Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Horror ((3))

Catalog description

The horror film holds a special status within popular culture, particularly in community of color. The art of fear continues to fascinate audiences, but the horror film is more than just a cheap adrenaline rush. This course will take an in depth look at the horror film from the classics to the foreign to the contemporary, focusing on the history and themes of the genre, specifically in relation to gender, sexuality, and race representations. Through diverse and insightful readings, screenings of selected films, and discussion and analyses of the films, students will gain meaningful insight into the representations of gender and race in the art of fear and its connection to our understanding of culture at large. There will be a special focus on African American and Latino horror films to help further examine the theoretical frameworks of gender, race, socio-economic class, sexuality, and other issues in society and culture. How does real-life horror and fictional horror reflect society and culture? How is popular culture used to reinforce and dispel stereotypes as well as subjective/objective beliefs/ideas in society? Lastly, students will be taught how to read, critique, and write about film and literature.