Master
2019/2020
Practice and Pragmatics of Representation of the Past in Media: Instrumentalization of History
Type:
Elective course (Applied and Interdisciplinary History «Usable Pasts»)
Area of studies:
History
Delivered by:
Institute of Media
When:
1 year, 3 module
Mode of studies:
offline
Instructors:
Ekaterina Lapina-Kratasyuk
Master’s programme:
Applied and Interdisciplinary History "Usable Pasts"
Language:
English
ECTS credits:
4
Contact hours:
32
Course Syllabus
Abstract
The main aim of this course is to provide scholarly introduction of how media change the professional and public perception of history and what new methods and sources of historical research arise with the spread of audiovisual and digital media. The course is composed of three main parts. 1. History in film and TV shows: the problems of storytelling and historical narrative’s construction (including adaptations and transmedia storytelling). 2. Documentaries based on historical content (including multi-platform projects): realism, propaganda, edutainment. 3. Digital History: Big Historical data and crowdsourcing in histori-cal projects. Theoretical outcomes of the course will be in introducing to the stu-dents (a) methods of storytelling and past representations’ analyses, (b) the study of historical film in the framework of public history and (c) ways of implementation of digital humanities’ methods in historical research. Practical outcome of the course will be in development of students’ media project’ concept based on historical content. The course is focused on the most recent trends in producing of his-torical media projects, which presuppose the collaboration of academic his-torians, public historians, media professionals and IT specialists and in-clude amateur content made by witnesses.
Learning Objectives
- Examine the existing approaches to history representation and interpretation in the media.
- Introduce students to the best and most successful examples of promoting historical knowledge through the media and the most powerful examples of shaping historical data in the media.
- Develop students’ ability to find ways and means to present historical in-formation, to tell apart manipulation and opinion and deal with historical facts in their own media work.
Expected Learning Outcomes
- Know basic modes and rules of adaptations and extensions’ producing as well as approaches to analyzing of historical content in media.
- Obtain methods of analyzing of historical films and multiplatform projects, and projects of digital history.
- Use professional tools of making producers’ documents for media projects in the field of popular and public history.
Course Contents
- History in Film and TV shows: Film as Historical Source, Media, and Pub-lic History.
- History in Film and TV shows: The problems of Historical Narrative’s Construction. Formula and Nostalgia.
- Transmedia Storytelling and Histori-cal Projects. Gaming and History.
- Digital History: Big Historical Data and crowdsourcing in historical pro-jects.
- Logline and synopsis of a students’ project.
- Students’ project: storyline and en-gagement.
- Projects presentations (in-class defense).
Bibliography
Recommended Core Bibliography
- Weller, T. (2013). History in the Digital Age. London: Routledge. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=507470
Recommended Additional Bibliography
- Cohen, D. J. (2004). Digital history: the raw and the cooked 1. Rethinking History, 8(2), 337–340. https://doi.org/10.1080/13642520410001683996
- Rampazzo Gambarato, R. (2013). Transmedia Project Design: Theoretical and Analytical Considerations. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.96CB59E4
- White, H. (2014). The Practical Past. United States, North America: eScholarship, University of California. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.F380AD09