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The course gives interested students the opportunity to engage with the connections between popular culture and world politics in a critical and engaging way, particularly focusing on the entanglements of popular culture with US Foreign Policy. Students will get acquainted with a rich variety of interdisciplinary theories and insights on how to study politics and the United States through popular culture.
The first section of the course will introduce students to the main literature on popular culture and world politics; this will also touch on issues such as geopolitics, security, aesthetics, and virtuality. This will be the segue into the debate how American national identity is constructed. The second section will engage with the question how the myth of the American nation has been created from the founding of the American nation itself in 1776, the Founding Fathers, Manifest Destiny, the Frontier and the Wild West until World War II as an important juncture of American national mythology. This section will also address the way popular culture informed the East-West confrontation during the Cold War up until the terror attacks of September 11, 2001. The third section will focus on ‘9/11’ and America’s ‘War on Terror’ as key events of US Foreign Policy making in the past 20 years. The focus will lie on how the different presidencies of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump and their counterterrorism policies can be read through popular culture. Finally, we will be discussing an outlook to future events and policies under the Biden administration and how they might be (co-)produced through popular culture. This seems especially relevant at a time of politics being negotiated in the virtual and digital real and increasingly blurred lines between reality and fiction. Poslední úprava: Schmid Julian (15.09.2022)
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· To introduce important theoretical and conceptual debates relevant to the analysis of popular culture and US Foreign Policy · To develop knowledge of key issues in International Relations and the Popular Culture-World Politics debate · To offer the opportunity to analyze and explain America's place in the world · To offer informed discussion on several contemporary issues and topics · To explore, analyze, and critically assess historical and contemporary issues within US Foreign Policy making · To develop students' ability to argue cogently, concisely and critically · To understand and evaluate the meaning of cultural artefacts and fiction for the real world Students will be able to demonstrate an advanced knowledge of the role of US Foreign Policy in the world and the way popular culture is shaping important aspects of America as a nation and in their Foreign Policy. Given their theoretical and empirical knowledge students can critically evaluate the main characteristics of American politics and issues raised by key facets of US Foreign Policy and its consequences. Students will also have developed further their research and analytical skills, their ability to read and write in an academic way and to work independently and as part of a group. Poslední úprava: Schmid Julian (15.09.2022)
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1. Over the whole term, students will be required to participate in the seminars and to actively contribute to small-group and open discussions (15 points)
2. As a midterm paper, students will submit a short essay (max. 1500 words; 35 points) critically discussing one of the following questions: · Is popular culture merely a mirror of real-world political issues? · Is America, essentially, a social and mythological construction? · Focusing on either the Cold War or the ‘War on Terror’, to what extent has popular culture shaped US Foreign Policy during that period? Deadline: 13 November 2022 3. At the end of term, students will submit their long essay (max. 3000 words; 50 points), the title of the essay should be discussed with Julian and submitted via email until December 4, 2022. Deadline: 12 January 2023 Both essays will be handed in via Turnitin: https://library.cuni.cz/services/turnitin/ Tips for essay writing: The essays should be comprehensively structured in an introduction, a main section, and a conclusion. Make sure to have a clearly identifiable claim in the introduction that serves as a thread throughout the whole text. Remain focused and as concise as possible. For both essays it is important to use and engage with plenty of literature (as a rule of thumb at least 15-20 academic sources should be the aim) as base for your argument; this means using literature outside of the core and recommended reading to demonstrate your ability as independent and critical researcher. Lastly, don’t plagiarise. If you have any questions or concerns, please ask them during the seminar or send Julian an email. Late submissions are penalised by -3 points/day. In order to pass the course, students will need to gain at least 50 points (out of 100 possible). In
Class ethics (A) Any use of quoted texts in essays must be acknowledged. Such use must meet the following 1. the beginning and end of the quoted passage must be shown with quotation marks Please, use the style of Chicago Manual of Style. Poslední úprava: Schmid Julian (15.09.2022)
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Part I: Popular Culture and World Politics 1) Introduction: The Popular Culture-World Politics Continuum (6 October 2022) · How is world politics made? · Which artefacts can tell us something about world politics? · What is the relationship between popular culture and world politics? Readings: Core Grayson, K., Davies, M., & Philpott, S. (2009). Pop Goes IR? Researching the Popular Culture-World Politics Continuum. Politics, 29(3), 155-163.
Recommended Daniel, I., J. Furman, & Musgrave, P. (2017). Synthetic Experiences. How Popular Culture Matters for Images of International Relations. International Studies Quarterly, 61(1), 503-516.
Weldes, J. (2003). Popular Culture, Science Fiction, and World Politics. Exploring Intertextual Relations. In J. Weldes (Ed.), To Seek Out New Worlds. Science Fiction and World Politics (pp. 1-30). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
2) Popular Geopolitics and Foreign Policy (13 October 2022) · What role does security play for US Foreign Policy making? · What does popular geopolitics contribute to our understanding of foreign policy? · How can we conceptualise US’ national interest? Readings: Core Campbell, D. (1998). Writing Security. United States Foreign Policy and the Politics of Identity. Manchester: University of Manchester Press. pp. 1-14
Recommended Saunders, R. A., & Strukov, V. (2018). Introduction. Theorising the realm of popular geopolitics. In R. A. Saunders & V. Strukov (Eds.), Popular Geopolitics. Plotting an Evolving Interdiscipline (pp. 1-20). London and New York: Routledge.
Sharp, J. P. (1996). Hegemony, popular culture and geopolitics. The Reader’s Digest and the construction of danger Political Geography, 15(6/7), 557-570.
3) The Construction of US National Identity (20 October 2022) · What are the core themes that underpin US national identity? · How does American exceptionalism inform American culture and Foreign Policy? · What is the role of popular culture and the everyday for the construction of national identity? Readings: Core McCrisken, T. (2003). American Exceptionalism and the Legacy of Vietnam. US Foreign Policy since 1974. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 1-20
Recommended Edensor, T. (2002). National Identity, Popular Culture and Everyday Life. Oxford and New York: Berg. pp. 12-23
Deudney, D., & Meiser, J. (2012). American exceptionalism. In M. Cox & D. Stokes (Eds.), US Foreign Policy (pp. 21-39). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Part II: The Myth of the American Nation 4) No class (27 October 2022) 5) The Making of the Nation (3 November 2022) · What main themes can we identify within the founding and early history of America? · What is the role of violence in American history? · What is the pre-World Wars relationship between America and the ‘rest of the world’? Readings: Core Green, S. K. (2017). Inventing a Christian America. The Myth of the Religious Founding. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 1-19
Recommended Hunt, M. (2009). Ideology and U.S. foreign policy. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 19-45
Tyrell, I. (2013). The Myth(s) That Will Not Die. American National Exceptionalism. In G. Bouchard (Ed.), National Myths. Constructed Pasts, Contested Presents (pp. 46-64). London and New York: Routledge.
6) The Frontier, the Wild West, and Cowboys (10 November 2022) · What are key features of the Wild West and the Cowboy as a real and fictional character? · What image of the American nation and its citizens does the Wild West myth develop? · What role do the Wild West and Cowboys play in American culture and politics? Readings: Core Lawrence, J. S., & Jewett, R. (2002). The Myth of the American Superhero. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans. pp. 3-17
or
Slotkin, R. (1992). Gunfighter Nation. The Myth of the Frontier in Twentieth-Century America. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 1-26
Recommended Nicholas, L. J. (2006). Becoming Western. Stories of Culture and Identity in the Cowboy State. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press. I-xviii
Paul, H. (2014). The Myths That Made America. An Introduction to American Studies. Bielefeld: Transcript. pp. 311-365
7) No class (17 November 2022)
8) World War II and Heroes (24 November 2022) · What is the relationship between the World Wars and Heroism? · What was the meaning of World War II for US Foreign Policy? · To what extent did popular culture influence the war and US Foreign Policy? Readings: Core McCrisken, T., & Pepper, A. (2005). American History and Contemporary Hollywood Film. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 1-14
Recommended Goodrum, M. (2016). Superheroes and American Self Image. From War to Watergate. London and New York: Routledge. pp. 13-42
McCrisken, T., & Pepper, A. (2005). American History and Contemporary Hollywood Film. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 89-130
9) From Cold War to the 21st Century (1 December 2022) · What were the main concerns for America after World War II? · What crucial characters and fantasies did popular culture develop? · How does popular culture create an image of threat? Readings: Core Shaw, T. (2009). Cold War Cinema. An International Perspective. In G. Kassimeris & J. Buckley (Eds.), The Ashgate Research Companion to Modern Warfare (pp. 365-382). Burlington and Farnham: Ashgate.
Recommended Anderegg, M. (1991). Introduction. In M. Anderegg (Ed.), Inventing Vietnam. The War in Film and Television (pp. 1-14). Philadelphia: Temple Press University.
Shaw, T. (2007). Hollywood’s Cold War. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 42-71
Part III: Shaping the Age of Terror 10) From ‘9/11’ to the ‘War on Terror’ (8 December 2022) · How does September 11, 2001, become ‘9/11’ · How was the ‘War on Terror’ constructed? · Was the ‘War on Terror’ an inevitable consequence of ‘9/11’? Readings: Core Croft, S. (2006). Culture, Crisis and America’s War on Terror. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 1-14
Holland, J. (2009). From September 11th, 2001 to 9-11. From Void to Crisis. International Political Sociology, 3(3), 275-292.
Recommended Heller, D. (2005). Introduction: Consuming 9/11. In D. Heller (Ed.), The Selling of 9/11. How a National Tragedy became a Commodity (pp. 1-26). New York: Pagrave Macmillan.
McSweeney, T. (2017). American Cinema in the Shadow of 9/11. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. pp. 1-20
11) Superheroes and Counterterrorism (15 December 2022) · Why do superheroes re-appear after ‘9/11’? · How do superhero films and comics depict the ‘War on Terror’? · What role do they play for American counterterrorism? Readings: Core Hassler-Forest, D. (2012). Capitalist Superheroes. Caped Crusaders in the Neoliberal Age. Washington D.C. and Winchester: Zero Books. pp. 1-19
Recommended Dittmer, J. (2005). Captain America’s Empire. Reflections on Identity, Popular Culture, and Post-9/11 Geopolitics. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 95(3), 626-643.
Dittmer, J. (2013). Captain America and the Nationalist Superhero. Metaphors, Narratives, and Geopolitics. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. pp. 1-23
12) Drones, Targeted Killing and Social Media (22 December 2022) · What is the role of targeted killing and drones for US Foreign Policy? · How can we make sense of the use of drones in American counterterrorism? · How are drones and targeted killing produced through social media? Readings: Core TBD
Recommended Stahl, R. (2006). Have You Played the War on Terror? Critical Studies in Media Communication, 23(2), 112-130.
Zulaika, J. (2014). Drones and fantasy in US counterterrorism. Journal for Cultural Research, 18(2), 171-187.
13) Captain America and the Crisis of the Trump Presidency (5 January 2023) · Is there a crisis of American identity and US Foreign Policy? · How does the character of Captain America negotiate American identity and Foreign Policy? · What is the role of social media and the virtual for the construction of politics? Readings: Core Schmid, J. (2020). (Captain) America in crisis. Popular digital culture and the negotiation of Americanness. Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 33(5), 690-712
Recommended Der Derian, J. (2000). Virtuous war/virtual theory. International Affairs, 76(4), 771-788.
Dittmer, J. (2012). Captain America in the news. Changing mediascapes and the appropriation of a superhero. Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, 3(2), 143-157.
14) Popular Culture and Politics between Representation and Co-Production (12 January 2023, optional seminar, depending on student demand) Concluding discussion: · Does popular culture represent? Co-produce? Shape? Influence? · How does the future of Popular Culture and US Foreign Policy look like under the Biden administration? Poslední úprava: Schmid Julian (15.09.2022)
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More in the attached sylabus. Poslední úprava: Poskerová Jana, Bc. (13.10.2022)
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