CODE | PHI3028 | ||||||||
TITLE | Philosophy of the Media | ||||||||
UM LEVEL | 03 - Years 2, 3, 4 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||
MQF LEVEL | 6 | ||||||||
ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||
DEPARTMENT | Philosophy | ||||||||
DESCRIPTION | It is a fact that media lie at the very heart of our interactions with the world around us. The study unit will explore the philosophical and technological trajectory of media from the classical world of Greece until the world of today. The unit will examine currents in media philosophy, both ancient and contemporary, laying special emphasis on the internet, which has charted a profound course to the nerve centre of what Marshall McLuhan called 'The Global Village'. Undoubtedly the rise of the internet has led to a rapid and profound transformation of everyday life. Study-unit Aims: The study-unit will aim to give a theoretical understanding of media and will foster the ability of the students to critically assess media practice. It will shed light on the way media and society are interlinked, assessing the nature and influence of new media technologies. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - engage critically the key issues in the philosophy of the media; - consolidate earlier knowledge in the philosophy of the media; - gauge the effects that various technologies can have upon our everyday lives. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - read analytically and critically a broad selection of texts in the philosophy of the media; - identify and reflect upon key concepts and discussions in the philosophy of the media; - present coherent arguments related to the topics in the philosophy of the media. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts Hansen, M (ed). (2006) New philosophy for new media. MIT Press, USA. Hassan , R & Sutherland, T. (2017) Philosophy of media: a short history of ideas and innovations from Socrates to social media. Routledge, U.K. Supplementary Texts Juliet Floyd & James E Katz (editors). (2015) Philosophy of emerging media: understanding, appreciation, application. Oxford University Press, U.K. Dan Laughey. (2010) Media studies: theories and approaches. Oldcastle Books, U.K. John Durham Peters. (2016) The marvellous clouds: toward a philosophy of elemental media. University of Chicago Press, U.S.A. |
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STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Seminar | ||||||||
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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LECTURER/S | John Avellino |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |