Skip to Content

From the Beats to Big Brother: Popular Culture Since the 1950s - MHIS365

What can we learn about the past when we examine it through the lens of popular culture? This unit traces a history of popular culture in the United States of America and Australia from the 1950s to the present, exploring the ways that popular culture can magnify and reflect changing ideas about race, class, gender, and ideology. We will examine the impact of new technologies, moral panics over popular culture, and whether popular culture constituted a form of cultural citizenship. Film, television, music and other media are used in this unit to evoke seminal moments in the history of popular culture and students are encouraged to explore these non-discursive forms as primary sources. Students are also encouraged to consider the reception of popular culture by audiences and to think about their own experience of popular culture historically. This unit will be of particular interest to students in media, education, and cultural studies, as well as history.

Credit Points: 3
When Offered:

S1 Day - Session 1, North Ryde, Day

S1 External - Session 1, External (On-campus sessions: None)

Staff Contact(s): Dr Michelle Arrow
Prerequisites:

39cp at 100 level or above or (6cp in HIST or MHIS or POL units at 200 level including 3cp in HIST or MHIS) Prerequisite Information

Corequisites:

NCCW(s): HIST265, HIST365, MHIX365
Unit Designation(s):
Unit Type:
Assessed As: Graded
Offered By:

Department of Modern History, Politics and International Relations

Faculty of Arts

Course structures, including unit offerings, are subject to change.
Need help? Ask us.