L237 Horror Movies
Mikita Brottman
W 9:00 am - 11:45 am BR 320
Wait List
Sean Fitzpatrick
Course Description
In this course, we will examine the origins and development of
American horror cinema over the last
century. Screenings of key films and readings and the discussion of
influential criticism will highlight psychoanalytical concepts as
repression and displacement within the specific genre of the horror
film as it engages with issues of gender, sexuality, race, and class.
We will pa particular attention to the way in which horror films signal
anxieties associated with the American family and the roles played by
its members. We will consider how has the family been imagined in
these films, and to what political, cultural, and ideological ends? We
will also consider the way in which the horror movie negotiates our
relationship with the human body. Films will be studied in their
cultural contexts, allowing us to understand how horror films
are frequently a reflection of human social and cultural concerns.
Course Grading
Since this is a lecture class, much of the work will be on
Blackboard. Each student most post a paragraph on Blackboard every
week, after the film. These posts must be 10 lines long and will count
for 20% of the final grade. There will be two multiple choice quizzes,
each worth 20%, and a final in-class written exam worth 40%.
| 2 Quizzes: |
40 |
| Blackboard posts: |
30 |
| Final Exam: |
30 |
| Total: |
100 |
|
|
| 95-100=A+ |
66-70=C+ |
| 90-95=A |
60-65=C |
| 86-90=A- |
56-60=C- |
| 80-85=B+ |
50-55=D+ |
| 76-80=B |
46-50=D |
| 70-75=B- |
40-45=D- |
Required Reading
Brottman, M. Offensive Films.
Vanderbilt University Press, 2005.
Other texts available as weblinks.
Weekly Schedule
(1) August 23
Course Introduction
Read: Brottman, Introduction, pp1-14.
Screening: The American Nightmares
(documentary)
(2) September 7
Film: Freaks, Tod Browning,
(1932)
Reading: Brottman, 1. Freaks:
Carnivalizing the Taboo, pp. 15-49.
(3) September 14
Film: Cat People (Jacques
Tourneur, 1942)
Reading: Tim Dirks,
Cat People (1942), AMC
Film Site
(4) September 21
Read: Robin Wood, An Introduction to the
American
Horror Film (pdf)
Lecture Week
Quiz 1
(5) September 28
Film: The Tingler,
William Castle (1959)
Reading: Brottman, 2. Ritual, Tension and Relief, pp. 50-66.
(6) October 5
Film: Psycho (Alfred
Hitchcock, 1960)
Reading: Tim Dirks, Psycho (1960), AMC Film Site
(7) October 12
Lecture Week
Read:
*Fall Break*
(9) October 26
Film: Blood Feast, Herschell
Gordon Lewis (1963)
Reading: Brottman, 3. "There Never Was a Party Like This", pp 67-78.
(10) November 2
Film: Night of the Living Dead
(George Romero, 1968)
Reading: Brottman, "Improper Burials, Unburied Memories" (pdf)
(11) November 9
Lecture
Quiz
(12) November 16
Film: Rosemary's Baby (Roman
Polanski, 1968)
Reading: Tim
Dirks, Rosemary's Baby (1968),
AMC Film Site
(13) November 23
Thanksgiving Break: No Class
(14) November 30
Film: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Tobe
Hooper, 1974)
Reading: Brottman, 5. Once Upon a Time in Texas, pp. 96-112.
(15) December 7
Film: The Shining (Stanley
Kubrick, 1980)
Reading, Tim Dirks, The Shining (1980), AMC Film
Site
(16) December 14
Final Exam
ADA Compliance
In order to provide the highest quality educational experience for
every student, MICA is committed to compliance with the ADA and Section
504. Any student who has (or suspects he or she may have) a physical,
cognitive, or psychological disability and who wants to request
accommodations must immediately schedule an appointment to meet with
the Director of the Learning Resource Center, Dr. Kathryn Smith, by
calling the LRC Administrative Assistant, Mary Walsh, at (410)
669-3177. The LRC is MICA’s designated department for determining
reasonable accommodations based on legal requirements and will provide
the eligible student with an official Accommodation Verification letter
to the instructor. Each semester the student must formally request
accommodations from the LRC each semester, and format of the
Verification letters change each semester to ensure currency.
NOTE: Students with disabilities who want assistance during emergency
evacuations must register with the LRC within the first week of each
semester.
Health and Safety Compliance
MICA has developed policies and practices to ensure a healthful
environment and safe approaches to the use of equipment, materials, and
processes. It is the mutual responsibility of faculty and students to
review health and safety standards relevant to each class at the
beginning of each semester. Students should be aware of general fire,
health, and safety regulations posted in each area and course specific
polices, practices, and cautions. Students who have concerns related to
health and safety should contact the Environmental Health and Safety
Coordinator.
The Environmental Health and Safety Coordinator, Quentin Moseley, may
be reached at 410 225-0220 or by email at qmoseley@mica.edu.