No film director has been more studied or written about than Alfred
Hitchcock. Since the 1950s, discussions of his work have been at the
center of every new development in film criticism and theory, to the
point where he has become the paradigmatic artist, the figure used
instrumentally to justify or test every new conceptual “frame” in
the field. Not surprisingly, the “Hitchcock industry” is as active
as ever. During the past five years at least a dozen new critical
books about him have been published, plus a new biography and
several behind-the-scenes studies of his working methods. Besides
all this, there is an academic periodical (The Hitchcock Annual),
and an intriguing Australian journal and website (The MacGuffin)
that publish critical writings from both academics and amateurs.
Because Hitchcock was the most important auteur for the generation
of cinephiles who became film directors in the 1960s and 70s, he has
also become a key reference point for postmodern art (for recent
examples, see Femme Fatale, Mulholland Drive, and the museum
installation entitled 24-Hour Psycho). At the same time, he remains
a popular entertainer. Of the major directors of classic Hollywood,
he is probably the best known to today’s young people, and most of
his films still have commercial value.
	
This seminar will assume that you are at least generally familiar
with Hitchcock’s work, whether through previous study or simply
through watching many of the films. We will screen some rare items,
but the chief aim in the first half of the semester will be to
develop a working knowledge of the critical and biographical
literature, giving particular emphasis to writings published during
the past ten years. I have no particular theoretical agenda. My hope
is to stimulate research into a variety of questions raised by our
readings and discussions, and to provide a kind of barometer for the
current state of the field. Papers for the seminar may deal with one
or more of Hitchcock’s films, with films by directors who seem to be
in dialog with Hitchcock, with industrial history or reception, or
with virtually any critical or theoretical issue that can be related
to our general topic. In addition, you are required to deliver two
short oral reports, the first devoted to a book review and the
second to your work in progress on the seminar paper. Readings will
consist of four or five required books, plus items on book reserve
and e-reserve.