When we speak of "popular culture" what exactly are we talking about? How does it relate to "mass culture," "folk culture," or "high culture"? Is something "popular culture" merely because it is consumed in large quantities, or does the label "popular" refer to a particular style of production, reception, or participation?  This course will assume a critical stance toward American popular culture asking about the origins of both the category and the media that convey it. We will begin by surveying the emergence and democratization of "leisure time" in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. As wages rose and work hours diminished, what sorts of "amusements" were available to fill this "leisure time," who took advantage of these amusements, and how did they do so? Once the historical foundation is established, we will investigate contemporary examples of popular culture with an emphasis on "consumption," broadly conceived. Topics will include: consumer culture (advertising), fan culture  (Elvis), food culture (cultural history of food) and  "cannibalism" (depictions of cannibalism as a means of critiquing consumer culture). The course will be reading and writing intensive.

Evaluation will be based on 10 on-line discussion postings, one web-building project, and two exams.

• David Nasaw, Going Out: The Rise and Fall of Public Amusements;
• Erika Doss, Elvis Culture
• Eric Schlosser, Fast Food Nation
• A selection of readings available in the "Course Materials" Folder of the Blackboard site for this course (http://blackboard.okstate.edu)

Participation: Students are expected to attend every class and participate actively in class discussions, both real and virtual. Participation determines borderline grades and eligibility for extra credit!

On-Line Discussion Postings: Over the 15 weeks of this course, you must post 10 brief responses to comprehension questions about assigned readings. You may decide which 10 assignments to respond to out of the 15 available, but you may submit only one response each week. The questions will be posted in the "DISCUSSION BOARD" section of the Blackboard (http://blackboard.okstate.edu), and your responses should also be posted there (do not email them to me or submit them in hard copy). These assignments will always be due before you come to class. There will be no late postings accepted. Each assignment will be worth ten points, and together they will comprise 10% of your course grade. These are easy points so don't forget about them! Students with excellent attendance (1 absence or less) may earn up to 20 extra credit points by posting two additional messages (though you still may submit only one response per week).

Web Project: With a partner, you will build a website that illustrates some facet of the history, socio-cultural organization, and social effects of contemporary forms of popular culture. You may emphasize a particular medium, "fad," trend, or critical term related to popular culture for this project. YOU WILL RECEIVE INSTRUCTION ON WEB-BUILDING DURING THE COURSE AND WILL HAVE TIME TO WORK ON THE PROJECT IN LAB! Do not fear this assignment--it will be fun and will give you a new skill set that you can market. The assignment will be worth 300 points, and will comprise 30% of your course grade. Both partners will receive the same grade for this assignment, so it behooves you to make sure you both do the same amount of work on it. See the schedule for lab and due dates.

Exams: There will be one mid-term and one final exam in this class. The exams will consist of identifications, short-answer responses, and/or essay questions and will cover the course readings, lectures, and discussions in equal measure. Check the course schedule to determine the exam dates. There will be a study guide offered for each exam; it behooves you to use these. Make-up exams will be given only in cases of documented emergency and only if I am notified of said emergency well before the scheduled date and time of the exam. If you contact me after you miss an exam, I will be unable to help you, and you will receive a grade of zero. The exams will be worth 300 points each, and together will comprise 60% of your course grade.

Academic Honesty: All work you turn in for this class must be your own work. Unintentional, or accidental, plagiarism due to faulty citations or improper use of sources will result in (a) a course of remediation designed to correct problems with your use of source materials at the drafting phase and (b) a failing grade for the assignment (if the problems persist). Intentional plagiarism will result in a failing grade for the course and possible referral to the Dean's office for disciplinary action. Consult OSU's Code of Student Conduct for more information on Academic Misconduct.

Special Needs and Disabilities: Please feel free to contact me with any special needs that you may have related to a physical or mental disability; I'll be happy to work with you to accommodate your needs. NOTE: If you have a disability, physical or otherwise, you must register with the appropriate liaison in the Student Services Center, North Hall.

8/25

Introducing Popular Culture

Stuart Hall Representations

9/1

Read:

Nasaw, Going Out (Chaps 1-9, pp. 1-119)

Extra Credit:

Go see the Tulsa Spotlight Theatre's production of "The Drunkard" and "The Olio"
7:45 p.m. curtain time every Saturday night (7:30 sing-along)
The Tulsa Spotlight Theater
1381 Riverside Drive, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74127 

Price: $12 for adults, $10 seniors, $5 children (in case you want to make it a family affair)

Box Office: (918)-587-5030 Hours: M-TR 1-5 p.m., F 12-6 p.m., at 9 a.m. on Sat.

Apparently, it's a tough ticket to get, so call and reserve your seats early.

9/8

Read:

Nasaw, Going Out (Chaps 10-17, pp. 120-256)

Screening:

Samples of early cinema: actualités, spectacles, and early narrative forms

Extra Credit:

Watch D.W. Griffith's 1915 silent film Birth of a Nation in its entirety (available at both the OSUT Library and Tulsa City County Library: Central, Hardesty, and Rudisill Branches; or you can rent it).

Write a 1-2 page analysis of the film's depiction of race relations for 10 points of extra credit. If this is about the "birth" of the US nation, what sort of nation does it imagine? What effects might this imagination of the nation have on actual social relations within the United States? What do you think about the film's depictions? Be prepared to share this at the next class session (9/15).

9/15

Culture and Social Identity: Race in Popular Culture

Read:

*Stuart Hall, "The Whites of Their Eyes: Racist Ideologies and the Media"

Screening:

Ethnic Notions; Birth of a Nation (selections)

9/22

Meet in the Computer Lab: MCB 2315

9/29

*Jack Solomon, "Brought to You Buy: The Signs of Advertising"
*Roland Marchand, "The Parable of the Democracy of Goods"

Screening:

Advertising and the End of the World; Various Commercials for In-Class Analysis

10/6

Consumer Culture II: The Effects of Advertising

*Susan Bordo, "Never Just Pictures"
*Jackson Katz, "Advertising and the Construction of Violent White Masculinity"
*John Fiske. "Commodities and Culture."

Screening:

Selections from: Killing Us Softly, Merchants of Cool, Barbie Nation

10/13

Mid-Term Exam (4:30-5:45)

Time in Computer Lab (5:45-7:10): MCB 2315

10/20

All-Consuming Obsessions: Fan Culture

Read:

Doss, Elvis Culture (Chaps. 1-3, pp. 1-114)

Time in Computer Lab (5:45-7:10): MCB 2315

Extra Credit:

Watch one of Elvis Presley's B movies in its entirety (I have copies of Girls! Girls! Girls! and Fun in Acapulco on reserve at the OSUT Library; or you can rent any Elvis movie at the Tulsa City-County Library or Blockbuster, etc. Alternately, you might be able to catch one of his films on late night or weekend TV).

Write a 1-2 page analysis of the film's depiction of Elvis, and what he stands for, for 10 points of extra credit. What does the film suggest about Elvis's values, as well his value to American culture? How does the camera-work and mis-en-scene (literally, "what is placed in the scene"--costuming, lighting, blocking, set design, etc.) frame Elvis for his fans? Pay particular attention to the depictions of race and gender: what sort of a "man" is Elvis in the film? What sort of "women" does he consort with? What might the depiction of race and gender tell us about the time period of the film's production and/or the target audience of Elvis fans? Be prepared to share this at the next class session (10/27).

10/27

All-Consuming Obsessions: Fan Culture II

Read:

Doss, Elvis Culture (Chaps. 4-7, pp. 115-260)

Time in Computer Lab (5:45-7:10): MCB 2315

Screening:

Clips from various Elvis films.

11/3

The Culture of Food Consumption: Some History

*Diane Ackerman, "The Social Sense"
*Harvey Levenstein, "The American Table in 1880" and "How the Other Half Ate"
*Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, "Feeding the Giants: Food and Industrialization"

Screening:

Burt Wolf--What We Eat (selections)

Extra Credit:

Watch at least one hour of the PBS series The Meaning of Food OR an hour of the series Burt Wolf--What We Eat that we did NOT watch in class (both are available on reserve in the OSUT Library).

Write a 1-2 page description of what you learned about American food history, habits, uses, and/or patterns of consumption for 10 points of extra credit. Be prepared to discuss your findings at the next class session (11/10).

11/10

Commodification of Consumption: American Food Culture

Read:

Schlosser, Fast Food Nation ("Introduction" + Section I: The American Way, pp. 1-110)

Drafts of website content due

11/17

The Commodification of Consumption: American Food Culture II

Read:

Schlosser, Fast Food Nation (Section II: Meat and Potatoes, pp. 111-254)

Screening:

Supersize Me!

11/24

Class Canceled for Thanksgiving Holiday

12/1

Read:

*Robin Wood, "Return of the Repressed"
*Carol Clover, "Her Body, Himself"

Screening:

Clips from Texas Chainsaw Massacre I & II, Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, others?

12/8

Screening:

Land of the Dead (if released to DVD; if not, I'll take alternate suggestions)

Websites Due

12/15