Film, Images & Historical Interpretation in the 20th Century: The Camera Never Lies
Offered By
University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London
Film, Images & Historical Interpretation in the 20th Century: The Camera Never Lies
University of London
About this Course
4.4
54 ratings
This course is a short taster on the topic of the use of Images, Film, and their use in historical interpretation in the 20th century. It is primarily provided for those who have a general interest in history that draws on photojournalism as primary evidence, and films based on historical events.
Once you have completed this course we hope you will be equipped to:
Appreciate the significance of photographs as historical evidence in the twentieth century.
Understand the limitations of the medium, and how we can attribute meaning to these individual records of 'one moment in time' while taking into account the circumstances in which any particular image was taken.
Understand how individuals and institutions have looked to manipulate images to their own ends – through alteration and/or censorship – and what that meant to contemporary interpretation, as well as subsequent historical interpretation.
Put individual images into a wider context, and in particular with reference to history written, or portrayed, beyond academia: public history.
Do be aware that part of the contents of this course regard images and depiction of war. Real wars and real images.
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
1
Section
Introduction
We will explore the issues associated with the use of images as a source for historical research and consider a number of examples where image manipulation has been uncovered
7 videos (Total 40 min), 8 readings, 1 quiz
7 videos
Use of Images7m
Manipulation2m
The Image in Politics5m
Advertising5m
Reportage (Reporting the News)4m
Optional Extra Material - other forms of images - Guernica14m
8 readings
The Camera Never Lies - Course Information10m
Aims and Objectives10m
The Use of Images10m
Manipulation10m
The Image in Politics10m
Advertising10m
Reportage10m
Optional Extra Information - Guernica10m
1 practice exercise
Week 1 Quiz20m
2
Section
Images and History in the Twentieth Century
We will review a number of cases studies where images have either shaped our opinion of events or have been suppressed from the public at the time, to avoid adverse or negative reaction.
8 videos (Total 54 min), 6 readings, 1 quiz
8 videos
Hitler8m
The Boer War2m
The Civil Rights Movement4m
Vietnam7m
The Blitz part 16m
The Blitz part 29m
Optional Extra Material - The London Riots 201110m
6 readings
Adolf Hitler10m
The Boer War10m
The US Civil Rights Movement10m
Vietnam10m
The Blitz10m
Optional Extra Reading - The London Riots 201110m
1 practice exercise
Week 2 Quiz10m
3
Section
The Air-Brushing of History: Stalin and Falsification
The cause célèbre' of historical manipulation - Joseph Stalin. The 'air brushing' of historical records, and in this case the literal airbrushing of Soviet images in the 1930s and 1940s
10 videos (Total 104 min), 4 readings, 1 quiz
10 videos
The Soviet Union13m
Soviet Union under Stalin7m
The Image as Propaganda16m
Falsification13m
Conclusion4m
Optional Extra Material - Films with historical themes8m
Optional Extra Material: Film - The Damned United11m
Optional Extra Material: Film - In the Name of the Father9m
Optional Extra Material: Final Thoughts11m
4 readings
Introduction10m
The Soviet and Stalin Lectures10m
Falsification10m
Optional Extra Material: Films with historical themes10m
1 practice exercise
Week 3 Quiz30m
4
Section
Photojournalism, Authenticity and Matters of Public Acceptability: The Battle of Mogadishu
With respect to Reportage and the use of images as a evidential record, should we condemn Stalin in the last 20th and early 21th century? We use an example from 1993 to illustrate this point.
12 videos (Total 105 min), 11 readings, 2 quizzes
12 videos
Death of Margaret Thatcher7m
Black Hawk Down7m
The Day of the Ranger: Aftermath7m
Black Hawk Down and 9/11 Media Reportage4m
Black Hawk Down - The Website7m
The Image17m
Interview10m
UN and the USA in Somalia: Historical Context7m
The Somalian Civil War: Historical Context8m
Optional Extra Material - Interview with Niko: Real-Time Editorial Decision – The Boston Marathon Bombing12m
Optional Extra Material - Image in the Context of Gender Studies8m
11 readings
Introduction Information - Photojournalism, Authenticity and Matters of Public Acceptability: The Battle of Mogadishu10m
Death of Margaret Thatcher - Information10m
Black Hawk Down – Information10m
The Day of the Ranger: Aftermath - Information10m
Media Reportage - Images and information10m
Black Hawk Down: The Website - Information10m
The Image - Information10m
Interview - Information10m
The UN and the USA in Somalia: Historical Context10m
The Somalian Civil War: Historical Context - Information10m
Optional Extra Reading: Interview with Niko: Real-Time Editorial Decision: The Boston Marathon Bombing - Information10m
1 practice exercise
Week 4 Quiz20m
4.4
Top Reviews
By AT•Aug 1st 2017
This is an excellent course and I have really enjoyed it. The topics covered are diverse and the course has provided me with several areas for further independent research.
By AG•Jun 17th 2017
This course is very informative and structural in learning the relation of films and history.
Instructor
Dr Emmett Sullivan
Senior TutorHistory Department, Royal Holloway, University of London
About University of London
The University of London is a federal University which includes 18 world leading Colleges. Our distance learning programmes were founded in 1858 and have enriched the lives of thousands of students, delivering high quality University of London degrees wherever our students are across the globe. Our alumni include 7 Nobel Prize winners. Today, we are a global leader in distance and flexible study, offering degree programmes to over 50,000 students in over 180 countries. To find out more about studying for one of our degrees where you are, visit www.london.ac.uk
About Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London, is ranked in the top 30 universities in the UK (Times & Sunday Times Good University Guide, 2018) and the top 200 universities in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings, 2017-18).
The university was founded by two social reformers who pioneered the ideal of education and knowledge for all who could benefit. Their vision lives on today. As one of the UK’s leading research-intensive universities Royal Holloway is home to some of the world’s foremost authorities in the sciences, arts, business, economics and law.
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