CMCL-C 503: Introduction to Media Theory and Aesthetics
Class Number: 21534

Tu, 1:00 PM-3:30 PM, Location: TBA
Required screenings: M, 7:00 PM-10:30 PM

Enrollment is limited to 15
Open to Graduates Only!

Instructor: Barbara Klinger
E-Mail: klinger@indiana.edu
Office: Mottier Hall 201
Phone: 855-1796
This course introduces students to discussions in the fields of
film, television, and new media concerning three central issues: (1)
the experiential and aesthetic status of the visual image, (2)
narrative and counter-narrative strategies within and across media,
and (3) the nature of spectatorship and audience response. We will
examine the work of major media theorists as they have addressed
these issues. Among topics we’ll consider are: issues of realism and
spectacle in relation to film, television, video, and digital
images; the differences between classical Hollywood, serial
television, and “virtual” narratives engendered by new media; and
the definition of spectators, variably, as passive consumers,
oppositional viewers, and interactive partners in media production.
Throughout the course we will explore the specificity of each medium
we discuss, while analyzing the interrelationships between media–an
especially important task given that the rise of huge entertainment
conglomerates and new technologies has made it increasingly
difficult to maintain clear boundaries between different media
industries and their texts.

Among the theorists we will read are: Andre Bazin, Sergei
Eisenstein, Raymond Williams, John Ellis, John Caldwell, Robert
Allen, Roland Barthes, Walter Benjamin, David Bordwell, Laura
Mulvey, Peter Wollen, Jay Bolter and Richard Grusin, Tania Modleski,
Henry Jenkins, Stuart Hall, Tony Bennett, David Morley, and Janet
Murray.

Films, television shows, and other media will be shown weekly in
relation to the theories under discussion. Work will include an oral
presentation, a short paper, and a final research paper.