Visual Sociology
We live in a visual world. Thus, to understand society and culture, we must understand the images we produce and consume. This course provides a sociological lens to study the various ways we use and are used by images. We will study some key theories that analyze how visual contents (such as photographs, films, and videos) are shared with, viewed, and interpreted by various audiences. We will practice the two sides of visual sociology: picture making by researchers as data collection, and pictures social actors make in the context of everyday life. Students will learn to analyze the messages and imagery in videos and photographs to draw out their social meanings. Each student should have access to a camera to use during the course of the class. For those students who do not have their own, digital cameras are available for student check-out at the main library.