Students in this course will examine contemporary western visual culture, as it is constituted by visual modes of communication. The course begins by questioning the philosophic and ideological significance of 'seeing' in western culture, and examines methods of interpretation and representation in the visual realm. Through analysis of images in art, print advertising, documentary photography, and a range of television, video, and film genres, students will investigate the relation of cultural practices, ideologies and institutions to the production and reception of visual messages. Aesthetic philosophy, semiotics, psychoanalysis, discourse analysis, feminism, and postmodern criticism will be considered as research methods. Pre-requisites: ELA 30-1 or equivalent