MJ- Teaching Portfolio

  The work of Spike Lee encompasses many genres (drama, musicals, documentary, comedy, action films, and commercials) and addresses some of the most controversial inter-racial and intra-racial issues of our time; for these reasons, he has become a defining cultural icon, and his films have sparked considerable academic interest.   Moreover, Spike Lee’s explanations of his films in their pre-production and post-production stages allows us to look at the creative process in a unique way.   In this course then, we shall study Lee’s work not only from the usual critical and academic perspective but also from Lee’s perspective as an artist. This course is a seminar, and as such, a high level of student participation is required Aims of the course: a)      To understand a director’s corpus from a creative and critical perspective b)      To explore the interplay of race and class   in American culture c)    ...

                  African American Culture                                                                                                   In this course, we shall attempt to define and understand the aspects of African‑American culture that distinguish it from mainstream American culture; to understand, that is, how an essentially African cultural matrix evolved within the context of American history and society. The organizing principle of the course is s...