All assignments are listed by the date on which they are due. All screenings are in-class unless otherwise noted. Also, the class calendar is subject to change: if a change occurs, it will be announced in class and posted online. If you lose this syllabus, an extra copy may be printed from the course site.
SECTION 1 – PREDECESSORS AND COMPETITION
Jan-14 Situating Seinfeld I: Cheers (1982-1993)
- SCREENING: “Don Juan Is Hell ” (12/12/85)
Jan-16 Situating Seinfeld 2: The Cosby Show (1984-1992) and Home Improvement (1991-1999)
- SCREENING [ONLINE]: “Golden Anniversary” (10/09/86) and “Forever Jung” (2/04/92)
- SCREENING: “The Pitch” (Part 1, 08/16/92)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Situating Seinfeld (download from course site)
Jan-18 The Show about Nothing…and Everything
- SCREENING: “The Ticket” (Part 2, 08/16/92)
- READING: “Much Ado about Nothing: Some Final Thoughts on Seinfeld” in MID (13-23)
SECTION 2 – CHARACTER AND NARRATIVE
Jan-21 Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday. No class.
Jan-23 Moops, Mentors, and George Costanza
- SCREENING: “The Bubble Boy” (10/07/92) and “The Fatigues” (10/31/96)
- SEINLANGUAGE: A Character Study
Jan-25 Continuation of a Character Study
- SCREENING: “The Engagement” (9/21/95) [PARTIAL] and “The Invitations” (5/16/96)
- READING: “Why Is George So Funny?”
Jan-28 Narrative Structure, Part 1: Elongation and Multiplicity
- SCREENING: “The Chinese Restaurant ” (05/23/91) and “The Subway” (01/08/92)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Narrative
Jan-30 Narrative Structure, Part 2: Intersection
- SCREENING: “The Marine Biologist” (02/10/94)
- READING: “Genre Expectation and Narrative Innovation in Seinfeld” in MID (77-88)
Feb-1 Writing Workshop: Entering the Conversation
- READING: Introduction (1-14), Ch. 1 (17-27), and Ch. 8 (101-114) in TS / IS
SECTION 3 – MISE-EN-SCENE, INTERTEXTUALITY, AND LANGUAGE
Feb-4 “No Soup [or Chocolate Babka] for You!”: Food As Mise-en-Scene
- SCREENING: “The Dinner Party” (02/03/94) and “The Soup Nazi” (11/02/95)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Mise-en-Scene
Feb-6 Food on Seinfeld: Identifier, Metaphor, and Code for Living
- READING: “Seinfood: Purity, Danger, and Food Codes on Seinfeld” in MID (148-58)
Feb-8 Writing Workshop: The Art of Summarizing, Quoting, and Responding
- READING: Ch. 2 (28-37), Ch. 3 (39-47), and Ch. 4 (51-63) in TS / IS
Feb-11 Talking Topics. Online discussion. See course site for instructions.
- WRITING [DUE BY MIDNIGHT FEB. 11]: Email Brief for Essay 1. Directions on course site. (NOTE: Points will be deducted for lateness.)
Feb-13 Dr. Marshall at a conference. No class.
- WRITING: Begin Draft 1 of Essay 1
Feb-15 Dr. Marshall at a conference. No class.
- SEINLANGUAGE: Intertextuality
- WRITING: Work on Draft 1 of Essay 1
Feb-18 Intertextuality 1: Fashion, Low Talkers, and Today
- SCREENING: “The Puffy Shirt” (10/03/96)
- READING: “Seinfeld as Intertextual Comedy” in MID (49-57) and “The Shirt Off His Back” (online)
- WRITING: Draft 1 of Essay 1 due. Submit only the first two pages. FORMAT: see p. 3.
Feb-20 Writing Workshop: Models Feedback
Feb-22 Intertextuality 2: Seinfeld Signals Its Nature As a Sitcom
- SCREENING: “The Bizarro Jerry” (10/03/96)
- READING: “Seinfeldisms” (online) and Glossary in MID (223-30)
- WRITING: Personal Feedback for Essay 1
SECTION 4 – RACE AND RELIGION
Feb-25 A Comedic Conversion and Shiksa Appeal
- SCREENING: “The Yada Yada” (04/24/97) and “The Serenity Now” (10/09/97)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Religion
- WRITING: Revise Draft 1 of Essay 1
Feb-27 Seinfeld Is a Jewish Sitcom, Isn’t It?
- READING: “Seinfeld: A Show (Almost) about Nothing” in MID (23-27) and “Seinfeld Is a Jewish Sitcom, Isn’t It?” in MID (117-38)
- WRITING: Revise Draft 1 of Essay 1
Feb-29 Christianity and Festivus: Other Religions on Seinfeld
- SCREENING: “The Burning” (03/19/98) and “The Strike” (12/18/97) [PARTIAL]
- NOTE: Essay 1 should be mostly complete at this point. Put the paper aside; distance yourself from it. We will edit it more at the end of the semester.
Mar-3 Writing Workshop: Planting Naysayers and Saying Why It Matters
- READING: “Festivus: A Holiday for the Rest of Us” (online); also Ch. 6 (74-87) and Ch. 7 (88-98) in TS / IS
Mar-5 “False Advertising?”: Seinfeld on Race and Stereotyping
- SCREENING: “The Wizard” and “The Chinese Woman”
- SEINLANGUAGE: Race and Ethnicity
Mar-7 More on Race and Ethnicity
- READING: “Race and Ethnicity: ‘Look to the [Black and White] Cookie, Elaine!’” (handout)
Mar-10-14 Spring Break. No classes.
SECTION 5 – SEX AND SEXUALITY
Mar-17 Seinfeld on Sex, Part 1: “Friends with Benefits”
- SCREENING: “The Deal” (06/02/91)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Interpreting Sex
Mar-19 Seinfeld on Sex, Part 2: Master of Their Domains
- SCREENING: “The Contest” (02/18/92)
- READING: “A Look at Our Dark Side: Seinfeld‘s Humor Noir” (online)
Mar-21 Good Friday Holiday. No classes.
Mar-24 Talking Topics. Online discussion. See course site for instructions.
- WRITING [DUE BY MIDNIGHT MAR. 24]: Email Brief for Essay 2. Directions on course site. (NOTE: Points will be deducted for lateness.)
Mar-26 “Not That There’s Anything Wrong with It”: Sexuality on Seinfeld
- SCREENING: “The Outing” (02/11/93)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Sexuality and Sexual Preference
- WRITING: Begin Draft 1 of Essay 2
Mar-28 Men in Crisis: Homosocial or Homosexual Environment?
- READING: “Male Anxiety and the Buddy System on Seinfeld” in MID (89-107) and “‘Not That There’s Anything Wrong with That’: Reading the Queer in Seinfeld” (online)
- WRITING: Work on Draft 1 of Essay 2
SECTION 6 – POLITICS AND PARENTS
Mar-31 Politically Correct: Seinfeld on Ethnicity and Abortion
- SCREENING: “The Couch” (10/27/94)
- WRITING: Draft 1 of Essay 2 due. Submit only the first two pages. FORMAT: see p. 3.
Apr-2 Writing Workshop: Models Feedback
Apr-4 Satire and Politics in Seinfeld
- READING: “A Show about Nothing: Seinfeld and the Modern Comedy of Manners” (online) and “Seinfeld‘s Democratic Vistas” (online)
- WRITING: Personal Feedback for Essay 2
Apr-7 Parenting and Godparenting on Seinfeld
- SCREENING: “The Bris” (10/14/93)
- SEINLANGUAGE: Parents and Children
- WRITING: Revise Draft 1 of Essay 2
Apr-9 No Family, No Homeplace, No Workplace: Seinfeld and Grown-Up Children
- SCREENING: “The Soul Mate” (10/26/96)
- READING: “Parents and Children in Seinfeld” in MID (108-116)
Apr-11 Writing Workshop: The Expanded Essay (Essay 3)
- NOTE: Essay 2 should be mostly complete at this point. Put the paper aside; distance yourself from it. We will edit it more shortly.
SECTION 7 – SEINFELD: THE END OF AN ERA?
Apr-14 Screening the Sitcom
- SCREENING: Take notes on the sitcom(s) you will explore in your expanded essay. No class.
- WRITING [DUE BY MIDNIGHT ON APR. 14]: Email Brief for Essay 3. Directions on course site. (NOTE: Points will be deducted for lateness.)
Apr-16 The Bad Samaritans
- SCREENING: “The Finale” (10/14/98)
- SEINLANGUAGE: The Finale
- WRITING: Begin Draft 1 of Essay 3
Apr-18 Seinfeld‘s Curtain Call
- READING: “Sitcoms Say Goodbye: The Cultural Spectacle of Seinfeld’s Last Episode” (online) and “Television News Plugola and the Last Episode of Seinfeld” (online)
- WRITING: Work on Draft 1 of Essay 3
SECTION 8 – SEINFELD AND SYNDICATION
Apr-21 Another Character Study: Larry David (and George Costanza) after Seinfeld
- SCREENING: Curb Your Enthusiasm (“The Car Salesman” and “The Shrimp Incident”)
- WRITING: Work on / Revise Draft 1 of Essay 3
Apr-23 Branding Seinfeld
- READING: “Rereading Seinfeld after Curb Your Enthusiasm” in MID (203-222) and “From Must-See-TV to Branded Counterprogramming” in MID (186-202)
- WRITING: Work on / Revise Draft 1 of Essay 3
Apr-25 Final Exam
Apr-28-30 Work on Portfolio. No classes.
May-2 Portfolio due by noon in Dr. Marshall’s office (Reed 314 A)