The Carnivalesque and the Cinema

Subject 107-470 (2009)

Note: This is an archived Handbook entry from 2009. Search for this in the current handbook

Credit Points:	12.50
Level:	4 (Undergraduate)
Dates & Locations:	This subject is not offered in 2009.
Time Commitment:	Contact Hours: A 2-hour seminar and a 2-hour screening per week Total Time Commitment: 4 contact hours/week, 6 additional hours/week. Total of 10 hours per week.
Prerequisites:	Admission to the postgraduate diploma or fourth year honours in Cinema Studies or Gender Studies.
Corequisites:	None
Recommended Background Knowledge:	None
Non Allowed Subjects:	None
Core Participation Requirements:	For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry. It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

Subject Overview:	This subject will examine the significance that theories of the carnivalesque have for the analysis of the cinema. The historical context of carnival culture will be considered, as will its continued significance and redefinition in the contemporary era. In particular students should become familiar with various interpretative theoretical issues that drive carnival logic, and the implications behind its capacity to violate generic boundaries, to rupture classical narrative form, and to contest socially and gendered dominant orders. Areas to be explored will include: parallels between comedy, cult and the carnivalesque; the interrelationship between fairy tales and carnival form; the legend of Gilles de Rais; the disruptive and carnival nature of vampire and Gothic cinema; pleasure, the grotesque and liminal nature of the carnivalesque.
Objectives:	be able to account for theories of the carnivalesque; be able to apply theories of the carnivalesque to an analysis of films; be able to examine the disruptive and ideological ramifications of carnivalesque form.
Assessment:	A 5000 word research essay 100% (due in the examination period).
Prescribed Texts:
Breadth Options:	This subject is not available as a breadth subject.
Fees Information:	Subject EFTSL, Level, Discipline & Census Date
Generic Skills:	be skilled in research; possess advanced skills of critical thinking and analysis; possess an ability to communicate knowledge intelligibly, economically and effectively; have an understanding of social, ethical and cultural context.
Notes:	Formerly available as 107-094. Students who have completed 107-094 are not eligible to enrol in this subject.
Related Course(s):	Master of Cinema Management
Related Majors/Minors/Specialisations:	Cinema Studies Cinema Studies Cinema Studies Cultural Studies Cultural Studies Cultural Studies Gender Studies

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