Universität Wien
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240519 SE The Politics of (In)visibility (P4) (2020S)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 24 - Kultur- und Sozialanthropologie
Continuous assessment of course work

Participation at first session is obligatory!
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 25 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

Attention: changed dates!

  • Wednesday 04.03. 15:00 - 18:15 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
  • Wednesday 11.03. 15:00 - 18:15 Seminarraum D, NIG 4. Stock
  • Wednesday 18.03. 15:00 - 18:15 Hörsaal A, NIG 4.Stock
  • Friday 24.04. 15:00 - 18:15 Hörsaal C, NIG 4. Stock
  • Wednesday 06.05. 15:00 - 18:15 Hörsaal A, NIG 4.Stock
  • Wednesday 20.05. 15:00 - 18:15 Seminarraum D, NIG 4. Stock
  • Wednesday 03.06. 15:00 - 18:15 Seminarraum D, NIG 4. Stock
  • Wednesday 10.06. 15:00 - 18:15 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

Seminar "Ethnographic Media Practices: The Politics of (In)visibility"

What can be seen and shown? By whom? Why? And what happens when these norms are breached? These questions are hard to ask because aesthetic norms so often appear self-evident, but they can be asked by anthropologists. In this course, we will study practices of seeing, showing, erasing and concealing in the realm of states, markets, and citizens. How do these practices come about? The course encounters such questions from different theoretical angles, through readings of literature from anthropology, development sociology, colonial history, philosophy, and media studies. In the end students reflect on the potential role of anthropologists in these politics of (in)visibility, and put theory into practice in a Visual Workspace.

Learning goals
After completing this course,
- Students have gained theoretical knowledge about the ‘politics of (in)visibility’, or more broadly the politics of aesthetics.
- Students can reflect on how the discipline of (visual/multimodal) anthropology is influenced by these politics or provides possible alternatives to them, and feel challenged to find a position of their own.
- Students can translate concepts into images and can work with analogue and digital techniques of montage and performance to demonstrate or construct theory.

Course set-up
The course has two parts. The first part consists of reading seminars. Students prepare classes by reading literature, viewing related images, and writing short papers that draw connections between concepts and images. In the second part of the course, students work on a visual research project with a multimodal outcome. They collect visual materials, gain experience with techniques of performance and montage, and produce an aesthetic intervention: a short film, which is exhibited.

Entry requirements:
This class is open to all students and no specific technical skills are required. To assess the existing skills and interests within the classroom, students will bring a portfolio to the first meeting, to show what their previous experience with visual media production is and discuss their personal aims/motivation for taking the class. Bring any creative product you have created: this can be film, photographs, drawings, graphics, music, soundscapes, or a website.

Assessment and permitted materials

Submission of two mid-term papers; Submission of a film plan, a short film, and participation in the final exhibition; Active participation in peer-to-peer interactions, as shown in regular attendance and constructive contributions to in-class group assignments (up to 2 sessions may be missed); Active and critical engagement with the compulsory course readings and images, as shown in both individual and group work.

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

The highest possible score to achieve is 100:50 points: Average of two mid-term papers to show mastery of course literature.10 points: Film plan that translates one key idea from the compulsory course literature into images/sounds. 40 points: Short film: individual contribution to the final outcome during the exhibition, including one’s contribution to collaborative and creative work during the creation process.To pass the course, a minimum of 61 points is required.91-100 = 1, excellent81-90 = 2, good7180 = 3, satisfactory6170 = 4, sufficient060 = 5, failedWritten contributions will be evaluated along the following criteria:- use of literature (selection, scope, accuracy of the reproduced content)- relevance of the image application (clarity of link between image and literature) - the line of argument (clarity of reasoning, as well as creativity and originality)- formal requirements (especially resource citation; also formatting and correct English language).The short film will be evaluated along the following criteria:- conceptual link with the course literature (selection, application, and clarity of the idea)- aesthetics (choice of form that suits the concept, skill in implementing it, creativity and originality)- contribution to collaborative and creative work during the creation process- formal requirements (in the film, just as in the papers, all resources should be referenced).The lecturer can invite students to a grade-relevant discussion about partial achievements. Partial achievements that are obtained by fraud or plagiarized result in the non-evaluation of the course (entry 'X' in certificate). From winter term 2019/20 the plagiarism software 'Turnitin' will be used for courses with continuous assessment.

Examination topics

Two written mid-term papers, film plan, short film, engagement in discussions.

Reading list

Required and additional readings will be announced in the first session.

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Fr 14.01.2022 00:29