An undergraduate course occasionally taught by Dr. Mathieu Deflem at the University of South Carolina.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Situated in the sociology of culture, this course offers an introduction to and application of the use of visual media in sociological inquiry. Visual media are used to examine important traits of the socio-cultural context in which they are produced and are also relied upon as a pedagogical tool to examine a variety of sociological concepts and theories.
As time permits, specific attention in this course will go to one or more of the following topics: a sociological history of American cinema; the movies of Alfred Hitchcock; and American TV detective shows. The temporal emphasis is on the recent past, specifically the 1920s through the 1980s.
Consult the academic calendar for important dates. Useful information is also provided by the Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity, such as its integrity policies (including the Honor Code and the Student Code of Conduct). Information is also available online about academic regulations and the Student Success Center.
Note: Until 2017 this course was called, "Society Through the Lens."Consult the academic calendar for important dates. Useful information is also provided by the Office of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity, such as its integrity policies (including the Honor Code and the Student Code of Conduct). Information is also available online about academic regulations and the Student Success Center.
The course syllabus will be provided to all registered students via Blackboard.
TOPICS
Introduction: Popular Culture and Visual Sociology
* A Sociological History of American Cinema
- The Hollywood Industry
- Cinematic Genres
- Inequalities at the Movies
- Film Noir
* The Cinema of Alfred Hitchcock
- Biography and Career
- Cinematic Style
* Television and Social Control: U.S. Detective Shows
Introduction: Popular Culture and Visual Sociology* A Sociological History of American Cinema
- The Hollywood Industry
- Cinematic Genres
- Inequalities at the Movies
- Film Noir
* The Cinema of Alfred Hitchcock
- Biography and Career
- Cinematic Style
- Hitchcock and the American Family
- Hitchcock on Guilt and Innocence
* Television and Social Control: U.S. Detective Shows
- The American Detective
- Gender and Race
- Hero, Villain, and Anti-Hero
- Rehabilitation versus Retribution
- From Fantasy to Reality
The required readings for this course consist of a collection of articles and internet-based sources, which are available online via the following links or on Blackboard:
Videos on Hollywood
- Hollywood series (silent era): Hollywood Ep 1 (The Pioneers); Hollywood Ep. 2 (The Beginning); Hollywood Ep. 3 (Single Beds and Double Standards); Hollywood Ep. 4 (Hollywood Goes to War); Hollywood Ep. 5 (Hazards of the Game); Hollywood Ep. 6 (Swanson and Valentino); Hollywood Ep. 7 (Autocrats); Hollywood Ep. 8 (Comedy); Hollywood Ep. 9 (Out West); Hollywood Ep. 10 (Megaphone); Hollywood Ep. 11 (Lights); Hollywood Ep. 12 (End).
- Hollywood's Golden Age - Documentary.
- History of Hollywood - In multiple parts.
- The Gunslingers of the Wild West - American frontier.
- Complicated Women - Before the Hays code (4 parts).
- Why Be Good? - Censorship in early cinema.
- The History of Hollywood Censorship -Documentary.
- The Celluloid Closet - Documentary.
- Hollywood and the Gangsters - BBC documentary.
- Film Noir - PBS documentary.
- Bringing Darkness to Light - Film noir documentary.
- The Best of Film Noir (Part I) + Part 2 - Two-part documentary.
- Operation Hollywood - The Pentagon and the movies.
Online Articles on Sociology and Cinema
- Sociology and Film - Short blog post, 2011.
- Making Sense of Films - By Tom Gunning. History Matters, 2002.
- A Sociology of the Cinema - The Bioscopy, 2012.
- On Documentary Film Styles - Historical and Sociological Perspectives, 2013.
- Evolution of Crime Films - The Society Pages, 2012.
- Sociology and the Cinema - By Perry Lovell, 1971.
- Sociology of Film - Online copy of a book by J.P. Mayer, 1946.
- Sociological Cinema - Online resources.
- Sociology of/in Film - Online syllabi.
Videos on Hitchcock
- Documentary: Reputations: Alfred Hitchcock, 2012, part 1 (92 min.): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpRI7IwnQ-I see also part 2 (58 min.): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkiJ6zcyLRw
- AFI Master Seminar, 1970, short interviews (5 min.), on suspense https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPFsuc_M_3E & on mystery https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xs111uH9ss
- Interview: Huw Wheldon Meets Alfred Hitchcock, 1964, part 1 (9 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j12dyjMkGbY & part 2 (10 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEHypKBqT9w
- A Talk With Hitchcock, 1964 (26 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoxkMMquhxk
- Cinema: Alfred Hitchcock, 1966 (40 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwPybA465eE
- Hitchcock Truffaut (Documentary, 2015) (86 min.): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qr8AHfDJNw
- Alfred Hitchcock: Living Famously, documentary 2003(54 min.): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoAt5u2umaE
Articles:
- Deflem, Mathieu. 2007. "Alfred Hitchcock and Sociological Theory: Parsons Goes to the Movies." Sociation Today 5(1).
- Deflem, Mathieu. 2016. "Alfred Hitchcock: Visions of Guilt and Innocence." Pp. 203-227 in Framing Law and Crime: An Interdisciplinary Anthology, edited by Caroline Joan S. Picart, Michael Hviid Jacobsen, and Cecil Greek. Fairleigh Dickinson University Press.
- Scharrer, Erica. 2012. "More Than 'Just the Facts': Portrayals of Masculinity in Police and Detective Programs Over Time." Howard Journal of Communications 23:88-109.
- Deroche, Constance and John Deroche. 1991. "Black and White: Racial Construction in Television Police Dramas." Canadian Ethnic Studies 23(3):69-92.
- DeTardo-Bora, Kimberly A. 2009. "Criminal Justice 'Hollywood Style': How Women in Criminal Justice Professions Are Depicted in Prime-Time Crime Dramas." Women & Criminal Justice 19: 153-168.
Supplementary Resources on Hitchcock and TV detective dramas:
- Hitchcock French interview, 1956 (10 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dRcRUNfxPM
- Hitchcock German talk show, 1962 (in 5 parts): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HXLIx0KhKg
- Hitchcock Audio source: Listen to François Truffaut’s Big, 12-Hour Interview with Alfred Hitchcock, 1962.
- Hitchcock 20-Minute 1966 Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGA6rCOyTh4
- Hitchcock at the NFT, 1969 (18 min.). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9_wOOr-_Mk
- Interviews on the Dick Cavett Show, 1972, on the McGuffin (10 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBRZ6GEFjG4 & on Sabotage (9 min) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dhbSUP9mhk
- Hitchcock: Masters of Cinema, 1972 (34 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umfiwI-7I0M
- Hitchcock Interview on the Tomorrow Show withTom Snyder, 1973 (46 min.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QioPMnR9HM
- Hitchcock Movie sources: 20 Free Hitchcock Movies (for online viewing) or watch on YouTube.
- Alfred Hitchcock Twitter - The official estate
- Detectives TV themes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fDXuWP0kB8&list=PLBC970A3CEE8B056B
- TV detective shows on Wiki (selection): Sixties: Dragnet (1951-59, 1967-1970) | Naked City (1958-1963) | Peter Gunn (1958-1961) | The Untouchables (1959-1963) | The FBI (1965-1974) | Mission Impossible (1966-1973) | Ironside (1967-1975) | Mannix (1967-1975) | Adam 12 (1968-1975) | Hawaii Five-O (1968-1980) | Seventies: Mod Squad (1967-1973) | Columbo (1968-1978) | McLoud (1970-1977) | Cannon (1971-1976) | McMillan & Wife (1971-1977) | Banacek (1972-1974) | The Streets of San Francisco (1972-1977) | Kojak (1973-1978) | Police Woman (1974-1978) | The Rockford Files (1974-1980) | Starsky & Hutch (1975-1979) | Baretta (1975-1978) | Charlie's Angels (1976-1981) | Quincey, ME (1976-1983) | ChiPs (1977-1983) | Hart to Hart (1979-1984) | Eighties: Magnum, p.i. (1980-1988) | Hill Street Blues (1981-1987) | Cagney & Lacey (1982-1988) | Miami Vice (1984-1989) | Hunter (1984-1991) | MacGyver (1985-1992) | In the Heat of the Night (1988-1995) | Nineties: Law & Order (1990-2010) | NYPD Blue (1993-2005) | 2000s: CSI (2000-now) | Criminal Intent (2001-2011) | The Wire (2002-2008) | Reno 911 (2003-2009)
