HIST214

Using classic gangster and monster films from the 1930s as the primary course content, students will have the opportunity to have an increased understanding of a.) the historical realities that influenced the construction of the modern gangster narrative and the modern monster film, b.) the place of the gangster and monster film in the history of film, including the issues of censorship and promulgation of the movie production code, and c.) the gangster and monster films as specific genres, their relationship to other genres of the period including film noire, and the depictions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, urbanism, morality, etc. that defined these genres. Students may also be asked to consider how and why these two genres remain influential in the present.

Level: UG (I),