Posted: March 9th, 2017

Discuss the context in which Frankfurt School scholars coined the term “Culture Industry” and how they used the concept to critique mass culture. Your essay should include your own Marxist analysis of a media text that has not been discussed in detail in the lectures or required readings.

APAtutor

Selecting one of the essay topics below, and write a 1500 word essay.

Unlike the Media Journal, the Critical Analysis Essay should be written in an essay style with an introduction, conclusion, appropriate scholarly references, and a “References” or “Works Cited” section. See Swinburne Harvard Style for further details. There is a Swinburne Referencing Tool available on Swinburne Commons to aid you in this process: https://commons.swinburne.edu.au/items/438e3851-5c67-45f9-b9cb-8e34be5c075b/1/

The essay should have a minimum of 6 peer-reviewed references, at least two of which should not be Required or Suggested Readings from the unit.

You will submit the Critical Analysis Essay in Week 9 via Turnitin ahead of the weekly lecture – any assignments submitted after the start of the lecture will be late and incur a penalty.

Essay Topics

1. Discuss the context in which Frankfurt School scholars coined the term “Culture Industry” and how they used the concept to critique mass culture. Your essay should include your own Marxist analysis of a media text that has not been discussed in detail in the lectures or required readings.

2. Chart how what André Bazin describes as the “mummy complex” lies at the origin of painting, photography, and cinema. In your essay you should discuss the ontology of a contemporary media text or technology that has not been discussed in detail in the lectures or required readings.

3. Compare and contrast at least two scholarly approaches for understanding media audiences. Outline the approaches and discuss their relative strengths and weaknesses. Your essay should include your own audience analysis of a media text that has not been discussed in detail in the lectures or required readings.