2023
Critical Theory of the Media
Name: Critical Theory of the Media
Code: FIL12734L
6 ECTS
Duration: 15 weeks/156 hours
Scientific Area:
Philosophy
Teaching languages: Portuguese
Languages of tutoring support: Portuguese
Regime de Frequência: Presencial
Sustainable Development Goals
Learning Goals
a. to promote the understanding of media within the contemporary society and their relation with the devices of
capture, registration, storage and data reading;
b. to establish conceptual, theoretical and historical basic contexts, served by a critical lexicon and analitic
procedures in order to explore media an-archaeologycally from a critical perspective;
c. to encourage an exploratory approach of themes proposed, stimulating the ability to integrate knowledge, the
ability to deal with complex questions, to formulate and solve problems and to critically analyse media
problematics;
d. to encourage deep reading and to aknowledge the most recent theoretical contributions from the media field
(post-human, bio and technopolitics) and its impact onto social and artistic practices, and the ways to think
them;
e. to apply the UCs critical dimension to conceive, plan and execute actions or projects to be develloped in a
field work context.
capture, registration, storage and data reading;
b. to establish conceptual, theoretical and historical basic contexts, served by a critical lexicon and analitic
procedures in order to explore media an-archaeologycally from a critical perspective;
c. to encourage an exploratory approach of themes proposed, stimulating the ability to integrate knowledge, the
ability to deal with complex questions, to formulate and solve problems and to critically analyse media
problematics;
d. to encourage deep reading and to aknowledge the most recent theoretical contributions from the media field
(post-human, bio and technopolitics) and its impact onto social and artistic practices, and the ways to think
them;
e. to apply the UCs critical dimension to conceive, plan and execute actions or projects to be develloped in a
field work context.
Contents
Syllabus is organized in two units:
A. Media critical theory
1. Archaelogies, ways of use (methodologies).
2. Media, mediality, intermediality, transmediality
3. Media and sensorium biopolitics, technopolitics)
4. Media and temporalities (archives and cultural memory)
5. Technological media, electronical media, digital media
B. Critical inquiry
1. The medium is the message (McLuhan)
2. Mediations, determinations, discourse networks (Kittler)
3. Deep time of the media and the ways of variantology (Zielinski)
4. Zombie media, criativity and activism (Parikka)
5. Media, cultural archives and the big suspicion (Groys).
A. Media critical theory
1. Archaelogies, ways of use (methodologies).
2. Media, mediality, intermediality, transmediality
3. Media and sensorium biopolitics, technopolitics)
4. Media and temporalities (archives and cultural memory)
5. Technological media, electronical media, digital media
B. Critical inquiry
1. The medium is the message (McLuhan)
2. Mediations, determinations, discourse networks (Kittler)
3. Deep time of the media and the ways of variantology (Zielinski)
4. Zombie media, criativity and activism (Parikka)
5. Media, cultural archives and the big suspicion (Groys).
Teaching Methods
The teaching / learning process favors the autonomous work of the students, based on in-depth contact with the
reference materials (bibiographic, movies, various documents) in and out of contact hours. This is a theoreticalpractical
UC, engaging with debates, presentations and problems exposure (individually or in groups), the
deepening of perspectives through the production of written essays and reviews in or via blog, Moodle or
other platforms. Towards the end of the semester (last 4 weeks), the student develops a work she/he proposes,
with tutorial suport, to one of the partner institutions of the city (or others). Alternatively, she/he prepares and
submits a research paper (1500-2000 words). Students are encouraged to participate in the cultural life of the
city, a place that calls for their creativity and critical thinking. In the final assessment regime, the student takes a
written exam.
reference materials (bibiographic, movies, various documents) in and out of contact hours. This is a theoreticalpractical
UC, engaging with debates, presentations and problems exposure (individually or in groups), the
deepening of perspectives through the production of written essays and reviews in or via blog, Moodle or
other platforms. Towards the end of the semester (last 4 weeks), the student develops a work she/he proposes,
with tutorial suport, to one of the partner institutions of the city (or others). Alternatively, she/he prepares and
submits a research paper (1500-2000 words). Students are encouraged to participate in the cultural life of the
city, a place that calls for their creativity and critical thinking. In the final assessment regime, the student takes a
written exam.
Teaching Staff
- José Alberto Ferreira [responsible]
