With the divide between mass culture and high art disappearing, popular culture has become a prolific field of study. In this seminar, we will consider the many facets and dimensions of pop culture, including its cultural history and the possibilities hidden within what is often assumed to be nothing more than entertainment.

Some of the topics we will address are popular culture’s reflection of discourse, its capability of criticizing or affirming the status quo, and the various modes of ideology within. We will cover all relevant pop culture representations: film, television, comic books, fiction, music, paintings etc. and will discuss their significance within the historical frame of reference as well as their international social impact.

Secondary texts will introduce a range of theoretical perspectives through which pop culture may be explored, analyzed, questioned, and understood. We will discuss the function of pop culture in the public sphere, its representations in texts, images, and music.