SOC/ANT 301 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL THEORY
SYLLABUS FALL 2001
INSTRUCTOR:
Dr Charles L. Harper
OFFICE: Admin 440A
PHONE: 280‑1780
or 2837 (dept. secy.) e-mail:
charper@creighton.edu
OFFICE HOURS:
Mon, Tu, Wed, Fri: 3:30-4:15; Other times by appointment.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Wallace and Wolf, Contemporary Sociological Theory, 5e, 1999 (Prentice
Hall); Erickson and Murphy, A
History of Anthropological Theory, 1998 (Broadview Press).
ON RESERVE IN THE ALUMNI LIBRARY:
Barrett, Anthropology: A Student’s Guide to Theory and Method, 1997,
(University of Toronto Press); Cuzzort
and King, Twentieth Century Social Thought, 5e, 1995 (Harcourt Brace).
FOCUS AND GOALS OF THE COURSE:
We
will explore the ideas of major sociological and anthropological thinkers and
schools of thought about society, culture, and interpersonal relationships. The
social sciences have always involved volatile combinations of conservative and
radical thinking. We will examine some of these, and how they are related to
enduring human problems, values, and social issues. This focus is related to
the emphasis on values and ethical choice in the Creighton University mission
statement. The course is therefore relevant for any Creighton student, and a
course for social science majors. For the latter it acts as comprehensive
examination of the development of sociology and anthropology and their theories‑-‑which
are normally treated in bits and pieces in other courses.
About Theory:
The heart of any academic discipline is to be found in the theories that it
generates about the material it studies, not in its methods of inquiry, or even
in particular findings--as important as these are. Hence, a course about
sociological and anthropological theory is central to students of those academic
disciplines. Certainly, you have encountered bits and pieces of theory in other
classes, but we are going to consider them as wholes, rather than only as a
means of understanding something else. We will consider the development of
theory in terms of major established schools of thought and the works of particular influential thinkers. The course is not
just a history of the "big ideas" in sociology and anthropology-‑‑though
it is that‑-‑but tries to show how social science thinking arises
from enduring human issues as well as the particular problems and crises of
humans in different places and historical times.
There are five goals that I have for
you in this course:
1. to be able to
identify basic theoretical perspectives in sociology and anthropology, and to
describe the general role of theory in building social science knowledge,
2. to understand that
humans are both dependent on social and cultural contexts and are active agents
in the continuing construction and reconstruction of those contexts,
3. to be able to apply
insights from theories to your own life‑situation, or to some aspects of
the social world, and, to be able to analyze current social realities from
several theoretical perspectives,
4. to be able to articulate the value base upon
which judgments could be made about social justice concerns, and
5. to enhance your
ability to be an "active" learner and effective communicator of what
you learn (in terms of your ability to pick out important points,
conceptualize, analyze, interpret, communicate).
This
last goal is relevant not just to
your sociological education, but to your whole university education, because
these are the skills that are valued in all "real world" situations.
We will revisit these goals near the end of the course, as part of the course
evaluation process.
The course is
organized around big "chunks" of material.
We will take more time for some than others.
Here they are, along with some of the "big questions" that
addressed with each:
1. Theory?? What is a scientific theory? What are the
components of a theory, and what are they good for, anyway?
2. Origins and development As social science fields, how did sociology
and anthropology develop? How do they continue to develop in relation to
important concerns and problems at different times in recent history? How do
they continue to have distinctive but strongly connected intellectual outlooks
and practical concerns?
3. Evolution How have societies and cultures changed or
evolved through the course of human history? Are there similar sequences or
stages between human societies that don't have much contact? If so, what forces
shape these evolutionary sequences? In particular, what is the role of the
biophysical environment and material technology in limiting and shaping the
potential for sociocultural evolution?
4. Functional thinking
What are some basic problems any
society has to contend with to survive?
How do they maintain systems of doing these things, and how do they vary
in different groups and cultures? Why do
some established practices seem so irrational?
5. Conflict thinking
Why is there so much conflict and competition between groups in society? What
do people and groups fight about? How
is conflict related to change? Is conflict always bad?
6. Cultural diffusion and change
How does contact between people around the world produce change as they
“borrow” or exchange each others habits, ideas, tools, and preferences? How do
these things become “adapted” to different cultures as they are transmitted?
7. Symbols and reality
Do people symbolically “construct” social and cultural realities? Are you a
“construction” of sorts, that you and others have been working on for
years? If culture is a kind of
“script,” how does it get written.? Who “writes” it? Men? Women? Cultural minorities?Rich, poor, or middle class
people? What difference does it make?
8.
Rational choice theories Do we rationally choose between benefits and
costs in our dealings with others? If
so, does everything have a price?
How do such rational choices relate to our sense of fairness or justice?
Are love and altruism irrational?
9. Modernity and postmodernism “Modern” societies have been developing
since the 1600’s. Some scholars think things that today things are developing
in very different ways.
EXPECTATIONS AND FORMAT
Reading
assignments for particular days are listed on the following schedule. I
expect you to have read the assignment before you come to class, and come
to class ready to participate in class and/or ask questions. We will not read
either book straight through. The reading will be “stitched together” from both
books as it relates to basic outline of topics (which follows). The course is
innovative because it attempts to integrate theory from sociology and
anthropology. So please don’t get behind in the reading or miss many classes,
because you will miss the broad contexts of what things mean and how they fit
together from our class discussions. In my role as instructor I will discuss
some parts of the reading, and elaborate points, but I will not feel compelled
to “cover everything” that is in the reading material that is important for you
to know It is important that you do the
reading and be prepared to comment, summarize, or ask questions about parts
that you don't understand. Saying “I don’t understand” is quite OK, and those
who have been in my classes before know that I do not penalize students
for saying that. As you will see, I sometimes get confused myself!
The
format of the class is designed to get you to be an active learner by
discussing and presenting material to the class. In addition to the assigned reading, here is what I expect you to do for the class:
1.
write 1 essay ( about 10 Pp.) analyzing something in your own life experience
in terms of particular perspectives we study theory we are discussing (“ theory
in your own back yard”). Be willing to share some of your insights and
observations with the class,
3.
write (type!) two short (1-2 page) "theoretical reviews" of videos
that we will watch and discuss,
4.
take 3 hour exams--not multiple choice! One is the “final exam,” but it is not comprehensive).
Attendance and
Participation: Attendance
is required. I will take roll most days, and will allow you five unexcused
absences without any consequences (You don't have to take them!). If you are absent, you are responsible for
doing reading and assignments on your own. I may (or may not) accept late written assignments, depending on the
circumstances, but if so, only for greatly reduced credit. Make no mistake
about it; late or missing assignments, even the small ones, can affect your grade. I will also note
which students in the class are regular contributors to class discussion by
commenting what we are talking about, or asking or answering questions about
it. I will not add or subtract any "points" for attendance or
participation, but they will be the basis on which I may give you the
"benefit of the doubt" at the end of the semester if your semester
grade average is on the borderline between two letter grades (It can happen!).
Exams:
See attached schedule.
Grades: You will accumulate points over the
semester. Here is how they will
contribute to your final grade:
Hour exams (60 x 3) 180 points 67%
Interpretive essay (80 x 1)
80 30%
Brief film reviews (3 x 3) 9 3%
Total points 269 points 100%
I
will assign grades at the end of the semester on a traditional percentage
basis: A = 90%; B+ = 88-90%; C+ = 77%;
C = 70%; D = 60%; F = less.
What kind of a
professor is Harper? (My standard
statement—you many have read it before.)
If
you haven’t had him for a class before, you can ask other students (and
probably have already). But here is
what he thinks. He likes teaching and
students, and thinks that what he teaches makes an important contribution
toward their liberal education. He
tries to be fair and humane but is not a push-over. He gets frustrated when students haven't read the assignment or
won't talk about it. He tries to be
organized, but needs students to tell him when they don't see how things are
connected, and occasionally he tends to get carried away talking about
interesting but less important topics.
He doesn't like to give or grade exams any more than students like to
take them. He is sometimes demanding of
students, but values an informal style and thinks that learning should be fun
as well as a "serious" business.
SOC 301 OUTLINE
AND SCHEDULE Fall
2001
Date Topic Reading
Assignments
Abbreviations:
WW. = sociology book; E = anthropology book; On
library reserve,
RAL
1 = Barrett; RAL2 = Cuzzort and King
Th-Aug 23 Hello
and orientation
I. IN
THE BEGININGS: SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY
T 28 The scientific
revolution, Enlightenment,
&
classical evolutionary thought E:
Ch 1; Pp: 13-16;34-39; 44-52
Th-Sept
30 (cont.) The structure
of theory WW: Ch 1: 1-14
II. FUNCTIONAL PERSPECTIVES
T-4 Durkheim WW
Ch2: 17-26; E.Ch 2: 91-94;
Th-6 Durkhem and British
Social Anthrop. E. Ch 2: 99-104
T-11 Parsons and
neofunctionalism WW Ch 2: 26-45; 57-66
Th-13 Video:
Not to be modern (about the Amish in America)
T-18 Interpretive essays:Functionalism (discussion)
Th-20 ***EXAM
I***
III. CONFLICT PERSPECTIVES
T-25 Karl
Marx WW: Ch 3:67-99;
E, Ch 1:39-44;
Th-27 Max
Weber
RAL2, Ch 3; E, Ch 3: 108-112
T-Oct 2 Conflict
sociology WW: 118-128; 135-153
Th-4 Cultural
materialism E:
Ch 3: 121-124
T-9 Video:
Minimum Wages (#1228)
Th-11 Interpretive essays: Conflict perspectives (discussion)
Oct 16-19 **Fall
Break**
IV.
THE DEMISE OF GRAND THEORY: DIFFUSION, INTERACTION, AND SYMBOLS
T-23 Historical
particularism & Symbolic interactionism E;
Ch 2: 75-83;
WW:
Ch 5: 190-205;
227-235
Th-25 S.
I. (cont.), Social constructionism, and Symbolic Anthropology
WW
Ch 6: 252-254; 276-283;
E Ch 3: 130-135
Th-30 Female voices in Soc.
and Ant. WW: 239-250; 283-291;
Guest: Dr. Suzanne Baker RAL1: 163-178
T
Nov 1 Video: A class
divided (#1303)
T-
6 Interpretive essays: Interaction and
symbols
Th-18 **No class** (N.U.S.S.??)
T-
13 **EXAM II**
Th-15 Exchange, power and
rationality WW: Ch 7: 294-322;
338-356
VI. THE RETURN OF GRAND THEORY: NEOEVOLUTIONISM AND
MODERNITY
T-20 Neoevolutionism E Ch 3:
116-121;
WW
Ch 4: 154-179
Th–22 **Thanksgiving vacation**
T-27 Postmodernity, &
Risk WW Ch 4 180-188; E Ch 3:
135-146
Th-29 Video: Bomb under the
world (# 2026)
T
Dec 4 Discussion and
Course summary
Th-6 Evaluation and
farewell
T
Dec 11 **EXAM III
( final exam)** 1:00-2:40