Assignment Details
Your assignment should show an understanding of the theory of the Culture Industry in
illustrating its application in an account of your chosen cultural form. This assignment is a type
of sociologically-informed critical cultural analysis rather than a straightforward review.
The critical account you develop should consider the ideological aspects of the content under
review, in turn considering whether the theory of the Culture Industry holds true to explain
popular culture today or needs revision in some respect. The central question is whether
popular culture is indeed entirely commodified and serving only to legitimate the status quo,
or instead retains aspects of authentic artistic expression which have the potential to raise
critical consciousness and point to possibilities beyond society in its current form.
You may chose to focus on general or quite specific aspects of the content in considering, for
example: the dominant themes explored and ideas expressed; the narrative or storyline and
it’s associated morality; the characters or personality types and their motivations and values;
the explicit and/or latent messages or semiotic and symbolic content; the general perspective
on the world and the ‘truth’ the audience is expected to accept; etc., etc.
The assignment should be written as a brief essay. Marks will be awarded for: originality of perception; depth of understanding; critical evaluation; clarity of analysis.
Assignments should be a 1,000 words maximum, excluding bibliography. You should use
a sans-serif font such as Ariel, Calibri, or Times New Roman, size 12, justified and double linespaced and follow Harvard referencing style.
