| Unit name | Reception: Theories & Research Methods |
|---|---|
| Unit code | CLASM0023 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. O'Gorman |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | Department of Classics & Ancient History |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Over the past fifty years, scholars in the arts and humanities have increasingly acknowledged the centrality of questions of reception to our understanding of the objects of our research. Artworks, written texts and performances construct implied viewers, readers and audiences; yet at the same time, real viewers, readers and audiences participate in constructing the meanings and effects of artworks, written texts and performances. As Roland Barthes puts it, then, $�only-the-text does not exist&�: the objects of our research can be understood as a complex negotiation between text, context and audience. This unit will familiarize students with a variety of theoretical perspectives on the processes which produce historically and culturally situated readings and reading practices, including: semiology; hermeneutics; poststructuralism and textuality; postcolonialism; and ideology and mass culture critique. Students will also be equipped with a range of research methods and skills relevant to conducting theoretically informed interdisciplinary research.
