In this elective, students compare the content and perspectives in a pair of texts in order to develop their understanding of the effects of context, purpose and audience on the shaping of meaning. Through exploring and comparing perspectives offered by a pair of texts, students examine the ways in which particular social, cultural and historical contexts can influence the composer’s choice of language forms and features and the ideas, values and attitudes conveyed in each text. In their responding and composing, students consider how the treatment of similar content in a pair of texts can heighten our understanding of the values, significance and context of each.
WHY NINETEEN EIGHTY FOUR?
Nineteen Eighty-Four is one of the most recognisable and influential futuristic dystopian fictions of the 20th century.
Phrases and concepts from the novel have entered the English lexicon and continue to exert an influence on political discourse and the popular imagination to the present day.
Adaptations and works derived from Orwell’s novel have been developed in a wide range of forms and mediums.
WHY METROPOLIS?
Metropolis was made in Weimar Germany by the renowned Austrian American film director and screenwriter Fritz Lang. Co-written by Lang’s wife, Thea Von Harbou, the film was substantially edited following its Berlin premiere in 1927 and until recently large sections were believed lost. A restored version of Lang’s original cut of the film was released cinematically in 2010.
Widely considered as a masterpiece of German Expressionism, this classic silent film has inspired many modern science fiction epics.
In 2001, Metropolis was the first film to be inscribed on UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register. In 2012, the British Film Institute listed it as the 35th greatest film of all time.