MDS-30017 - Visual Pleasures: From Carnival to Disney
Coordinator:
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 6
Credits: 15
Study Hours: 150
School Office: 01782 733147

Programme/Approved Electives for 2020/21

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

Yes

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2020/21

The media and our notions of leisure are inextricably connected, and our leisure time and activities are often expressions of the relationships we have with different media forms: from early picture postcards of the seaside, to Instagram images of nights out. This module uses theoretical discussions of leisure - as well as our own experiences of leisure practices - to take a critical look at the media, the leisure industry and the relationship between the two.
The module asks questions such as:
¿ How can we understand the transformation of leisure practice such as shopping or eating out, by examining media representations?
¿ What part did the media play in `constructing¿ certain leisure activities to be part of our collective identity and popular culture? Have new media technologies changed how leisure is depicted and popularised?
¿ How has the media redefined our experience of city living and domestic life?
We will interrogate how the media have shaped our ideas and our experiences of leisure through various forms and practices, spaces and places; through processes such as rationalization, commercialization and globalization, which are rooted in material social, political and economic contexts. We will consider various theoretical perspectives about media representations and locate them through looking at a range of historic and contemporary examples, such as the carnival, the seaside, shopping, restaurants, tourist destinations, the home and even interactions with other animals.

Aims
-To develop understanding of various critical approaches to the media.
-To use forms, practices and spaces of leisure as contexts for understanding various critical approaches.
-To understand how various visual media are used and act to communicate and shape cultural identity.
-To be able to apply an understanding of visual media and critical approaches to relevant contexts.

Talis Aspire Reading List
Any reading lists will be provided by the start of the course.
http://lists.lib.keele.ac.uk/modules/mds-30017/lists

Intended Learning Outcomes

recognise and explain various critical and contextual approaches to the media


: 1,2
analyse how various visual media are used and act to communicate and shape cultural identity: 1,2
apply an understanding of visual media and critical approaches to relevant contexts: 1,2
use forms, practices and spaces of leisure as contexts for understanding various critical approaches: 1,2
examine how, particularly, visual media can be used to communicate and express ideas and concepts: 2

Study hours

24 hours teaching (lectures, seminars, online activities)
42 hours project preparation
42 hours essay preparation
42 hours self/guided independent study

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Essay weighted 50%
2500 word critical essay
Students will negotiate the title of their own essay with their tutor/s. Essay questions will be based on the critical and contextual content of their practical assessment and should draw for the topics/content covered on the module.

2: Practical Assessment weighted 50%
A workbook, principally comprising a portfolio of photos.
Students with produce a portfolio of photos on a topic/subject/idea relevant to, and articulated within, the critical and contextual content of the module.