Midsemester Review of Communication 497AJ

So far I would say that I am really enjoying this class. There is a lot to be said for a professor who can design a class that engages students the way that Professor Yousman is able to do not only with Comm497AJ but also the other classes that I have taken with him. The assignments seem worth it--they don't make me feel as though I am wasting my time doing busy work. I have very much enjoyed most of the readings for the class and though they are dense at times they certainly educate. I particularly enjoyed reading about George Gerbner and the mean world syndrome. Though this class is not the first time that I have visited Gerbner's thesis in college, I feel like I got a lot more out of it in this class than I have in other classes. I feel particularly affected by the mean world syndrome as do I feel many of my friends and family are in the same boat. I find Gerbner's ideas easier to understand than some other theorists and also the fact that they are applicable to me helps in building interest.

I can say that I really struggled with Hall and the different theories of representation and though I understand it better after revisiting the material for the midterm I still feel as though the ideas are hazy in my mind. I wish that I could grasp this thesis a bit better because I can see that it is important and very applicable for the kinds of analysis that we are doing in this class. I feel as though Foucault's ideas about historical context have been extremely important to our analyses since we read the chapter and I just wish that I understood the whole chapter a little bit better.

I have very much enjoyed watching some older horror films and getting the chance to break them down, especially Night of the Living Dead and The Exorcist. I think that the blog is a good way to communicate about the films with such limited class time and it seems to be pretty effective for the class as a whole. The film "War on Drugs" was much more interesting than I thought it would be--given the fact that it was quite poor quality, hard to find, and Dutch subtitled. I thought that the information was so interesting that I actually passed on the link to the film to my supervisor who also enjoyed the documentary. It seems as though the films and readings are able to give us all as students a broad understanding not only of the different perspectives about the culture of fear but also the kinds of writing and film making that are done around the topic. It really feels as though the different parts of the class mesh well together which helps keep my interest in the subject and also makes the work a bit more interesting than tedious.

As far as the discussion board goes I think that it is a good way to keep the class discussing the readings and materials from class since we only meet once a week. I am not a fan of Spark however, it seems to have a lot of problems for me--maybe I am just unlucky. I think that the concept should continue if the class runs again as a blended class but maybe at that point there will be a more functional system.

I would say in general I am very happy in this class. This is my final semester and I was really hoping to have a Comm class that I really enjoyed as my last one so that I could leave the major on a high note and I will say this is not only a good one but maybe my favorite. The materials that we have covered have influenced me quite a bit and I would say that I feel more conscious and aware of the culture of fear and what it is doing and has done to society--so I guess the class is doing it's job!