identities and the film Pillow Talk; and how a particular nostalgia for the past that has led to the popularity of such shows as Mad Men can also be seen on the streets of Hanover (neo-traditional urbanism).

Instructor

M. Desjardins, Domosh

Cross Listed Courses

GEOG 80.04

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:SOC; WCult:CI

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