English 368--History of Film, Part I:
From the 1890s to 1939

Fall 2006
English Department
Centenary College of Louisiana
304 Jackson Hall
Tu/Th 2:00-5:00

Instructor: Jefferson Hendricks
Office: 307D Jackson Hall
Office hours: Mon 1:30--4:00;  1:15-1:50 T/TH  and by appt.
Office ph.: 869-5086 /5254
Email: jhendric@centenary.edu

Texts:
Course Objectives:  Film History I is designed to enable you:
Course Requirements:

Grading:
 
Work Ethic                           30% Critical essays              40%
Mid-term and Final              30%


Here are some models of essays that might help you write about certain topics.  You are expected to write two out-of-class 1000-word essays (about 4-5 typed pages).  Your writing should engage with the conversation of other knowledgeable critics/scholars wrestling with your subject.   You should consult both printed and online sources in writing your essays. Further information about these essays will be given in class.  You will be allowed to revise as many times as you'd like before the essay is due.  I will be glad to meet with you during office hours to review any drafts that you'd like to submit for comments.   


Attendance and class participation:

To be successful in this class you need to be in class (on time, naturally) and prepared to listen, observe, and talk intelligently and passionately. More than two absences will lower your "work ethic" grade. You may make up for absences and tardiness, and also obtain extra credit, by writing 250-350 word reviews of approved out-of-class films.

General On-Line Resources for Film History Before WWII:

Nota bene:  Not all web sites are created equally.  Learn to evaluate them as you would more traditional print resources.  The following guide from Cornell University  is a good initial step in that direction: "How to Critically Analyze Information Sources."
English 368:  Course Schedule

Week One -- Aug 22 and 24:
"Introduction:  Reading Classical Hollywood Cinema"

Film:

Readings: Background Readings:
Week Two -- Aug 29 and Aug 31:
"D.W. Griffith, Buster Keaton, and the Rise of Classical Hollywood Cinema"

Film:



Readings:
Background Readings:

Week Three -- Sept 5 and 7:
"Hollywood in the Twenties:  Drama and Comedy"
Film: Readings: Background Readings:
Week Four -- Sept 12 and 14:
"German Expressionist Film of the Twenties"  

Film:



Readings:


Background Readings:
Week Five -- Sept 19 and 21:
"Radical Politics, Modernist Style:  Silent Film from the Soviet Union"

Film:


Readings:
Background Readings:  
Week Six -- Sept 26 and 28:
"Modernism and Film:  From the Avant Garde to Animation"

Film:



Readings:
Background Readings:
Week Seven -- Oct. 3 and 5:
"Genre, Auteurism, and the American Studio System, Part I:  The Gangster Film and The Musical"

Film


***  Fri Oct 6:    Take home mid-term exam due by 12:00 pm to Ms. Palmer in Room 307 of Jackson Hall

Readings:
Background Readings:
Week Eight -- Oct 10 and 12:
Fall Break
Week Nine -- Oct 17 and 19:
"Genre, Auteurism, and the American Studio System, Part II:
Screwball Comedy  --  Frank Capra and Preston Sturges"

Film:

Readings: Background Readings:
Week Ten -- Oct 24 and 26:
"Documenting the Depression:  The Rise of the Documentary Film"  

Film:


Readings:

Background Readings:

Week Eleven -- Oct 31 and Nov 2:
"Politics and Popular Film in Europe of the 1930s"

Film:



Readings:

Background Readings:

Week Twelve -- Nov 7 and 9:
"Genre, Auteurism, and the American Studio System, Part III:
Melodrama and the Screwball Comedy:  Josef von Sternberg and Howard Hawks"

Film:

Readings:

Background Readings:

Week Thirteen -- Nov 14 and 16:
"Genre, Auteurism, and the American Studio System, Part IV:  
John Ford and the American West"
Film:


Readings:

Background Readings:



Week Fourteen -- Nov 21 and 23:
No Class:  Thanksgiving Break


Week Fifteen -- Nov 28 and 30:
"Challenging the Hollywood System: 
Welles's Kane" 

Film:



 Readings:

Background Readings:

 Week Sixteen -- Dec 5 and 7:
Review and Evaluations
*****   Wed Dec 6   ***   Turn in Essay # 2 to Ms. Palmer in Room 307 of Jackson Hall before 2:00 pm

Final Exam Week:  Dec 11 - 15