Introduction to Affect Theory

elective courses

The goal of the course is acquainting students with the main strands of one of the most popular theories used in contemporary humanities which conceptualizes the human ability to experience emotions. We will read texts and watch visual materials that analyze or illustrate human affectivity in various aspects of culture, for example: collectively shared emotions, the process of being affected by an artwork, emotional aspects of forming a bond and of social functioning of humans. We will also reflect on the entangling of emotions with the mechanisms of the neoliberal capitalist culture.

The maximum accepted number of missed classes: 2.

The goal of the course is acquainting students with the main strands of one of the most popular theories used in contemporary humanities which conceptualizes the human ability to experience emotions. We will read texts and watch visual material that analyze or illustrate human affectivity in various aspects of culture, for example: collectively shared emotions, the process of being affected by an artwork, emotional aspects of forming a bond and of social functioning of humans. We will also reflect on the entangling of emotions with the mechanisms of the neoliberal capitalist culture.

We will begin by discussing canonical texts that introduce the terminological toolkit of affect theory, such as: the structure of feeling, affect, emotion. We will go on to read the most influential texts written from the affect theory’s perspective and watch visual materials (feature films, visual art documentary, commercial) which illustrate the discussed topics. We will take a look at affects through the lens of such notions as ideology and human relationality, and think about the political potential of emotions.

During our classes we will also pay attention to the historical moment in which affect theory emerged and the theory’s internal tensions and discontinuities. We will debate its usefulness for analyzing diverse phenomena and aspects of culture, and look for meeting points between affect theory and other frameworks applied in today’s humanities: new materialism, ecocriticism, posthumanism and neuroscience.

The maximum accepted number of missed classes: 2.

Akers, Matthew et al. Marina Abramović: The Artist is Present. HBO Documentary Films and Music Box Films, 2012.

Benjamin, Jessica. The Bonds of Love: Psychoanalysis, Feminism, and the Problem of Domination. Pantheon Books, 1988.

Ahmed, Sara. The Promise of Happiness. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2010.

Berlant, Lauren. “Affect is the New Trauma.”

Berlant, Lauren. Cruel Optimism. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2011.

Bowlby, John. The Making and Breaking of Affectional Bonds. London: Tavistock, 1979.

Brennan, Teresa. The Transmission of Affect. Cornell University Press, 2004.

Clough, Patricia. “The Affective Turn: Political Economy, Biomedia, and Bodies.” The Affect Theory Reader, edited by Melissa Gregg and Gregory J. Seigworth, Duke University Press, 2010, pp. 206-225.

Cvetkovich, Ann. Depression: A Public Feeling. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2012.

Figlerowicz, Marta. “Affect Theory Dossier: An Introduction.” Qui Parle: Critical Humanities and Social Sciences 20, no. 2 (Sping/Summer): 3–18.

Hochschild, Arlie. The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. Oakland, CA: University of California Press, 2012.

Illouz, Eva. Cold Intimacies: The Making of Emotional Capitalism. Cambridge: Polity, 2007.

Lasch, Christopher. The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations. New York: W.W. Norton, 1991.

Leys, Ruth. “The Turn to Affect: A Critique.” Critical Inquiry, 37, 434–72, 2011.

Massumi, Brian. Parables for the Virtual: Movement, Affect, Sensation. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2002.

Seigworth, Gregory J., and Melissa Gregg. “An Inventory of Shimmers.” The Affect Theory Reader, edited by Melissa Gregg and Gregory J. Seigworth, Duke University Press, 2010, pp. 1–25.

Spinoza, Baruch. Ethics (fragments)

Tomkins, Silvan. Affect Imagery Consciousness. Vol. 1 & 2 New York: Springer, 1962 & 1963.

Williams, Raymond. On “The Structure of Feeling.”

Winnicott, Donald. “The Capacity to Be Alone.” The Maturational Process, 28–35. New York: International Universities Press, 1958.

Winnicott, Donald. “Creativity and Its Origins.” Playing and Reality, 87–114. London: Tavistock, 1971.

The reading list may be modified based on the preferences of the students.

The final grade is going to be based on the following components:

active participation, familiarity with the reading and visual assignments.