Forget jokes about college kids taking classes on clog dancing and underwater basket weaving … the University of Chicago is holding a Conference on Jersey Shore Studies.
That’s right. Between 200 and 500 attendees, most from U. of C., are expected to attend the one-day conference Friday examining the antics of Snooki, Dina, The Situation, J-Woww, Ronnie, Sam, Vinnie and Pauly D.
Academics, graduate students and undergrads from across the United States and Canada will provide the material.
They plan on presenting topics including “You Dirty Little Hamster!: The Abject and Monstrous Feminine in Jersey Shore”; “GTL, Drunkenness, and Oompa-Loompa Party Girls: The Impact of Jersey Shore on the Jersey Shore”; and “Foucault’s Going to the Jersey Shore, Bitch!”
David Showalter, 21, a University of Chicago senior and an organizer of the event, told the Chicago Sun-Times he received money for the conference from the university’s student-run Uncommon Fund.
Showalter called the conference a serious academic event that also doesn't intend to suck the life out of the show.
