EL 310 Satire in Popular Culture - Spring 2008
T-Th 03:30-06:15
Claudia Cumbie-Jones
Web Site: http://webspace.ringling.edu/~ccjones
E-mail: ccjones@ringling.edu
Course Description: Satire in Popular Culture explores the history of satirical thought in popular
culture, and examines satire as genre and art form in political cartoons, theatre, film, television,
and the Web. A variety of films and other visual examples will be presented for analysis, and
students will be asked to supplement discussion with critical and creative projects.
Course Objectives:
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THINK.
OBSERVE.
LISTEN.
THINK SOME MORE.
QUESTION EVERYTHING.
MAKE SNIDE REMARKS.
Student Learning Outcomes:
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Communication Skills - Demonstrate effective skills in visual communication, speaking,
writing, listening, reading and computer literacy
Thinking Skills -Demonstrate abilities on conceptual. logical, and intuitive thinking within a
variety of contexts
Artistic Discernment - Show an ability to discern artistic merit of diverse forms of
art/design in their contexts . Be able to defend critical interpretations concerning the
significance of artistic expression.
Social Responsibility - Recognize the social and ethical responsibility of creating art and
design.
Course Format: We will be examining a large number of satirical artworks, mostly films.
Specifically we will analyze the satirical elements in the artwork to find out WHY it is considered
satire. The course attempts to differentiate between satire, parody (or spoof), slapstick, and farce.
There will be background information/discussion of the historical events and/or elements of
human behavior being satirized in each piece. The satirical works will be shown in a roughly
chronological structure.
Grading Policy: Grading for this course will be as follows:
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Critical Project - 30%
Creative Project - 40%
ATTENDANCE: Being in class AND participating intelligently - 30%
Assignments: There will be two projects assigned in this class. They are roughly defined as
follows:
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Critical Project - The critical project will take the form of a written critical analysis of one
or more satirical works.
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Creative Project - The Creative Project will take the form of a satirical artwork created by
you.
Strongly Recommended Reading:
Assault on Society: Satirical Literature to Film by Donald W. McCaffrey
American Dark Comedy: Beyond Satire by Wes D. Gehring
The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror by David Skal
James Whale: A New World of Gods and Monsters by James Curtis
Theatre of the Absurd by Martin Esslin
Dr. Strangelove's America: Society and Culture in the Atomic Age by Morgot A. Henriksen
Anti-Intellectualism in American Life by Richard Hofstadter (1963)
Revel with a Cause: Liberal Satire in Postwar America by Stephen E. Kercher
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction by Jon Stewart
I Am America (And So Can You!) by Stephen Colbert
Best Editorial Cartoons of the Year (series) by Charles Brooks
Library Resources:
All of the films that we will view in class are available on open reserve in the Library, with the
exception of a few clips that are used to provide context for different periods of history. The
"context" days in class are vitally important for you to attand, since you may not be able to view
these films anywhere else.
Disabilities Accommodations:
The Ringling College of Art and Design makes reasonable accommodations for qualified people
with documented disabilities. If you have a learning disability, a chronic illness, or a physical or
psychiatric disability that may have some impact on your work for this class and for which you
may need accommodations, please notify the Director of the Academic Resource Center (Room
227 Ulla Searing Student Center; 359-7627) preferably before the end of the drop/add period so
that appropriate adjustments can be made.
Health and Safety:
Ringling College of Art and Design is committed to providing students, faculty, and staff with a
safe and healthful learning and work environment and to comply with all applicable safety laws
and regulations and safe work practices.
Course Calendar:
Week 1 - Intro - Satire from Page to Stage...
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Jan. 08 - Introduction to Course Requirements - Read: Juvenal, Swift, and Twain
Jan. 10 - Origins of Satire - an overview of satire in literature and theatre
(excerpts from Kurt Weill, Sister Mary Ignatius, Rosencranz and Guildenstern, Robin
Williams)
Week 2 - 30's-40's ...to Screen. Satire vs. Parody
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Jan. 15 - Young Frankenstein, Gods and Monsters FOCUS: Bride of Frankenstein
Web Notes: Satire in the Horror Film
Jan. 17 - Marx Brothers, The Great Dictator, His Girl Friday FOCUS: Sullivan's Travels
Web Notes: Satire in Screwball Comedy
Week 3 - 50's - Deconstructing Pleasantville
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Jan. 22 - FOCUS: The Atomic Cafe plus Mental Hygiene Films (Educational Archives)
Web Notes: Satire in "Pleasantville"
Jan. 24 - 50's IN CONTEXT: Twilight Zone, McCarthyism, and Dr. Strangelove's America
(excerpts from David Halberstam's the Fifties, The 30-Second President, and Making
Sense of the Sixties)
Due: email subject/outline of Critical Project to ccjones@ringling.edu
Week 4 - 50's-60's - "don't sit under the mushroom cloud with anyone else but me"
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Jan. 29 - FOCUS: The Manchurian Candidate
Jan. 31 - FOCUS: Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the
Bomb
Web Notes: The Late Fifties/Early Sixties: Mushroom Clouds
Week 5 - 60's - "Well, there ain't no time to wonder why, Whoopee! we're all gonna die."
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Feb. 05 - 60's IN CONTEXT: The counterculture and the peace movement
(Berkeley in the Sixties, It Was Twenty Years Ago Today, Making Sense of the Sixties,
Woodstock)
Web Notes: Satire in the context of 60's counterculture
Feb. 07 - M*A*S*H (Robert Altman) and FOCUS: Catch-22 (Mike Nichols)
Web Notes: M*A*S*H and Catch-22
Due: email references/ideas on Creative Project
Week 6 - 60's - The Homefront
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Feb. 12 - Ernie Kovacs, Sid Caesar, TW3, Lenny Bruce, Laugh-In FOCUS: Smothers
Brothers
Web Notes: 50s and 60s Television Satire and Satirical Cabaret/Stand-up
Feb. 14 - FOCUS: Little Murders - Jules Feiffer
Web Notes: Little Murders
Week 7 - 60's - Satire Across the Pond
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Feb. 19 - Faculty Professional Development Day - NO CLASS
Feb. 21 - Marat/Sade, How I Won the War, The Magic Christian, A Clockwork Orange
FOCUS: If...
Web Notes: British Satire
Due: Critical Project
Week 8 - 60's-70's - Everyone's a Target
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Feb. 26 - 70s IN CONTEXT: A Decade Under the Influence, Larry Gelbart, Norman Lear,
George Carlin, SNL
Web Notes: Seventies in Context
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Feb. 28 - (Midterm) FOCUS: A Boy and his Dog
Web Notes: Harlan Ellison and A Boy and his Dog
Spring Break
Week 9 - 70's - "i like to watch": social commentary on/thru the Tube
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Mar. 11 - FOCUS: Network - Paddy Chayefsky
Web Notes: Paddy Chayefsky
Mar. 13 - FOCUS: Being There - Jerzy Kozinski
Web Notes: Jerzy Kozinski
Week 10 - 70's-80's - "They won't f**king listen!"
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Mar. 18 - Putney Swope, Street Fight, Hollywood Shuffle FOCUS: Bamboozled
Web Notes: African-American Satire
Mar. 20 - punk - Dead Kennedys, Crass, Clash: excerpts from Urgh! A Music War
Web Notes: Seventies/Eighties Satirical Music - Punk and others
Due: email brainstorming developments on Creative Project
Week 11 - 80's - Eighties Malaise
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Mar. 25 - 80s IN CONTEXT: Editorial Cartoons, more SNL FOCUS: SNL Political
sketches
Web Notes: Eighties in Context
Mar. 27 - FOCUS: Michael Radford's 1984
Week 12 - 80's - Gilliamland
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Apr. 01 - Terry Gilliam - The Goons, Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, The Meaning of Life,
Time Bandits
Web Notes: Terry Gilliam and Monty Python
Apr. 03 - FOCUS: Brazil
Week 13 - 80's-90's - The Politics of Politics, The Politics of Film
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Apr. 08 - 90s IN CONTEXT: Wag the Dog, Bulworth, Primary Colors FOCUS: Bob
Roberts
Web Notes: Nineties Political Satire
Apr. 10 - 8 1/2 plus FOCUS: The Player
Web Notes: Robert Altman - The Player
Week 14 - 90's-00's - "The history of the world, my sweet...is who gets eaten and who gets to
eat!"
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Apr. 15 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The Birdcage, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert,
Hedwig and the Angry Inch FOCUS: Velvet Goldmine
Web Notes: Queer Cinema Satire
Apr. 17 - Weekend, Dawn of the Dead, Consuming Passions, Delicatessen, Natural Born
Killers, American Psycho, Sweeney Todd
Web Notes: "Eat or Be Eaten" Satire
Week 15 - 90's-00's - 21st Century Schizoid Men
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Apr. 22 - Election, American Beauty, Being John Malkovich plus FOCUS: Fight Club
Web Notes: Fight Club
Apr. 24 - Satire in Animation: Rocky and Bullwinkle, Ren and Stimpy, The Simpsons,
South Park PLUS Some Internet Weirdness, Illegal Art, Negativland, Jon Stewart and
Stephen Colbert
Web Notes: Twenty-First Century Satire
Week 16 - "Who am us, Anyway?"
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Apr. 29 - Last day of class Due: critique Creative Projects