CMCL-C 326: Authorship in the Media
(Topic: The Films of Spike Lee)
Class Number: 15325

MW, 11:15 AM-12:30 PM, Location: TBA
Required film screenings: M, 7:00 PM-10:30 PM

Prerequisite: CMCL-C 190 or consent of instructor

Fulfills COLL A&H Requirement

Instructor: Karen Bowdre

Since his debut film She’s Gotta Have It (1986), Spike Lee has been
considered one of the leading figures in Black independent cinema.
Though Lee and his films are often deemed controversial, he has
established an extensive and diverse body of work in the past twenty
years.  Lee’s oeuvre includes feature films, documentaries, concert
films, television programs, commercials, and music videos.

In this course, we will briefly review the history of Black
independent cinema, examine the debates surrounding auteur theory,
and consider the processes involved in the production of visual
media that complicate the notion of authorship. We will analyze
Lee’s work through the following lenses: issues of authorship and
genre, his position within Black independent cinema, his persona and
its relationship to the promotion of his films and the topics his
films address.  In our analysis of Lee’s media, we will probe the
subjects of race, class, gender, sexuality, and representation.  At
the conclusion of this course students will understand the contested
nature of auteur theory in media studies and be able to
contextualize Lee’s work as part of Black independent cinema.