Popular Culture (Master Year 1 / Spring)

This module stakes out the notion of popular culture in light of its multiple definitions (i.e., as mass culture, “low” culture, as a site of social and political resistance to dominant societal forces… ). Whilst introducing key theoretical tools to analyse works of popular culture by (e.g., cultural studies, resistance, authenticity, subculture, collective alliances, value …), the focus is on probing popular practices and texts across media (visual arts, music, radio, TV-series…), and according to an interdisciplinary approach. Much attention will be paid to the interactions between popular culture and its contemporaneous social, political and cultural milieux. A blend of theory and case studies will enable students to probe works of popular culture not only as reflections of the social, cultural, political and economic forces of their time, but also as potent agents of social and cultural change.