Kate Maloney
Staff Reporter
Coming to a classroom near you, South Park: The Class will premiere Fall 2009 at McDaniel. The hit TV show is the focus of a new sophomore interdisciplinary studies (SIS) course, which will be co-taught by Dr. Sara Raley, Assistant Professor of Sociology, and part-time faculty member, Josh Baron. Crass farting and burping jokes aside, the class will delve into the highly relevant social and philosophical issues presented in South Park such as immigration, stereotypes, consumerism, ethics, and political and feminist philosophy.South Park, which has aired over 180 episodes on Comedy Central since 1997, is now in its’ 12th season which ends this month and has at least 3 more seasons in the vaults to last until 2011. Known for its satirical parodies of pop culture and current events, the series has won multiple Emmys as well as the respect of many skeptical viewers and named one of the 100 best TV shows of all time by Time magazine. Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the show chronicles the adventures of four boys and their friends in the fictional town of South Park, Colorado.
Raley says she recognized South Park as a useful learning tool and has wanted to teach a class like this ever since she started watching the show. Because the show takes a characteristically uncommon and balanced approach to contemporary social issues, Raley believes the show’s entertainment value is matched by its sophisticated references and deep insights. Baron agrees, “South Park takes such an interesting, albeit sometimes gross approach to analyzing and discussing many contemporary social issues.”
The show’s humor is predicted to enhance the quality of academic discussion rather than detract from it. As Baron says, “I’m really excited about exploring often controversial issues using South Park because humor often allows a greater freedom of dialogue. I think that just because something is funny, doesn’t mean it cannot contain serious themes.” Baron believes that in many ways South Park is a reflection of society, so using it in the classroom to analyze social issues seems completely natural.
However, students should not expect the class to be a course in media analysis as it will not be geared towards South Park’s influence on society. Students will rather use the show as a springboard for studying the underlying issues’ impact on society. While most of the class will be issue-oriented, it might also take on a theoretical approach at times focusing on whether or not an episode supports or refutes certain sociological and philosophical theories.
Raley and Baron envision a discussion-based class offered twice a week to allow time for viewing a full-episode of South Park followed by critical discussion of the subject at-hand. The class will be split into two sections capped at 20 students each; however, Raley and Baron plan to have the sections meet together for the entirety of the course. This will give their students the opportunity to hear not only from both instructors but also from all 40 of their peers. No official title, syllabus, or assignments for the course have been nailed down as the two professors plan to solidify details over Jan Term.
Dr. Raley says, “I think it’s important to meet students where they are. They are in their dorms watching this show already so, why not use it in the classroom as a way to make learning fun?” She appears to be right; in an informal survey of the student body, only 9% indicated that they had never seen an episode of South Park. The other 81% have at least seen a couple episodes and 32% say they watch the show as often as they can. Not surprisingly, the interest in the class seems to be there as well. The majority of students said they would definitely want to take the class, at least if their schedule allowed it and 39% indicated that they would consider taking the class with either more information or if it counted towards their major or minor. Only 9% of students said they would definitely not consider taking a class focused on South Park.
Student reaction to the class however is varied. Kristen McGeeney ’10 says, “South Park really does call into question a wide variety of social issues, and does so in a way that is engaging to college-age students.” An anonymous student also thinks it’s a good idea for a class: “I like the fact that a lot of the SIS courses are on subjects that aren’t likely to be offered in a regular class. I think South Park comments on a lot of different aspects of our society and it does it with humor, which is often a plus.”
While some students are definitely in favor of a class such as this, others are more unconvinced. One anonymous student who took the survey expressed mixed feelings by saying, “I think that South Park is an interesting subject for a class that takes it seriously, but also understands that it in and of itself, [the show] is not a serious discussion of issues, nor is it an authority on any topics. South Park satirizes important issues, but often in a superficial way.”
A few students said they would worry that the class would not look good on their transcript or would be concerned about telling their parents. An anonymous student said, “I think that if I told my parents I was going to be spending the hard earned money they pay for me to attend college on a class about the sociological impact of a cartoon that specializes in fart and masturbation jokes, they would probably be pretty pissed. That isn’t to say that I don’t think there is value in what the class has to teach, I just don’t personally think that I would benefit from it.”
Because the show is hailed as one of the most popular animated comedies on television, Raley and Baron worry that students will not be able to get past being a fan and step into the role of an objective and critical observer. Baron says, “My biggest concern is that people will not take the class seriously.”
Evan Ticknor ’10 expressed similar hesitation saying, “I think that although there is a lot of good social commentary in South Park, we have watched an episode in my sociology class and too many people could not get over the humor and see what the episode was actually saying. With that said, I think that this could be a potential issue with the class, especially if people sign up for it intending on simply watching TV for class.”
Both instructors are aware of the course’s potential to be seen as “gimickey” and Raley notes, “Even pitching it as a legitimate academic endeavor was a tough sell to some of our other faculty members, while others embraced the concept whole-heartedly.” Danielle Azoulay ’09 was surprised that McDaniel even agreed to offer it. But, students should be warned that while the class will certainly be fun, it is also going to be a lot of serious work.
Many professors already show clips or episodes of South Park in their classes to incite student engagement and discussion. However, a class based exclusively on the show offers something unique that a class using it only tangentially cannot. That unique contribution is an opportunity to fully appreciate the breadth of issues South Park raises in a more in-depth, concentrated focus on this pop culture phenomenon. Instead of using the show to support an existing curriculum, Raley and Baron will create a wholly original curriculum around South Park that highlights the show’s social and philosophical message.