| Course Title | Code | Semester | L+U Hour | Credits | ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | GİT302 | 6. Semester | 3 + 0 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
| Prerequisites | None |
| Language of Instruction | Turkish |
| Course Level | Undergraduate |
| Course Type | |
| Mode of delivery | Lectures, Q&A sessions, and case studies/examples |
| Course Coordinator |
Assist. Prof. Dr. AYŞE USLU |
| Instructor(s) |
AYŞE USLU |
| Assistants | |
| Goals | The aim of this course is to enable students to analyze visual culture from a critical perspective and to contribute to their understanding of the social, political, and ideological contexts of images. The course provides a comprehensive framework on how visual representations are constructed, how audiences interact with images, and how visual meaning-making is shaped across different media environments. Students will gain the ability to analyze images using various theoretical perspectives, including semiotics, discourse analysis, feminist theory, and postcolonial approaches. Topics such as the influence of media producers on audiences, the ideological mechanisms of advertising, gender representations, and surveillance technologies will also be discussed. The course aims to enhance students’ visual literacy and encourage them to approach key theoretical debates in visual culture with a critical perspective. |
| Course Content | This course aims to enhance students’ practices of interpreting visuals by examining key theoretical and methodological approaches in the field of visual culture. It focuses on analyzing the power relations, ideological codes, and audience positions involved in the production, distribution, and consumption of images. Topics such as visual signs, representation, ideology, regimes of looking, realism, and media technologies will be discussed in line with the conceptual frameworks presented in the course readings. Throughout the course, students will have the opportunity to examine how visual culture operates not only in the context of artistic production but also in areas such as popular culture, advertising, cinema, media, and digital platforms. Semiotics, discourse analysis, feminist perspectives, and postcolonial approaches are among the key methods used in the analysis of visual materials. By offering a critical approach aimed at developing visual literacy, the course seeks to contribute to students’ ability to evaluate media and communication processes more consciously. The examples discussed in the course will encompass both historical and contemporary visual culture practices. |
| Learning Outcomes |
- By the end of this course, students will be able to: Critically analyze the cultural and ideological frameworks of visual representations. - Deconstruct visual narratives in media and popular culture using semiotic and discursive methods. - Evaluate how visual culture intersects with gender, class, and ethnicity. - Examine the processes of production, consumption, and distribution of images in the digital age from a critical perspective. - Enhance their visual literacy and make informed assessments of media and communication processes. |
| Week | Topics | Learning Methods |
|---|---|---|
| 0. Week | Anatomy of the Gaze: Modernity, Surveillance, and the Power of the Eye | |
| 1. Week | Visual Culture Map: What Do We See, How Do We See It? | |
| 2. Week | The Power of Representation: Do Images Carry Ideology? | |
| 3. Week | Who Is the Viewer? The Process of Meaning-Making and Visual Consumption | |
| 4. Week | Anatomy of the Gaze: Modernity, Surveillance, and the Power of the Eye | |
| 5. Week | The Reality of Images: Truth or Fiction? | |
| 6. Week | Reproduction of Images: In the Footsteps of Walter Benjamin | |
| 7. Week | The Role of Images in Everyday Life: The Power and Influence of Media | |
| 8. Week | Mid Term Exam | |
| 9. Week | Brand Culture and Consumer Visuality | |
| 10. Week | Postmodern Visuality: Pastiche, Irony, and the Loss of Meaning | |
| 11. Week | The Scientific Gaze: Visual Technologies and Scientific Representations | |
| 12. Week | The Flow of Global Images: Media and Globalization | |
| 13. Week | The Future of Visual Culture: New Media and Artificial Intelligence | |
| 14. Week | Resistance and Visual Activism: Creating Change Through Images | |
| 15. Week | Final Exam |
| Sturken, Marita ve Cartwright, Lisa (2009) Practices of Looking: An Introduction to Visual Culture. Oxford University Press. |
| Mirzoeff, Nicholas. The Visual Culture Reader. 2nd ed. London; New York, NY: Routledge, 2002. |
| Mitchell, WJT. (2002) “Showing Seeing: a Critique of Visual Culture.” Journal of Visual Culture 1.2 : 165,181. |
| Nicholas Mirzoeff, How to See the World |
| Caren Kaplan, Life in the Age of Drone Warfare. |
| Program Requirements | Contribution Level | DK1 | DK2 | DK3 | DK4 | DK5 | Measurement Method |
|---|
| 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course's Level of contribution | None | Very Low | Low | Fair | High | Very High |
| Method of assessment/evaluation | Written exam | Oral Exams | Assignment/Project | Laboratory work | Presentation/Seminar |
| Event | Quantity | Duration (Hour) | Total Workload (Hour) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midterm 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Homework 1 | 1 | 15 | 15 |
| Final | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Practice | 14 | 1 | 14 |
| Practice End-Of-Term | 5 | 1 | 5 |
| Classroom Activities | 14 | 3 | 42 |
| Total Workload | 78 | ||
| ECTS Credit of the Course | 3.0 | ||
