Course 2013-2014 a.y.

Course Objectives

The course primary objective is to provide students with the basic tools for reading the complex spectrum of television communication, from themes to languages to visual semiotics, and therefore guide their usage as a function towards a precise understanding of the relations which tie up the television product conceived and realized in any form and the historical, social, cultural, economic and political context. In this sense, the focusis not on genres and programs generally assigned to informational purpose, but rather on sit-coms, created in order to entertain the audience and yet capable of taking a precise picture of constitutive parameters, problematic conjunction, practices, moods and contradictions of the reference society.

Course Content Summary

The course, based on a theoretical/critical basis, often connected to cultural studies and frequently supported by screenings of audio-visual media, is divided in two parts.

The first focuses on the most important genres, languages and styles that distinguish the television universe and have contributed in the course of time to vest the medium with a symbolic function, capable of amplifying reality and directing its perception.

The second part analyzes the most significant U.S. sit-coms of the last forty years: from M*A*S*H to Family Ties, from The Cosby Show to Friends, from Will & Grace to How I met your mother. The exploration in depth of these TV series, accompanied by an active exchange between students and lecturer, allows the identification of those elements which make these sit-coms effective representations of the cultural, economic and political texture of today’s American society.

Detailed Description of Assessment Methods

The exam program is different for attending and non attending students. Detailed information about exams and assignments is communicated at the beginning of the course.

Textbooks

The bibliography is communicated at the beginning of the course.

Prerequisites

The course does not require proficiency in communication, mass media or contemporary history, but it does require a genuine interest in all these subjects.