Week 1
Course Overview: Introduction to traditional and popular culture and their functions in everyday life.
Focus Areas:
Folkloric (traditional) texts: oral narratives, musical traditions, belief systems.
Popular culture: aspects of shared culture disseminated through mass media (print, television, films).
Format:
1 x 2-hour lecture and 1 x 2-hour tutorial weekly.
Lecture Details: Mondays, Stedman Lecture Hall “D”, 14:30—16:20.
Tutorials: Led by Gary Butler and others; scheduled on various days and locations.
Quizzes: 2 mid-term quizzes (10% each).
Exams: 1 mid-year exam (20%); 1 final exam (20%).
Presentations: 2 tutorial oral presentations (10% and 15%).
Participation: 15% for tutorial participation.
Definition of Culture: How we understand ourselves and the social world; involves shared community experiences.
Symbolic Communication: Representation through oral, visual, or combined means.
Role of Communication: Language and behavior help organize our understanding of the world.
Traditional Culture: Features traditional genres with formal structures and ordered content.
Genres Defined: Categories in literature based on structure and content (e.g., folklore, myths, ballads).
Oral Literature: Spoken forms contrasted with written literature.
Discourse: Deeper meanings conveyed beyond surface text; reflects cultural values.
Storytelling: Reveals what is communicated by the storyteller and how it reflects societal values.
Examples:
Life vs. Death
Good vs. Evil
Order vs. Chaos
Individual vs. Community
Nature of Culture: Constantly evolving, influenced by changes in social norms and knowledge.
Anthropological View: Culture as a holistic way of life;
E.B. Tylor's Definition: Knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, values, customs.
Clifford Geertz: Culture as sustaining shared symbolic experiences.
Communication: Face-to-face interaction; transmission across generations.
Features: Variants exist, anonymous authorship, conservative nature.
Verbal Art: Social communicative process; framed for heightened experience.
Performance Characteristics: Emergent, context-conditioned, involves artistic interaction.
Dimensions: Temporal, spatial, social contexts influencing situated interaction and cultural communication.
Course Overview: Introduction to traditional and popular culture and their functions in everyday life.
Focus Areas:
Folkloric (traditional) texts: oral narratives, musical traditions, belief systems.
Popular culture: aspects of shared culture disseminated through mass media (print, television, films).
Format:
1 x 2-hour lecture and 1 x 2-hour tutorial weekly.
Lecture Details: Mondays, Stedman Lecture Hall “D”, 14:30—16:20.
Tutorials: Led by Gary Butler and others; scheduled on various days and locations.
Quizzes: 2 mid-term quizzes (10% each).
Exams: 1 mid-year exam (20%); 1 final exam (20%).
Presentations: 2 tutorial oral presentations (10% and 15%).
Participation: 15% for tutorial participation.
Definition of Culture: How we understand ourselves and the social world; involves shared community experiences.
Symbolic Communication: Representation through oral, visual, or combined means.
Role of Communication: Language and behavior help organize our understanding of the world.
Traditional Culture: Features traditional genres with formal structures and ordered content.
Genres Defined: Categories in literature based on structure and content (e.g., folklore, myths, ballads).
Oral Literature: Spoken forms contrasted with written literature.
Discourse: Deeper meanings conveyed beyond surface text; reflects cultural values.
Storytelling: Reveals what is communicated by the storyteller and how it reflects societal values.
Examples:
Life vs. Death
Good vs. Evil
Order vs. Chaos
Individual vs. Community
Nature of Culture: Constantly evolving, influenced by changes in social norms and knowledge.
Anthropological View: Culture as a holistic way of life;
E.B. Tylor's Definition: Knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, values, customs.
Clifford Geertz: Culture as sustaining shared symbolic experiences.
Communication: Face-to-face interaction; transmission across generations.
Features: Variants exist, anonymous authorship, conservative nature.
Verbal Art: Social communicative process; framed for heightened experience.
Performance Characteristics: Emergent, context-conditioned, involves artistic interaction.
Dimensions: Temporal, spatial, social contexts influencing situated interaction and cultural communication.