Course Overview

Course Description

In this course we will use an interdisciplinary methodology drawing upon expertise from the disciplines of Visual Communication and English Rhetoric. Students will look at how symbols (such as words, art, photography, design) affect common perceptions of war and at how images have been used to justify and criticize, to clarify and confuse the issues behind wars in modern America. To do so, we’ll use some major rhetorical theories and analytical methods to examine a variety of genres including poetry, film, propaganda posters, cartoons, and architecture. Students will also create their own visual images to communicate a specific message about war and will write a paper explaining the rhetorical principles they incorporated into their art, the cultural traditions that they drew upon, and the moral implications involved in their creations. 

Course Outcomes

By the end of the course, students should be able to look beyond the surface meaning of artwork to recognize rhetorical arguments that the art is making and explain how those arguments support or challenge dominant American ideologies and self-perception. Students should also have developed a deeper consideration of ways that art may serve as “propaganda” as well as a better understanding of the moral and ethical implications inherent in creating art in service to a political/national cause. 

Instructors 

Amy Milakovic (English Rhetoric) amy.milakovic@avila.edu

EricWinter (Graphic Design) eric.winter@avila.edu