Greek Cinema in the 2nd 8 Weeks of Spring Semester

Still looking for a course that meets the 2nd 8 weeks of spring semester 2008?

WEUR-W 406 and 605: Greek Cinema and the National Cinema Question
Instructor: Franklin L. Hess
M, 7:00 – 10:00 pm (Room TBA), and Tu, Th, 4:00 – 5:15 (Room TBA)
Applications for College A&H Distribution Credit and for College Culture Studies Credit are pending.

Like most world cinemas, Greek cinema has been marked, since its inception, by a tension between the impulse toward cosmopolitanism and a perceived duty to represent the space of the nation. Though this tension has been a constant, it has not been uniform. The national mission of cinema in Greece has been affected—at times strengthened, at times attenuated— by both historical exigencies and more subtle shifts in cultural attitudes and social values.

This course will trace the historical trajectory of cinema in Greece, refracting films and film culture through both major historical events (the Occupation, the Civil War, the Truman Doctrine, the Junta, membership in the EU) and broader cultural, social, and economic trends (modernity, orientalism, the infiltration of consumer culture, immigration, the expansion of the tourist economy). Additionally, students will become versed in current debates about the possibility and desirability of using the nation as an analytical category for thinking about cinematic trends and movements, acquiring, in the process, a comparative basis for thinking about Greek cinema.

Grades for the course will be based on class participation, a number of short response papers, a midcourse exam, and a final paper project. For further information, please contact Prof. Franklin L. Hess (flhess@indiana.edu).