Australian Popular Culture

The course introduces students to Australian cultural studies through consideration of constructions of Australian national identity in a broad range of popular cultural forms such as popular literature, film and television.

Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to demonstrate:

1) a critical understanding of the dynamic relationship between popular culture and ideologies of Australian national identity;

2) an in-depth knowledge of selected texts and case studies;

3) the ability to review and critique these texts and case studies; and

4) core skills in written and oral communication in textual and audio-visual media.

Course Content:

Topics include:

* Key concepts and methods in Cultural Studies

* The myth of the bush

* Constructing the national type

* Diggers and heroes: the ANZAC legend on film

* Sex, romance and marriage in post-war women's magazines

* The Crocodile Dundee phenomenon:

* Women, Suburbia and Comedy:

* Multiculturalism and Teen Culture

* Popular Culture and the History Wars

* Popular representations of Aboriginality