English and Media Studies 1A equips students with the knowledge and skills they need to understand their own and other cultures, and to navigate today’s mass-mediated society. At the same time, an understanding of literary and cinematic techniques is fundamental to the conduct of modern war: the war against terrorism, for example, is also a war of ideas, conducted not least through social media. This course asks students to consider the relationship between meaning and form – how do texts communicate? To investigate this, students are introduced to some of the most influential texts in the history of literature as well as current texts in various media and key analytical concepts.