This course uses film to investigate the central role of race in American culture and history from the late 19th to the early 21st century. While this class concentrates on the history of African Americans in film from Birth of a Nation to Do the Right Thing, we also watch movies that explore American racial formations including whiteness and ethnicity; Native Americans and Asian Americans under US empire; frontiers, borderlands and diasporas on screen; and contemporary controversies over multiculturalism, colorblindness and globalization. Themes covered include race and representation; white supremacy in early film; the classical Hollywood studio system versus independent cinema; genre, gender and sexuality; migration and disaster.

Repeat Rules

Course is not repeatable for credit.

Requirements class fulfills