SOC6052 - Performance, Culture and Communication

Objectives:

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
Demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of performance, rhetoric, affect, and communication;
Evaluate a range of analytical techniques applied in the interpretation and analysis of political and cultural texts;
Apply research tools and theoretical concepts introduced in this module to specific research questions on the form of essays and other written pieces;
Communicate and argue effectively in both oral and written forms.

Content:

This module is designed to develop cultural and political communication literacy skills and enable students to analyse key political and cultural texts in a range of historical, critical and contextual approaches.

The aim of this module is to examine the way culture is performed. It offers a critical review of key aspects of classical and contemporary theory and research in performance and communication studies. It examines a range of interconnected issues concerning power, protest, leadership, political communication, national and cultural identity. The course examines how symbol and staging, narrative and coding, performance and counter-performance define and determine contemporary communication practices.

Learning and Teaching Information:

The module will be structured around lectures on the relationship of politics, culture and performance and seminars where students will engage in debates on the way politics and culture are performed by different actors and institutions.

The module's Moodle page will serve as an information portal containing reading, links to reading and primary and secondary research and also an archive of lecture materials.

Seminars/workshops
Hours: 32
Intended Group size: 30

Guided independent study
Hours: 168

Further details relating to assessment
Assessment 1. Essay 1: The essay will consist of the critical analysis of an event or social phenomenon that addresses the political and cultural dimensions of performance. Full guidance and support will be provided in lectures, seminars and on Moodle for the completion of the essay.

Assessment 2. Report: The report will consist of a detailed and critical analysis of an event or social phenomenon that addresses the relationship between politics and culture. The report will have to identify the main actors of the chosen event/phenomenon, engage with the existing policy framework and provide recommendations for future analysis. Full guidance and support will be provided in lectures, seminars and on Moodle for the completion of the report.

Assessment:

001 Essay; 2,000 words; Mid-Semester 50%
002 Report; 2,000 words; End of Semester 50%

Fact File

Module Coordinator -
Level - 6
Credit Value - 20
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 6S1

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