COMM 2725 <2022-SP> | Office hours | Content |
---|---|---|
TU/FR 1:35–3:15 Ryder 209 |
TU appointments at 15:30+ Prof. Reagle, <j.reagle> Comm Studies, 215 Holmes Hall Tip: Enter at 41A Leon St. |
Genres of popular communication – be they self-help books, speculative fiction, or fashion blogs – reflect the aspirations and fears of a people at their moment in history. Simultaneously, popular communication shapes people’s sense of identity, purpose, and worth. In this course, we will engage with a specific genre, using historical and critical methods, so as to better understand this reciprocal relationship between a people and their moment.
Get Stuff Done within a 4-Hour Workweek by following The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Take a Clarity Cleanse during The Year of Yes to be well and wise. Master The Game to bed a hottie or follow The Rules to marry them. The self-help genre reflects popular aspirations and fears across work, wealth, health, relationships, and meaning. They are also laden with assumptions – and biases – about what is worthwhile and worthy. You’ll work to understand how this genre of popular communication reflects and shapes our sense of identity, purpose, and worth. You’ll even have a chance to write some self-help of your own.
Successful completion of this course enables you to:
“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” – Confucius
This is an active learning course meaning that you will be partaking in class and group discussions, participating in class exercises, and sharing and relating what we learn to the larger world.
I also make much use of the Web. For instance, this syllabus is a Web page that I update; I expect you to bookmark it and to follow links. (If you find a broken link or typo, let me know!) You can easily find things on this page with ⌘+f. You can open links in new tabs with control-click. We will also make use of Google Docs. In emails I often use markdown conventions and respond below your quoted (‘>’) text.
In short, come to class on time and with the readings and assignments completed; be respectful and willing to collaborate. There are no provisions for missed exams or late assignments.
In general, if you have an issue, such as needing an accommodation for a religious obligation or disability, speak with me before it affects your performance. Do not plead afterwards. Instead, beforehand, offer proposals that show initiative and a willingness to work.
Academic Integrity is of utmost importance: “The promotion of independent and original scholarship ensures that students derive the most from their educational experience and their pursuit of knowledge.” Violations include cheating, plagiarism, and participating in or encouraging dishonesty. If you cheat on an exam, you will receive zero credit and be referred to the Office of Student Conduct. If you plagiarize seven or more words in a row, the same will follow.
We sometimes use devices in class as part of an activity, but the default policy is for gadgets to be silenced and put away. If you want to use a device throughout the course, email me a device proposal with your intended usage. Device users might also be called upon you to perform tasks such as looking things up or taking collaborative notes.
Deviations from classroom professionalism and respect may result in dismissal from class and demerits against your grade. See full course policies for more detail.
There are 1000 points at stake over the term. This is converted to letter grades based on thresholds, without rounding. For example, 870 is a B+; 869 is not. Due dates are included in the schedule.
(200 pts) Class participation
This entails much more than (even perfect) attendance; participation is not an easy “gimme grade” and is assessed rigorously. Please see the participation rubric for more.
(200 pts) Reading responses
You are expected to read and be prepared to discuss all readings. In each half of the course you must also complete a certain number of reading responses. You must complete five responses (typically 250-350 words) by the middle of the semester and five after; do not add or edit responses after they are due. You can only write one response per class. Plan this ahead of time so you are not caught short. Absent a specific prompt, summarize and engage.
Draft and keep your responses in a Google Doc “viewable by anyone with link.” Date each entry, and spell and grammar
check your writing. You can maintain a checklist of how to write an excellent response at
the top of your document. (Note, GDoc now works with
Grammarly, which I recommend.) Email responses to me no later than 90 minutes before class with pc-r
in
the subject and the prose in the body of the email (no attachments).
(2x150 pts) Film analyses
View and analyze two self-help films and write a ~800 word essay on each. Make and support a compelling thesis (e.g., a novel argument) while engaging with course content. You might, for example, touch on
(100 pts) Be a guru
Demonstrate an understanding of self-help (1) by exemplifying the features of the genre and (2) reflecting on your use of those features (i.e., guru analysis).
Write an online post of ~700 words presenting self-help advice (e.g., zen habits, tiny buddha, and marc & angel). You must post it publicly, wherever you like (e.g., medium.com, carrd.co, or Tumblr). You can use a pseudonym – and do keep your privacy in mind. You need not believe the advice you give, the post can be exaggerated satire. If you write on a deeply personal topic, ask yourself if it’s something you want to be graded on?
On Canvas, submit a link to your post, a copy of the prose and a ~400 word preface reflecting on the piece relative to our class readings and discussions about features of the genre.
In the preface, use APA citations but you don’t need a bibliography. This will be assessed on the quality of the self-help’s writing and presentation, and the reflection’s writing and engagement with course content.
(200 = 150 pts + 50 pts) Book analysis
Select a self-help book to read and analyze. You will give a five-minute presentation and write a ~1200 word analysis. In both, briefly introduce the work and then convey a compelling thesis relative to course content and some of the questions of our “guru analyses.” Your essay should also use three external sources (e.g., book reviews, critiques, or scholarly works). Consider the writing rubric and presentation tips and rubric.
If you wish to use visuals during your presentation, link to your slides in the Slides Doc and make your deck public to everyone, not just Northeastern, so I can display them if necessary
TRACE (2pts)
Our college requires all students to complete TRACE evaluations at the end of the semester even if you (anonymously) opt-out of completing the survey. Those who send me evidence of completing TRACE receive a bonus-point.
Assignments must be double-spaced, 12 point font, 1-inch margins. (One page contains approximately 250 words.) Citations and bibliography must be in the APA style. No APA cover page is required. Include your name and submit the electronic version via Canvas before class.
If you have permission to revise a written assignment for re-assessment, please see these revision instructions.
Communication Studies courses are expected, on average, to have a GPA of no more than a 3.3 (B+); this means those receiving an A or A- are in the minority. The course rubric notes that “A” students have all of the following attributes.
Many links to my public wiki are found through-out this syllabus (remember, ⌘+f is your friend), but I’ve gathered some of the most important ones below.
Most readings are linked to from this page, if not check this zip file . I specify the chapter (ch=) or pages (pp=) to read for selections.
You will need access to the following two films.
I highly recommend you get a copy of:
Note that for selections, I specify the chapter (ch=) or pages (pp=) to read.
Welcome! We introduce ourselves, cover class logistics, and begin our semester of discussion. Specifically, why is Goop so popular?
Also, bring a mnemonic that connects your name with a memorable image: “Imagine me …” I could say: “Imagine Prof. Reagle being chased by beagles.”
We’ll continue our discussion of why self-help is popular and ask what ideological assumptions underly the advice given?
(You can do your first out of five reading responses required by mid-semester.)
Self-help is a object of study within the subfield of popular communication and culture. What is culture, and what does it mean to speak of popular culture? The two classic works below are a bit difficult, so make note of concepts or claims you don’t understand, as well as those that you think are relevant to self-help (e.g., are readers of self-help “cultural dopes” of a dominating power?)
Stuart Hall, 1981, “Notes on Deconstructing ‘The Popular’,” Popular Culture: A Reader, ch=6, pp=66–71, see zip file
In this trimmed version of a classic essay, Hall considers three different definitions of popular and their strengths and weaknesses. (Focus on pages 66–71.)
John Fiske, 1989, “Understanding Popular,” Reading the Popular, ch=1.
This is the introduction chapter to a book full of 1980s popular culture case studies. This serves as a nice summary of Fiske’s complementary book Understanding Popular Culture and of thinking about this field.
Salerno is a harsh critic of self-help. Absent a specific prompt, summarize and engage.
In 1984, Janice Radway published Reading the Romance, an important piece of pop-culture criticism that investigated the romance genre (and its readers). This type of work came to be known as “audience reception” research, and in 1991 Debra Grodin did the same for self-help; she asked self-help readers about their motivations and thoughts about the genre. Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking is mentioned and is a classic biblical-based instance of self-help. I include a link to some Peale quotes and an article describing his book. Are there any that you like or dislike?
When you read Grodin, ask yourself if contemporary self-help fulfills a similar role and do today’s readers have similar motivations? (Ask your friends!)
What is quackery and how do we distinguish it from science-based medicine?
We continue with our second “audience reception” study of self-help. Now that we’ve read Salerno’s harsh critique, note how Lichterman claims such critiques are missing the point. Does Lichterman also differ with Grodin? What interpretive communities exist today? Also, review the description of and quotes from a self-help book mentioned by Lichterman.
Review the Film analyses assignment and writing requirements. Turn in your film response and be prepared to discuss in class. There’s no reading response today as it’d be redundant with the assignment.
If you wish to reference a portion of the film prior during discussion, have the time stamp at hand, and I might be able to cue it up.
Have a look at Hamberg to get a sense of how GTD works and then consider Gregg’s critiques and if you think them fair.
A popular TED talk about the “life hack” of good posture exposed the frailties of social science.
Review the Be a guru assignment and writing requirements. Turn in your “Be a Guru” assignment.
In this eclectic group of short readings, we’ll encounter the gendering of our relationship to stuff, past and present; the origins of “KonMari”; as well as a short-story about one man’s obsession (make note of a quote for discussing in class).
DUE: 1st half of reading responses, including today. Please send me the link to your Google Doc, with sharing set to “viewable by anyone with link.”
We’ve seen how the hacker ethos is well suited to the authorpreneurs of the creative class. We’ve also seen it associated with masculine culture. Duffy speaks to a different set of entrepreneurs trying to make it online. What similarities and differences do you see between her subjects and life hackers?
In anticipation of discussing Kumaré and hacking meaning, how ought we understand the “exotic” facets of much of self-help, including the dangers of gurus and superstition?
Cosmetic surgery is the most corporeal type of self-help and improvement. What are it’s implications for well-being of the self and others, especially in light of narrow and bigoted beauty standards? (This is a student nominated topic.)
Bring a specific quote from Elliott that you’d like to share.
Review the Film analyses assignment and writing requirements. Turn in your film response and be prepared to discuss in class. There’s no reading response today.
If you wish to reference a portion of the film prior to your point or question, have the exact time stamp at hand, and I might be able to cue it up.
In five minutes, present your self-help analysis and thesis. See presentation tips and rubric.
If you wish to use visuals during your presentation, link to your slides in the Slides Doc and make your deck public to everyone, not just Northeastern, so I can display them if necessary
Review the book analysis assignment and writing requirements. Turn in your book analysis. Remember the writing guide handout.
DUE: 2nd half of reading responses, including today. Please send me the link to your Google Doc, with sharing set to “viewable by anyone with link.”
DUE: Evidence of TRACE completion due via email at 12:00 ET.
© 2020-2022 Joseph Reagle. Please reuse and share!