Cultural Studies in Asia

Subject CULS40006 (2010)

Note: This is an archived Handbook entry from 2010.

Credit Points: 12.50
Level: 4 (Undergraduate)
Dates & Locations:

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2010:

Semester 1, Parkville - Taught on campus.
Pre-teaching Period Start not applicable
Teaching Period not applicable
Assessment Period End not applicable
Last date to Self-Enrol not applicable
Census Date not applicable
Last date to Withdraw without fail not applicable

On campus

Timetable can be viewed here. For information about these dates, click here.
Time Commitment: Contact Hours: 2
Total Time Commitment: 120
Prerequisites: Admission to the postgraduate diploma or fourth year honours in Cultural Studies, English, Gender Studies, Screen Studies or Cinema Management.
Corequisites: None
Recommended Background Knowledge: None
Non Allowed Subjects: None
Core Participation Requirements: None

Coordinator

Dr Fran Martin

Contact

Fran Martin
f.martin@unimelb.edu.au

Subject Overview:

This subject focuses on the emergence of cultural studies as a distinct disciplinary formation in Asia over the past fifteen years, and introduces students to this new field's key approaches to the analysis of contemporary cultures. It introduces recent work on intra-Asian cultural flows, colonial histories, postcoloniality, neo-colonialism and cultural globalisation in the Asian region, and explores cultural studies' engagement with emergent Asian public cultures. Students will learn about current approaches to sites and practices including television drama, popular and new-wave cinemas, new social movements, popular music and urban space across locations that may include South Korea, China, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore and India. On completion of this subject students should have an understanding of the major directions in cultural studies scholarship in Asia today.

Objectives: Students who complete this subject will:
  • be able to comprehend the emergence of Asian cultural studies as a distinct disciplinary formation over the past ten years;
  • be able to demonstrate familiarity with key methods within this new field, including new critical and historical approaches to colonialism, post-coloniality and neo-colonialism in Asian contexts, analysis of intra-Asian cultural flows, and cultural studies' engagement with emergent Asian public cultures; and
  • appreciate key conceptual concerns within Asian cultural studies, including relations among local, national, global and regional levels of cultural organization. and the transforming meaning of "Asia" itself in today's world.
Assessment: A 25-minute seminar presentation 10% (due during semester), a 2000-word essay 35% (due mid-semester) and a 3000-word essay 55% (due at the end of semester). A hurdle requirement of a minimum 80% attendance (10 out of 12 seminars) required.
Prescribed Texts:

A subject reader will be available.

Breadth Options:

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

Fees Information: Subject EFTSL, Level, Discipline & Census Date
Generic Skills: Students who successfully complete this subject will acquire the following skills:
  • social, ethical, and cultural understanding of self and others through detailed analysis of contemporary culture in its various local, national and transnational contexts, the reception of new ideas and the contextualisation of judgments, the adaptation of knowledge to new situations;
  • critical analysis and synthesis through the study of competing theories of contemporary culture and their application to diverse examples, the engagement with and processing of different critical perspectives across the interdisciplinary field of cultural studies, the development of independent thought and arguments;
  • effective written and oral communication through seminar discussions and debates, the preparation and execution of written assessment exercises, exposure to and emulation of competing genres and protocols of critical writing;
  • information management and information literacy through the practice of library and archival research and engagement with electronic databases,
  • teamwork, flexibility, and tolerance through group discussions in seminars, reception of new ideas and opinions, engaging and cooperating with other people from diverse backgrounds; and
  • time management and planning through managing and organizing workloads for recommended reading, seminar presentations, and assessment requirements.
Related Course(s): Master of Arts (Asian Societies)
Master of Arts Management
Master of Cinema Management
Postgraduate Diploma in Arts Management
Related Majors/Minors/Specialisations: Anthropology and Social Theory
Asian Studies
Chinese
Chinese
Cultural Studies
Cultural Studies
Cultural Studies
Gender Studies
Gender Studies
Gender Studies
Indonesian
Indonesian
Japanese
Japanese
Social Theory
Social Theory
Social Theory

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