Plan for the evening
- Canvas Prompt
- Cultural Studies
- Chapter 9 “Video Games and Risks”
- Video Game Essay Workshop
Cultural Studies
Instead of leaving this til the end of class or forgetting about it because of our workshop, let’s cover a “bigly” portion. I hope this book (and the previous Introducing Critical Theory) help you develop questions for exploration and analysis. What do these theories have to say about cultural products? Although we could apply these theories to game play and do ethnographic research, I tend to focus on the bigger picture of video games as entertainment and, of course, entertainment is a cultural product. Such a focus will miss or gloss over the fine details, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong. What’s ineffective (and the authors of Understanding Video Games would agree) is thinking one’s conclusions from a particular theoretical lens are universal. You may be able to make generalizations, but you’ll run into problems claiming absolutes because, as the paradox goes, there are no absolutes…
Let’s jump to the following pages in Cultural Studies: 9, 26, 37, 41, 72, 84, 92, 102, 116, 140, 146, and 161.
Ch. 9 “Video Games and Risks”
Let’s jump to the Discussion Questions on p. 302.
The Experts Agree…
Let’s watch the documentary Game Over: Gender, Race & Violence in Video Games (2000).{This link will only work on campus unless you sign into Atkins Library}. Or maybe we’ll just watch a clip. Consider the argument that it isn’t the technology of video games that causes violence but the ways we’ve decided to use video games. Also, consider the following:
- How do the speakers sound (tone, confidence, authoritative, etc.)?
- How did the Marine Corps and other military groups train recruits before Doom and other video games?
Time permitting, we’ll look at another video, Video Game Violence. WARNING: This video uses explicit language. Also, here’s a news broadcast from 1993 about Mortal Kombat‘s release. The clip concludes with a speaker noting that future games will have more violent and sexual themes as more adults play them. Can we say that is the reason for more violent crime in society? Here’s a link to statistics on Violent Crime overall (not just children), and here’s the latest statistic I could find from the FBI’s Uniform Crime report (2013)–let’s definitely look at Table 1.
Here’s a link to a 2008 Pew Research Center report “Teens, Video Games and Civics,” which has a table of the most mentioned games by children.
Whoa! Increased violent video games sales lead to a decrease in violent crime…Impossible, right?
Here’s a link to the “School-Associated Violent Death Study” that claims there were 57 school-associated violent deaths in 1992 and 31 in 2010. That number included suicides. I couldn’t find a number on “school shootings.”
The Experts Agree…
As some of you know, I’m currently writing a book on Video Games from a rhetorical and cultural perspective. I’m trying to answer the “why are violent, sexist, phallocentric videos created?” Let’s look at a page I have devoted to the topic. (show noise blast test)
Workshop
Time permitting, I would like you to get two classmates to read and comment on your paper. You’ll at least get one. Make sure you know the assignment guidelines. This is supposed to be at least 6 pages! If you turn in less, your grade will not be good.
Next Class
Your Video Game Essays are due next week. Those need to be printed out and turned into me. Start reading The Video Game Debate. Finish Ch. 2 & 3 by next class.