COMM 2240 Memory and Media
This course may be used to satisfy one of four electives required within the Communication major. This course focuses on the relationship between memory and moving images. How can film, television, and online video capture and reproduce memory? What role can moving images play in shaping memory, both on an individual and collective level? What claims does the medium make about accurately presenting the past? Through close analysis of film, television, and digital media, we will practice making textually-grounded arguments about specific works while thinking about the broader implications for understanding media and memory. Drawing on material from a variety of time periods and genres, we will use moving images to explore how remembering (and forgetting) shapes a narrative, both on and off the screen.
Course overview
- Department
- Communication
- School
- MCAS
- Credits
- 3
- Level
- Undergraduate
- Offered
- Periodically in the Fall, Periodically in the Spring
Course evaluations
- Course rating
- 3.65 / 5 · Very Good
- Instructor rating
- 4.01 / 5 · Very Good
- Terms evaluated
- 4
| Term | Instructor | Course overall | Instructor overall | Well organized | Clear learning objectives | Intellectually challenging | Helpful assignments | Applicable beyond course | Attendance necessary | Weekly effort | Responses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2026 | Renee Pastel | 3.6 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4–6 hrs/week | 33 of 42 |
| Spring 2025 | Renee Pastel | 3.5 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4–6 hrs/week | 17 of 25 |
| Fall 2024 | Renee Pastel | 3.6 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 1–3 hrs/week | 30 of 39 |
| Spring 2023 | Renee Pastel | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4–6 hrs/week | 44 of 48 |