Listed
below are some books, articles, videos, journals, and websites intended to
serve as starting points for students entering the Master of Arts in Cultural
Studies program. All of these items map
the field of cultural studies even as they participate in debates concerning
its transformation. Any one or two of
them will provide a sense of the field and allow
for sampling among its practices and contestations.
All of these materials can be found through the University of
Washington Library catalogue.
Registered students with a UW NetID can borrow books and access articles
through the campus e-reserves under "Cultural Studies: Starting Points." Incoming students who have not yet registered
can access these materials by coming to the UWB Library. For more information, contact the Cultural
Studies subject librarian, Jackie Belanger (jbelanger@uwb.edu). The UWB Library also contains a
gateway page containing resources
in cultural studies.
Books
These four books provide useful overviews of
cultural studies today. Barker is a
lengthy account of major thinkers in the field.
During is an anthology of significant articles. Johnson et al is a discussion of cultural
studies research practice. Sadar and Van
Loon is a brief graphic introduction.
- Barker,
Chris. Cultural Studies: Theory and
Practice. London: Sage, 2008.
- During,
Simon. The Cultural Studies Reader. New York: Routledge, 2007.
- Johnson,
Richard et al. The Practice of Cultural
Studies. London: Sage, 2004.
- Sadar, Ziauddin
and Van Loon, Borin. Introducing Cultural
Studies. Cambridge: Icon Books, 2004.
Articles
These six articles offer quick
snapshots of cultural studies and some of the debates that animate it as a
field.
- Ang,
Ien. "Who Needs Cultural Research?", in Leistyna, P. (ed.), Cultural
Studies: From Theory to Action. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2005: 477-483.
- Massey,
Doreen. "Traveling
Thoughts", in Gilroy, P., Grossberg, L., and McRobbie, A. (eds.), Without
Guarantees: In Honour of Stuart Hall. New York: Verso, 2000: 225-232.
- Spivak,
Gayatri Chakravorty. "Can the Subaltern
Speak?" in Grossberg, L. and Nelson C. (eds.), Marxism and the Interpretation of Culture. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1988:
271-313.
- Grossberg,
Lawrence. "Cultural Studies, Modern
Logics, and Theories of Globalization", in McRobbie, A. (ed.) Back to
"Reality": The Social Experience of Cultural Studies. Manchester: Manchester University Press,
1997: 7-35.
- Williams,
Raymond. "The Uses of Cultural Theory", in Williams, R., The Politics of Modernism: Against the New Conformists. London:
Verso, 2007: 163-176.
- Wright,
Handel. "Dare We De-Center Birmingham? Troubling the ‘Origin' and Trajectories of
Cultural Studies." European Journal of Cultural Studies 1(1): 33-56.
Videos
These two sets of videos highlight
key concepts in cultural studies. The
first is a four-part BBC series from 1972.
The second is a series of three lectures
by Stuart Hall, one of the central figures in British Cultural Studies.
- Berger, John, Ways of Seeing
- Hall,
Stuart
- The Origins of Cultural Studies.
Northampton, MA: Media Education Foundation, 2006. Lecture transcript
- Hall, Stuart, Race, the Floating Signifier. Northampton, MA: Media Education
Foundation, 2002. Lecture transcript
- Hall, Stuart, Representation & the Media. Northampton, MA: Media Education
Foundation, 2002. Lecture transcript
Journals
These six journals publish articles, essays, and reviews
related to ongoing research conversations in cultural studies. Sampling from their tables-of-contents
provides a sense of emergent work in the field.
Websites
These five websites publicize the
work of professional organizations, research networks, and public initiatives
related to the field of cultural studies.
Enjoy!