Overview

In this module you will read and analyse American films that represent historical events and periods from the 1940s to the present, including World War II, the 1950s and McCarthyism, the Vietnam War, the counterculture, Nixon and Watergate, Reaganism and Star Wars, Clintonism, the Gulf War, 9/11 and the War on Terror. Films engage us with history as few other media can. They help foster historical understanding, empathy, and curiosity by visualizing past events, characters, and contexts. You will spend this module discovering ways to use film as a tool to understand and study history and the ways it is constantly rewritten.

This course examines how American History has been represented on film from the 1960s to the present as well as how film can be used to understand and study American History. It is taught by weekly 2 hour seminars, and the module will cover topics and themes in the history of America, including Vietnam, Watergate, Reaganism, Clintonism and the Bush Era. Screenings will be shown as appropriate and may include The Green Berets, All the President's Men, Rambo, Terminator, Independence Day, Hostel and Munich.

Assessment Strategy

-threshold -(D-): To achieve this level a student will have completed all the Learning Outcomes to a level of competence. Written work will be of a basic professional standard displaying qualities of motivation, and the ability to pursue ideas through to a conclusion, accompanied by evidence of critical reflection. It should be clear also that the student has developed the range of intellectual, practical and transferable skills implicit in the aims of the course.

-good -(C) : Good : This grade indicates competence throughout, with evidence of good levels of achievement in most, if not all Learning Outcomes. There will be coherence between finished written works, working processes and research activity. (B) : Very Good : To achieve this grade a student will have exercised competence in most, if not all Learning Outcomes, and will have demonstrated excellence in at least one. Written work should be distinctive, approaching publishable quality and supported by related further study. There should be ample evidence of independent thought, good levels of motivation and the acquisition of a wide range of subject-specific and transferable skills. There should be a clear indication of the potential to pursue studies to a higher research level.

-excellent -(A): To achieve this grade a student will have demonstrated a high level of achievement throughout and excellence in a substantial proportion of the Learning Outcomes. The written work will be distinctive and professional. There will be ample evidence of related research, a thorough exploration of ideas, working processes and the inventive use of appropriate genres and forms. It should be readily apparent that the student has the ability to pursue higher levels of study and the potential to operate successfully in a professional context.

Learning Outcomes

• Assimilate visual information to construct oral and written arguments

• Critically evaluate historical context of filmic texts

• Deploy technical and critical vocabulary relevant to the discussion of audio-visual imagery to consider the uses of fiction film in the study of history its representations.

• Engage in debates surrounding the nature of historical representation on film

• Read and analyse American films paying attention to historical context