93545 - Communication Laboratory (Lm) (G.D)

Learning outcomes

The workshop aims to provide students with skills in the field of journalistic and media content production (television, radio and Internet). At the end of the course the student: - masters the main techniques of producing news and media content - is able to independently produce news content in written, oral or multimedia form.

Course contents

"Exploring the Contemporary Imaginary. A Sociological Reading of Television Series and Film."

The main motivation driving this course is the need to highlight society's representations of power and domination, class and gender inequalities, and racism through television series, film, advertising, and other forms of mass culture expression. The idea is for a nimble and concise approach to such a vast and complex topic as imagery.

The workshop includes a historical-theoretical part and a part of applied sociology of the imaginary. During the course, the history and sociology of the modern and postmodern imaginary will be analyzed through the fundamental concepts of authors such as Slavoj Zizek (ideology), Joseph Campbell (hero's journey), Theodor W. Adorno (culture industry), among others. Based on the development of some of the concepts proposed by these authors, some video materials representative of the modern imaginary will be analyzed.

Image, imaginary, imagination; through these three concepts that will accompany the course activities, the following questions will be asked: what is the role of the imaginary and imagination in the context of the multiple realities that are constructed through the image? How is the collective imagination constructed and deconstructed? What is the social importance of the imaginary?

Activity Program:
Theme 1: What is the imaginary?
The term "imaginary," its relationship to contemporary society and how it has been shaped by mass culture will be explored.

Theme 2: Vampires vs. Zombies. The function of terror in society
Based on philosopher Slavoj Zizek's text "Trouble in Paradise. From the End of History to the End of Capitalism," a Marxist analysis of the bourgeoisie and the proletariat will be made through a comparison between the figure of the vampire in cinema and the zombies that have entered the common imagination through literature and film since the 1960s.

Theme 3: The hero, the myth and the story
Using visual material (comic books, graphic novels, films, series, documentaries) and concrete examples of "contemporary heroes" such as Ernesto "Che" Guevara and Maradona, we aim to answer the following questions: why does society need heroes? How does society construct and choose its heroic figures?

Theme 4: Imaginary love
This session will discuss love and new technologies and how they have generated new ways of relating to each other. Examples such as long-distance love, dating apps and social networks will be examined. It will look at how new intimacy has been created and how love relationships have been transformed in today's society.

Theme 5: Violence and representation
As a product of the collective imagination, the criminal is an archetype that embodies certain goals (money, power, sex) that the dominant culture simultaneously encourages and represses. As an imaginary and iconic figure, the criminal, embodied by the narco or gangster, is a way to discuss patriarchal structures and masculinity in different cultural contexts. The focus of this session is a cross-cultural comparative analysis of television series on organized crime, with particular attention to The Sopranos (1999-2007), Gomorrah (2014-2019), and Narcos: Mexico (2018-present).

Readings/Bibliography

Beck, U. Amore a distanza. Spagna: Paidós, 2012.

Campbell, J. El héroe de las mil caras. Spagna: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 2015.

Grassi, V. Introduzione alla sociologia dell'immaginario. Per una comprensione della vita quotidiana. Italia: Guerini, 2006.

M. L. Johnson, Gangster Feminism: The Feminist Cultural Work of Hbos the Sopranos. Studi femministi" - Vol. 33 Nbr. 2 - Luglio 2007.

Zizek, S. Problemi in paradiso: Il comunismo dopo la fine della storia. Milano: Ponte alle Grazie, 2015.

Teaching methods

This is a "hands-on" course in which the idea is to be able to "experiment" together with the students in order to share knowledge and reflections based on the texts, concepts, authors and visual material presented in class. In this sense, class discussions and the active participation of the students will be encouraged.  The format of the workshop is similar to that of the round table, where the teacher-student can have a horizontal dialogue.

Assessment methods

There will be a continuous evaluation throughout the course based on the assignments that will be given to the students and their active participation. As a final assignment, students are expected to present a brief text in which they analyze a product from the perspective of the sociology of the imaginary and the concepts they have worked with in class. Specific details will be provided at the beginning of the course.

Teaching tools

Most of the PDF readings will be shared with the students, as well as the visual material that will be analyzed during the course.

Office hours

See the website of Paulina Sabugal Paz