| Title: | From Sideshow to Spectacle |
|---|---|
| Course Section Number: | FRT-101-03 |
| Department: | Freshman Tutorial |
| Description: | The Agony, Ecstasy, and Artistry of Professional Wrestling "From humble beginnings in the late 19th century, professional wrestling has grown into a nearly $4 billion global industry. The largest annual pro wrestling event, Wrestlemania, generated over $66 million in live ticket sales and over 1 billion minutes of streaming in 2025. The most successful pro wrestlers, such as Gorgeous George or Hulk Hogan, become global icons. Pro wrestling is athleticism, vaudeville, and soap opera rolled into one. As a storytelling medium, it intertwines reality, fiction, and illusion - and occasionally fantasy and horror. And for 150 years it has cultivated equal parts love among fans across cultures as disparate as the United States, Mexico and Japan, and contempt among those who view it as nothing more than unsophisticated, pointless violence. 365体育博彩_365体育app-彩票*官网 will examine the history and culture of pro wrestling ("the business," to its practitioners) through the stories of those who shaped its storytelling methods and language. 365体育博彩_365体育app-彩票*官网 will study heroes and villains, men and women, deals and double-crosses, and music and clothing. 365体育博彩_365体育app-彩票*官网 will learn how and why wrestlers endure physical punishment, ruthless employment conditions, the risk of substance abuse, and the toxic effects of travel and fame. 365体育博彩_365体育app-彩票*官网 will examine how wrestling adheres to timeless rules and yet also reflects the historical and cultural moment. 365体育博彩_365体育app-彩票*官网 will study how the wrestlers build a match and how the writers build a story arc - all in the pursuit of sustained fan attention and the elusive-but-magical audience "pop." And finally, we will learn about why you never, ever call pro wrestling fake. And perhaps along the way we will learn how to cut a promo on DePauw" A native of South Carolina, Professor Preston Bost earned his Bachelor's degree in psychology from Yale University in 1993. He completed his doctorate in cognitive psychology at Vanderbilt University in 1998, specializing in the study of human memory. He joined the Wabash College faculty in 2000, and has taught a wide range of courses focusing on cognitive processes such as visual perception, communication, decision making, and memory. His current research focuses on the psychology of conspiracy theories. Dr. Bost served as chair of the Psychology department from 2007-2013, helped establish the College's first permanent Office of Institutional Research starting in 2014, and is currently the chair of the Social Sciences division. In his free time he enjoys sports (all of them!), Great British Baking Show-inspired scone-making, reading, jaunts to the local comics store, muscle cars, slowing down over an iced coffee, and any time he gets to learn something new. |
| Credits: | 1.00 |
| Start Date: | August 26, 2026 |
| End Date: | December 19, 2026 |
| Meeting Information: |
08/27/2026-12/17/2026 Lecture Tuesday, Thursday 09:45AM - 11:00AM, Baxter Hall, Room 301
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| Faculty: | Bost, Preston |
Course Status
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Enrolled/ Available/ Waitlist |
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