124267 AR Cultural/Media Studies 1/2 (AR) (2020W)

The corona pandemic has shaken the world to its core. When the virus hit, it came with restrictions of movement, the closure of public spaces, and the revision of established social practices. As scientists and the media tried to disentangle the complex nexus of factors responsible for the disease and its rapid spread, anxiety, panic, and misinformation spread with similar speed. Neologisms like "social distancing", "covidiot", or "infodemic" suggest that we are dealing with an entirely new phenomenon. However, while Covid-19 has forced modern societies worldwide to learn new patterns of behaviour, this is not the first time we are facing an epidemic of such magnitude. Unnoticed by most of us, infectious diseases regularly wreak havoc in poorer parts of the earth. And not long ago, disease outbreaks still occurred regularly in many parts the Western world. While many of us seem to have forgotten about this invisible threat, our ideas about disease and contagion can often be traced back to centuries past.

In this AR, students will develop advanced research skills and acquaint themselves with critical methods to examine the concepts and cultural practices that have evolved around infectious diseases. Together, we will discuss theoretical-critical texts and develop relevant research questions further explored in groups. The findings of our group research tasks will be compiled in a joint (group) project at the end of the term.

This is a digital learning course with synchronous and asynchronous elements. Methods include group discussions, group and independent (research) work, presentations and a joint practical project.