At the end of the module, students will acquire advanced knowledge in the field of cinema and visual studies. They will be able to analyze complex audiovisual materials not only from an aesthetical-stylistical point of view, but also as theoretical objects, capable of shaping our understanding of the contemporary world. They will also acquire familiarity with the debates surrounding the interconnections between aesthetics and politics.
None; this course will be entirely held in English.
Lectures that will encourage the active participation of the class. Collective vision and commentary of relevant audiovisual passages.
Written examination. The students will be asked to answer two open questions in no more than 120 minutes. The knowledge of the syllabus' contents, the appropriate use of a specific terminology and the ability to autonomously apply the learnt concepts will equally define the final evaluation. One of the questions will test the knowledge of the main theoretical topics discussed within the module, while the other will ask the students to critically analyze one of the audiovisual contents whose knowledge is mandatory.
TITLE OF THE MODULE: THE MONSTROUS-FEMININE
The module will introduce students to the methodologies of visual culture studies, focusing on the ways in which cinema has represented female subjects and corporealities. From its very origins, cinema has been a scopic dispositif designed to control and measure the body, and it soon proved to be a tool closely aligned with the patriarchal logics of the dominant order. Moving from Laura Mulvey’s premise that classic Hollywood cinema was constructed around the pairs male/active and female/passive, the course will explore both the ways in which the female body has been inscribed within a logic of gender subordination and the forms of resistance that cinema has offered to subjectivities capable of transgressing the norm. In this regard, part of the course will be devoted the analysis of Barbara Creed’s book "The Monstrous-Feminine", a founding text of psychoanalytical film studies, which explores the archetypes of the uncanny woman.
Attendance is not mandatory but encouraged. Textbooks will be available at the University Library (Sant'Agostino's building), while the movies to watch will be available at Fondazione Alasca (inside Via Pignolo's building). The professor will provide additional informations to help students to access some of the films whose vision is mandatory.
