Universität Wien

124220 SE Cultural and Media Studies Seminar (2022W)

Irish National Cinema and the Celtic Tiger

11.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 12 - Anglistik
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 18 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Tuesday 11.10. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 18.10. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 25.10. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 08.11. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 15.11. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 22.11. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 29.11. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 06.12. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 13.12. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 10.01. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 17.01. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 24.01. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19
  • Tuesday 31.01. 10:15 - 11:45 Raum 4 Anglistik UniCampus Hof 8 3E-EG-19

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

Between 1994 and 2008, in the years of the so-called 'Celtic Tiger', Ireland underwent rapid and unprecedented changes in terms of its economy, internationalisation and globalisation, but also in terms of cultural concepts and its images of the nation and its identity. As traditional roles and models of male authority, the nation and its ethnic homogeneity, the role of religion and the relevance of rural lifestyles and traditions gradually eroded and Ireland became a more multicultural environment, popular culture assumed an ever-increasing centrality in exploring tensions in Irish conceptions of the nation.

In this context, the seminar explores the development of cinema in Ireland with a specific focus on Irish film after 1994. It analyses the relationship between film and national identity and critically interrogates the concept of a contemporary 'national cinema' in the context of an increasingly transnational film industry and globalised society. Among the questions we will ask are:

1. What is 'national' about Irish cinema and what does the label 'national cinema' imply?
2. What are the issues, problems and areas of Irish life that the films of the period tackle?
3. What are the (trans)national identities that the films propose, undermine or question?
4. In how far does the filmic medium lend itself to a visualization and questioning of national questions of identity, and how do the films visualize struggles for or rejections of a national self?

We will discuss pairs of films for each of the following thematic fields: Irish history; representing the 'new' Dublin; representing rural lives; poverty and discrimination during the Celtic Tiger.

Assessment and permitted materials

a) Regular attendance and preparation of session material (students may miss two sessions)
b) General participation in class, including individual contributions, work with a partner as well as work in groups
c) Expert work on assigned readings: each student will be assigned to one source material of the syllabus and provide expert input in the respective session
d) A portfolio of three short writing task that prepare you for your term paper
e) A formal written paper of 6.500-8.000 words (depending on your study programme)

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

a) Active participation and contributions in class (including your expert input in your respective session): 20%
b) Portfolio Tasks: 30%
c) Term paper: 50%

Students must attain at least 60% of each task to pass the course.

Marks in %:
1 (very good): 90-100%
2 (good): 80-89%
3 (satisfactory): 70-79%
4 (pass): 60-69%
5 (fail): 0-59%

Examination topics

- Input phases combined with group work and classroom discussion
- Student input from your expert session
- Students' written research projects (term paper and portfolio tasks)

Reading list

Theoretical Texts:
Ruth Barton (2004). Irish National Cinema. London: Routledge.
Martin McLoone (2000). Irish Film: The Emergence of a Contemporary Cinema. British Film Institute.
Martin McLoone (2008). Film, media and popular culture in Ireland: cityscapes, landscapes, soundscapes. Dublin: Irish Academic Press.
Michael Patrick Gillespie (2008). The myth of an Irish cinema: Approaching Irish-themed films. Syracuse: UP.

List of Films:
Michael Collins (1996). Dir. Neil Jordan. Ireland/GB/USA: Warner Brothers.
The Wind that shakes the Barley (2006). Dir. Ken Loach. Ireland/UK: Element Pictures.
Goldfish Memory (2003). Dir. Elizabeth Gill. Ireland: Goldfish Films.
About Adam (2000). Dir. Gerard Stembridge. Ireland/UK/USA: Miramax Films.
Garage (2007). Dir. Lenny Abrahamson. Ireland: Element Films.
The Guard (2011). Dir. John Michael McDonagh. Ireland/UK: Element Pictures.
Adam and Paul (2004). Dir. Lenny Abrahamson. Ireland: Element Films.
Once (2006). Dir. John Carney. Ireland: Fox Searchlight.

Association in the course directory

Studium: BA 612, MA 844; MA 844(2);
Code/Modul: BA 09.2; MA6, MA7; MA 844(2) 4.1, 4.2;
Lehrinhalt: 12-0405

Last modified: Tu 16.08.2022 13:47