2009 Course Handbook
PHIL365: Philosophy and Cinema
What is philosophical about film? What does philosophy have to say about cinema? How can a film be philosophical? How can a camera movement or narrative twist be a form of thought? This course explores these questions across a range of philosophical writings dealing with ontological, phenomenological, hermeneutic, and aesthetic aspects of the cinematic experience. Rather than treating cinema as an illustration of various theories, we shall examine the ways in which cinema as a medium itself raises philosophical problems, explores philosophical themes in visual and narrative terms, and has philosophical implications for understanding modern culture.
We begin by examining the problems of cinematic representation, visual perception, and the ontology of the moving image. We then consider the question of subjectivity in cinema, exploring the phenomenology of movement and time-consciousness, as well as cinematic reflections on personal identity and filmic explorations of unconscious desire. Finally, we discuss the cultural, aesthetic, and ideological implications of cinema as a technological artform. Throughout the course we investigate the work of philosophers who analyse specific film genres or aesthetic aspects of film interpretation (eg Stanley Cavell), philosophers who theorise the cultural and ideological dimensions of cinema (eg Walter Benjamin), as well as recent work on 'film as philosophy' (Gilles Deleuze, Stephen Mulhall). Various films and cinematic auteurs will also be studied throughout the course.
| Credit Points: | 4 |
| Contact Hours: | 3 |
| When Offered: |
D2 - Day; Offered in the second half-year
X2 - External study; Offered in the second half-year (On Campus session: No session) |
| Staff Contact: | Dr Jean-Philippe Deranty |
| Prerequisites: | 40cp or admission to GDipPhil |
| Corequisites: | |
| NCCWs: | |
| Unit Designations: | Social Science |
| Assessed As: | Graded |
| Offered By: |
Department of Philosophy |
Timetable Information
For unit timetable information please visit the Timetables@Macquarie Website.