Cold War Propaganda & Pop Culture

Catalog description

This course examines the Cold War as a global conflict that took form as a series of proxy wars and a competition of ideas and culture. Spanning the end of WWII until the 1990s, we will discuss the origins and escalation of the Cold War as well as the ideas that drove this conflict. Using propaganda and popular culture (movies, music, and comics), we will also discuss how the Cold War was represented to citizens and how citizens understood it themselves and, at times, sought to influence society. Students will gain an understanding of this conflict and its continued impact on the present and will learn how to engage in visual culture and propaganda.