MEVIT3529 – Media Temporalities: Films, Series, Games, Social Media, Music and Books

Schedule, syllabus and examination date

Course content

What do we know and what do we not know about time and temporality?

The course Media Temporalities: Films, Series, Games, Social Media, Music and Books is a theoretical and analytical inquiry into different media temporalities.

"What is time?", Saint Augustine asked in his Confessions. "Who can explain this easily and briefly? Who can comprehend this even in thought so as to articulate the answer in words? Yet what do we speak of, in our familiar everyday conversation, more than of time? We surely know what we mean when we speak of it. We also know what is meant when we hear someone else talking about it. What then is time? Provided that no one asks me, I know. If I want to explain it to an inquirer, I do not know."??????????

These questions and observations made about 1600 years ago are seemingly timeless, still of relevance to our contemporary understanding of time and temporality. In this course, we ask ourselves what kinds of times and temporalities are found in films, series, games, social media, music and books, and explore particular media texts through theoretically informed close analyses.

In order to suggest answers to such questions, we will look at and listen attentively and analytically to media texts, such as a football match, Bob Dylan’s "Brownsville Girl", the standup of Steven Wright, The Simpsons, Joachim Trier’s "Oslo Trilogy", James Benning’s Stemple Pass, David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: The Return, the music of Susanne Sundf?r, Taylor Swift’s All Too Well,Jon Fosse’s novels, and Solvej Balle’s book septology On the Calculation of Volume.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

After completing the course, students will be able to:

  • Describe different temporalities of films, series, games, social media, music and books, using proper terminology
  • Know and use temporal concepts, such as memory, nostalgia, past, present, future, repetition, reprise, return, and still
  • Read, look at and listen attentively and analytically to media texts

Skills

After completing the course, students will be able to:

  • Analyse and interpret temporalities in and around particular media texts, such as a football match, "Brownsville Girl", the standup of Steven Wright, The Simpsons, Joachim Trier’s "Oslo Trilogy", Stemple Pass, Twin Peaks: The Return, All Too Well, Jon Fosse’ novels, and On the Calculation of Volume
  • Write a theoretical and/or analytical essay on media temporalities

General competence

After completing the course, students will be able to:

  • Read, look at and listen attentively
  • Conduct a close textual analysis
  • Understand more about what we know and what we do not know about (mediated) time and temporality

Admission to the course

Students who