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sya_syllabus.docxClassical Traditional Sociological Theories
SYA 4010 U01
Fall 2016
Tuesdays & Thursdays, 11:00am-12:15pm
Ziff Education 120
Prof. Richard Tardanico
What it’s about
Welcome to Sociological Theories! Our course will focus on the following themes: (1) what is theory, why it’s important in social research, and why it’s important in our lives in general; (2) the basic ideas of the philosophical movement of eighteenth-century Europe called the Enlightenment, the roots of the Enlightenment’s ideas in the socioeconomic and political transformations of that time and place, and the influence of the ideas on subsequent theorizing; (3) the classical theories of Karl Marx/Friedrich Engels, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber, which are the foundations of modern sociology and much other research in the social sciences and humanities; and (4) the relevance of the theories of Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber for understanding the transformations and crises of our present-day world.
Getting in touch
· Dr. Tardanico: SIPA 312; Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:30-1:30pm, or by appointment; communication via Blackboard messages; 305-348-2247
Required text?
· Edles and Appelrouth, Sociological theory in the classical era (2nd edition, Sage Publications) ISBN: 9781412975643. Recommendation: Purchase or rent the cheapest decent copy available.
Course Organization
The Inverted Classroom
Our course will be conducted according to the principles of the “inverted” (or “flipped”) classroom. The objective of this approach is to transform the class’s students and instructors into a collaborative community of active learners and critical thinkers, as described in the following articles:
“At MIT, Large Lectures Are Going the Way of the Blackboard,” The New York Times (January 12, 2009) http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/us/13physics.html?pagewanted=all
“Twilight of the Lecture,” Harvard Magazine (September-October 2012) http://harvardmagazine.com/2012/03/twilight-of-the-lecture
According to the principles of the inverted classroom, students complete assigned materials before a class session convenes. The class session, in turn, is devoted not to traditional, top-down lecturing--which encourages passive learning--but rather to active learning activities, in which students work variously as individuals or in small groups and present their ideas to the wider class. Students in our course will be randomly assigned to small, semester-long learning groups.
The syllabus designates assigned materials as either “in class” or “homework for next class.” Students are required to do the “homework for next class” (typically requiring a discussion post essay of a minimum of 250 words of discussion text) before the corresponding class session. Class attendance and active, responsible participation in your group, moreover, are essential. The instructors will post outlines of the assigned materials to guide homework assignments when the class begins to cover the Marx, Durkheim, and Weber readings.
Graded Assignments (2000 possible semester points)
· Course contract: worth 100 points if submitted before the deadline
· Blackboard discussion posts: worth up to 400 total points
· Class attendance/participation: worth up to 400 total points
· Mid-term take-home essay: worth up to 400 total points (due: November 14)
· End-of-semester group project: worth up to 300 total points (due: November 28)
· End-of-semester take-home essay: worth up to 400 total points (due: December 8)
All assignments must be completed in order to be eligible to earn a passing grade.
Unexcused late assignments will not be accepted. Excused late assignments must be submitted as hard copy (unless otherwise permitted by the instructor), together with documentation of the approved excuse.
With the exception of lateness due to university-sanctioned activities, circumstances sanctioned by the Disability Resource Center, circumstances affecting the broader university community, or other such circumstances, students should not expect excused late assignments to be graded until the instructors prepare final grades at the end of the semester.
Grading Scale: 1800-2000=A; 1600-1799=B; 1400-1599=C; 1200-1399=D; less than 1200=F.
All assignments must be completed in order to be eligible to earn a passing grade.
Assignment Descriptions
Course contract (available at the end of this syllabus and on Blackboard; worth 100 points): a signed (typed signature is acceptable), dated course contract must be posted on Blackboard no later than Sunday, September 25, before 11:55 pm.
Blackboard discussion posts (graded pass/fail; late posts will not be accepted without a valid excuse as explained above and must be presented as hard copy together with the approved excuse; 20 posts, worth up to 400 total points). Each passing post=20 points, each failing post=0 points. The posts will be assessed as passing or not according to the following criteria:
· Minimum of 250 words of discussion text (not counting name, title, etc.); there is no maximum word count.
· In order to receive credit, each post (a) must display its discussion-text word count at the end of the document and (b) must not be submitted to Blackboard as an attachment.
· Relevance: The ideas expressed indicate that the student has comprehended the assigned material at a satisfactory level or better from the standpoint of preparation for the upcoming class session.
· Clarity and coherence of ideas expressed.
· Critical thinking: The student has adequately analyzed, synthesized, and evaluated the assigned material from the standpoint of preparation for the next class session.
· Poses a question for discussion: The post articulates an academically meaningful question for discussion that pertains to the assigned material.
· Spelling, grammar: The post meets university-level standards of spelling and grammar.
Class session attendance/participation (worth up to 400 total points)
Students will be divided into semester-long small groups, which will be the basis of the flipped class’s hands-on activities. Most class sessions will revolve around ungraded group and individual in-class written and oral assignments. (These assignments will be appropriately adjusted for students with relevant Disability Resource Center accommodations.)
Students are expected to arrive to class on time and to remain for the duration of the class session. Students will be required to sign an attendance sheet for most class sessions; it is each student’s responsibility to sign the sheet. At the instructor’s discretion, students who arrive late to a class session or leave early, without an instructor-approved excuse, will not receive credit for attendance at that session.
Attendance/participation points will be calculated as a percentage of the semester’s total documented class sessions. For example, if you are credited for attending 90% of the semester’s total documented class sessions, your score will be .90*400=360 points.
Students with excused absences must submit one or more hard-copy documents indicating the dates of the absences and the instructor’s approval. Such students may be required to submit, as hard copy, short essay assignments corresponding to the dates of the absences, at the instructor’s discretion.
Mid-term take-home essay (worth up to 400 total points; due via Turnitin.com on Blackboard by November 14, before 11:55pm). Late papers will not be accepted.
The paper will compare the theoretical frameworks and research methodologies of Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber. Format requirements: a minimum of 1000 words of text (not counting title material or references; no maximum word count), typed, double spaced; Times New Roman 12-point font; Chicago, MLA, or APA style with in-text citations and references page; and substantiated with page-cited quoted or paraphrased statements from the original writings of Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber (not from the writings of book editors or others who describe or analyze such original writings).
Unless otherwise approved by the instructor, each student’s essay will consist of point-by-point responses to the “Mid-Term Essay Outline” posted by the instructor on Blackboard , adapted to essay form without i ncluding extraneous material (such as “Marx, Durkheim, and Weber were social theorists…”).
Grading criteria: see “Discussion Posts” (above). Adherence to the paper’s required editorial format will be essential as well. An “A” paper will display extensive engagement with the original writings of the theorists, based on page-cited paraphrased or quoted statements from the original writings of Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber (not from the writings by book editors or other scholars who describe or analyze the original writings; less extensive displayed engagement will correspond to reduced letter-grades. Students are encouraged to show in-progress drafts of the essay to the instructors for comment.
Group project (worth up to 300 possible total points)
A Power Point or other type of presentation, applying the framework of one or more of the theorists to some contemporary issue or problem. Details will be discussed during the semester. To facilitate record keeping, each member of a group must post the project on Blackboard by November 28, before 11:55pm. Late projects will not be accepted.
End-of-semester paper (worth up to 400 possible total points)
The paper will apply the framework of one or more of the theorists to some contemporary issue or problem (approximately 1000 words of text, not counting title material or references; typed, double spaced; Times New Roman 12-point font; Chicago, MLA, or APA style with in-text citations and references page).
Grading criteria: see discussion posts (above). Adherence to the paper’s required editorial format will be essential as well. Possible topics will be discussed in class and individually with the instructors during the semester. Due via Turnitin.com on Blackboard. Late papers will not be accepted.
Plagiarism Policy
FIU’s plagiarism policy will be strictly enforced.
http://academic.fiu.edu/academicbudget/misconductweb/1acmisconductproc.htm
Religious Holy Days
The University's policy on religious holy days is described in the University Catalog and Student Handbook. Any student may request to be excused from class to observe a religious holy day of his or her faith.
Disability Services
FIU is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all persons with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Students who require course accommodations are required to register with the Disability Resource Center (DRC) by the beginning of the semester and to follow the DRC’s procedures. Contact information:
· MMC, Graham Center 190, (305) 348-3532, email: [email protected]
· BBC, Wolfe University Center 131, (305) 919-5345, email: [email protected]
Course Schedule
(Subject to corrections and other minor revisions)
PART ONE: WHAT IS THEORY?
· Week of Monday, August 22
· Tuesday
· In class: Course overview
· Homework for next class
Part One: Common sense understandings of the social world
Hale, “Common sense psychology,” The World of Psychology http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2011/01/16/common-sense-psychology/
Watts, “The myth of common sense: Why the social world is less obvious than it seems,” Freakonomics http://goo.gl/P4hFlK
Part Two: Theory as an alternative to common sense understandings
Mills, The Sociological Imagination, chapter one, “The Promise” http://goo.gl/idZlY8
Part Three: Example—Inequality, unemployment, and common sense understandings
“Horatio Alger” http://goo.gl/gTZxDV
“Horatio Alger’s Ragged Dick, or, Street Life in New York” http://www.albany.edu/history/history316/RaggedDick-1.html
Twain, “Poor little Stephen Girard” https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TS18730724.2.14
“Myth of the self-made man,” Business-Managed Democracy http://goo.gl/rI9vxL
“Horatio Alger: RIP,” National Journal http://goo.gl/Hj0ACm
McGee, Self-Help, Inc.: Makeover Culture in American Life (read description) http://goo.gl/oSqJ7I
“Exposing how Donald Trump really made his fortune,” Alternet http://goo.gl/QHSBXi
“The Inconvenient history of the Silicon Valley,” Inc. http://www.inc.com/eric-schurenberg/inconvenient-history-of-silicon-valley.html
Geier, “New research shows that unemployment is especially hellish in the U.S.—because unemployed Americans blame themselves for their plight,” Political Animal
Post #1. Based on the assigned homework readings, what are the logical and politico-social deficiencies of common sense understandings of the social world? What, preliminarily, is theory, and what are its advantages versus common sense understandings? What is Mills’ “sociological imagination,” and how does it challenge the deficiencies of common sense understandings? (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55 pm)
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #1.
· Homework for next class
“How science really works,” UC Berkeley
http://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/0_0_0/howscienceworks_19
http://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/0_0_0/sciencetoolkit_06
“Evidence regarding evolution,” UC Berkeley (click the series of links) http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/0_0_0/lines_01
Edles and Appelrouth, Sociological Theory in the Classical Era, “Introduction” and “What Is Sociological Theory?” (pages 1-4)
Mitchell and Jolley, “Advantages of using theory to generate ideas” http://www.jolley-mitchell.com/Appendix/Theory_Appendix/Using_Theory.htm
Kozloff, “The logic of theory and research” (posted on course web site)
A definition of theory: A theory is a set of statements that proposes to explain some broad or specific question by describing (1) what’s important and why; (2) how
things go together; (3) how changes in one thing affect other things; (4) how we can study the question; and (5) how we can accomplish some associated task, objective, or goal.
“Cultural influences on science,” American Sociological Association http://www.asa3.org/ASA/education/science/cp.htm
“Social Darwinism,” American Museum of Natural History http://goo.gl/tDfopW
Post #2.
Part I. What is wrong with the following assertions? (1) “A hypothesis (in science or social science) is just a hunch” and (2) “Evolution is just a theory.”
Part II. What is the difference between fundamental and secondary controversies in science theory?
Part III. What is theory? What are the advantages of using theory? But how is theory—like common sense understandings—shaped by culture and power, as exemplified by Social Darwinism? (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· Week of Monday, August 29
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #2.
· Homework for next class
Kozloff, “The logic of theory and research” (posted on course web site)
“The Bell curve and its author [Charles Murray],” Open Mind/PBS (video) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMCjkfp_9JQ
Gould, “Curveball,” The New Yorker http://www.dartmouth.edu/~chance/course/topics/curveball.html
Lindsey, “Why people keep misunderstanding the ‘connection’ between race and IQ,” The Atlantic http://goo.gl/3e3mS
“A brief and ugly history of intelligence testing,” Cracking the Learning Code http://crackingthelearningcode.com/bonus1.html
Radford, “Race and intelligence: A sorry tale of shoddy science,” The Guardian http://goo.gl/KyM6F3
Reddin, “Heritage scholar’s take on immigrants’ IQs not too ridiculous for Charles Murray,” New Republic http://goo.gl/0whHSB
Walsh, “The stunning dishonesty of Charles Murray,” Salon http://goo.gl/UzkKQm
Post #3.
Part I. What is the theoretical form of Charles Murray’s The Bell Curve argument (general proposition and justification [what’s allegedly important and why; hypotheses/research questions; program of empirical research; and political/social policy implications).
Part II. How does this theory reflect the interplay of culture and power in the setting of the theory’s historical time, geographic place, and politico-social relations?
Part III. Repeat Part I but from the standpoint of the critiques of The Bell Curve (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
Note. See “Some questions to ask about a theory” (posted at the end of this syllabus).
PART TWO: HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #3.
· Homework for next class
“The rise of feudalism” (video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoB4NVklyf4
“Medieval Europe: Feudalism” (video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCPp7XWZfHo
“The feudal order” (video; scroll down to #20, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
“History of feudalism” http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?ParagraphID=eoa
“The national monarchies” (video; scroll down to #24, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
“The Renaissance and the age of discovery” (video; scroll down to #25, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
“The age of absolutism” (video; scroll down to #31, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
Recommended: Eugen Weber’s obituary, The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/arts/22weber.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Post #4. How were wealth and power organized in old-regime European politics, economy, and society? Why was it assumed that this status quo would last forever? (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· Week of Monday, September 5
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #4.
· Homework for next class
“The Enlightenment” http://public.wsu.edu/~brians/hum_303/enlightenment.html
“The Enlightenment” (video; scroll down to #34, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
“The Enlightenment and Society” (video; scroll down to #35, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
· Thursday
· In class: videos and discussion on the Enlightenment
“The Modern Philosophers” (video; scroll down to #36, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
“Revolution and Romantics” (video; scroll down to #43, “Individual Program Descriptions”) https://www.learner.org/resources/series58.html#
· Homework for next class
Zeitlin, Ideology and the Development of Sociological Theory, Chapter 1 (“The Enlightenment: Philosophical Foundations”) and Chapter 3 (“Rousseau”) (posted on Blackboard)
Jordan, “The Enlightenment vision today,” Institute for Science and Human Values http://goo.gl/YJK7rt
Post #5.
Part I. What transformations of economy, society, politics, and culture underpinned the Enlightenment?
Part II. What were the basic ideas of the Enlightenment philosophers, and how did they depart from previous ideas? What, in particular, were Rousseau’s ideas?
Part III. According to the Romantics, what were the limitations of the Enlightenment?
Part IV. What is the influence of the Enlightenment in society, economy, and government today? What, arguably, are its successes and limitations? (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· Week of Monday, September 12
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #5.
· Homework for next class
“Industrial Revolution Overview” (video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4joqYycnqM
“The [British] Industrial Revolution was powered by child slaves,” The Independent http://goo.gl/v1X6bY
“India’s role in the [British] Industrial Revolution,” India Take http://indiantake.blogspot.com/2010/11/india-role-in-industrial-revolution.html
“The Industrial Revolution, textiles, and empire,” The Victorian Age http://www.victorianweb.org/technology/ir/ir6.html
“The physical deterioration of the textile workers,” The Victorian Age http://www.victorianweb.org/history/workers2.html
“Slums and slumming in late Victorian England,” The Victorian Age http://www.victorianweb.org/history/slums.html
“American Labor” (video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drvXTs5EtN0
“The Homestead (Pennsylvania) Factory Strike” (1892), History.com (video) http://www.history.com/topics/andrew-carnegie/videos/homestead-strike
“The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire (New York City)” (1911) (video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCB4SgXRgKg
“Triangle Factory Fire Memorial,” The New York Times http://goo.gl/vGSvzr
Wolf, Europe and the People without History, “The Industrial Revolution” (section on “The Factory”) (posted on Blackboard)
Post #6. According to Eric Wolf, how did the factory system transform the social relations of production during the industrial revolution? (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
PART THREE: CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES
Karl Marx/Friedrich Engels
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #6.
· Homework for next class
“Marx’s revenge: How class struggle is reshaping the world,” Time http://business.time.com/2013/03/25/marxs-revenge-how-class-struggle-is-shaping-the-world/
“A history of capitalism in four short videos,” BBC http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32324875
Edles and Appelrouth, Sociological Theory in the Classical Era, chapter 1
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 2 (“Karl Marx” [pages 20-38]; and Marx/Engels, “The German Ideology”)
Post #7 (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
Part A
· What are the premises of Marx’s materialist method?
· What is a “mode of production”?
· According to Marx, where do ideas, consciousness, politics, law, morality, religion, philosophy, etc., come from?
· How is Marx’s methodology “materialist” and “dialectical”? How does this methodology explain the demise of the feudal mode of production and the rise of the capitalist mode of production?
· In summary, what does it mean that history is a process in which humans (1) reshape nature and (2) reshape themselves as human beings?
Part B
What were Marx’s intellectual influences, and how do they reflect the Enlightenment?
· Week of Monday, September 19
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #7.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 2 (“Introduction to Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844”; and “Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844”)
Post #8 (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
· What is "materialism" in Marx's philosophy? How did the emphasis on materialism by Marx (and other philosophers) reflect the Enlightenment's critique of previous philosophical approaches?
· What are the forms of "alienation," according to Marx, and what is alienation’s underlying cause? Give a present-day example of each form of alienation.
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #8.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 2 (“Introduction to The Communist Manifesto”; Marx and Engels, “From The Communist Manifesto”)
Post #9 (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· In what way is “The history of all hitherto existing society . . . the history of class struggles,” according to Marx?
· What was the form of class struggle under feudalism? Why and how was the bourgeoisie a revolutionary force in Europe’s transition from feudalism?
· What are examples of capitalist exploitation and crisis today, from a Marxian perspective?
· What is the form of class struggle under capitalism? What are the forms of economic crisis under capitalism, and how is the bourgeoisie responsible for such crises, according to Marx?
· Week of Monday, September 26
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #9.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 2 (“Introduction to Capital”; Marx, “From Capital”)
"Taylorism" ("scientific management") (video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slfFJXVAepE
"The assembly line, then and now" (video) http://www.history.com/topics/henry-ford/videos/history-of-the-holidays-the-story-of-labor-day
"The Taylorist 'open office' plan" http://www.carusostjohn.com/media/artscouncil/history/taylorist/index.html
“History of human resources management” http://www.brighthubpm.com/resource-management/77387-a-history-of-human-resource-management/
Book review: "The class politics of office technology" (a contemporary example of Taylorism) http://www.socialismtoday.org/92/office.html
Post #10 (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
· According to Marx, what is “capital” and where does it come from? What is wealth—in all of its various forms—and where does it come from?
· What is the cost of developing and maintaining a worker?
· What does the typical worker receive in exchange for her/his labor, and what does the capitalist receive in this exchange? What is the conflict of interests in this exchange, according to Marx?
· In what way, according to Marx, is class a social relation of production, rather than a mere position or rank in society (based on income level or occupational title)?
· Why, from Marx’s perspective, is it typically correct to conclude that there are more classes in a capitalist mode of production during a given time and in a given place than the simple notion of “bourgeoisie versus proletariat”?
· What is “commodity fetishism”? Give an example.
· How does capitalist competition lead to an increasingly specialized division of labor and application of technology and cost-efficient organization? According to Marx, what are the long-term consequences of this process for both the ranks of the bourgeoisie and the ranks of the proletariat?
· Thursday
· In class: Discussion on “Wage Labor and Capital”
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 2 (“Introduction to Friedrich Engels’s The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the State”; Engels, “From The Origin of the Family, Private
Property, and the State”
Post #11 (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· According to Engels, what is the relationship of gender inequalities and monogamy to capitalism?
· According to Engels, what is the relationship of the modern state (that is, modern government) to capitalism?
· Week of Monday, October 3
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #11.
· Homework for next class
“Marx Continues to Influence 125 Years after His Death,” DW http://www.dw.de/marx-continues-to-influence-125-years-after-his-death/a-3190306
Marx and Engels, “The Relevance of Marxism Today: An Interview with Michael Lebowitz,” Monthly Review http://goo.gl/67nU5d
Recommended: Gar Alperovitz and Rick Wolf http://goo.gl/u9EAQl; Noam Chomsky http://www.chomsky.info/articles.htm; John Bellamy Foster, “Ecology against
capitalism,” Monthly Review http://goo.gl/EUJlHW; David Harvey http://davidharvey.org/; Immanuel Wallerstein http://www.iwallerstein.com/; “Interview of Giovanni Arrighi by David
Harvey,” New Left Review http://goo.gl/zS4Z0x
Post #12. Apply the theoretical framework of Marx/Engels to interpret some contemporary problem (such as the global economic downturn, increasing socioeconomic inequality [within localities, nations/regions, or worldwide], gender or racial/ethnic inequalities, socio-geographic inequalities, ecological degradation, the precariousness of your economic present and future, the weakening of the labor movement, the ascendance of religious fundamentalism, alienation, and so on). (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #12.
· Homework for next class: Review Marx/Engels
< Begin drafting the Marx/Engels section of the mid-term paper.>
· Week of Monday, October 10
· Tuesday
· In class: review Marx/Engels
Emile Durkheim
· Homework for next class
· Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 3 (“Emile Durkheim” [pages 101-110]; Durkheim, “From The Division of Labor in Society”)
· Post #13. Describe Durkheim’s analysis of society’s division of labor and the contemporary relevance of his analysis (due by this Wednesday, before 11:55pm)
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #13.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 3 (“Introduction to The Rules of Sociological Method”; Durkheim, “From The Rules of Sociological Method”)
Post #14. Describe Durkheim’s rules of sociological method. How does Durkheim’s methodology differ from Marx’s? (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· Week of Monday, October 17
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #14.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 3 (“Introduction to Suicide”; Durkheim, “From Suicide: A Study in Sociology”)
Post #15. Describe Durkheim’s analysis of suicide and its relevance today (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #15.
· Homework for next class: Review Durkheim’s theoretical perspective
< Begin drafting the Durkheim section of the mid-term paper. >
Max Weber
· Week of Monday, October 24
· Tuesday
· In class: review Durkheim
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 4 (“Max Weber,” pages 164-177)
Post #16. Describe Weber’s research methodology (in terms of ideal-types: affective action; traditional action; value-rational action; and instrumental-rational action). How
does it differ from those of Durkheim and Marx? (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #16.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 4 (“Introduction to ‘The Distribution of Power within the Political Community: Class, Status, Party’” [pages 204-206]; Weber, “The Distribution
of Power within the Political Community: Class, Status, Party” [pages 206-214]).
Post #17. How does Weber analyze (1) social inequality and (2) political domination? How does Weber’s perspective on these matters differ from Marx’s? (due by next Monday, before
11:55pm)
· Week of Monday, October 31
· Tuesday
· In class: group activities based on post #17.
· Homework for next class
Edles and Appelrouth, chapter 4 (“Introduction to ‘The Types of Legitimate Domination’” [pages 214-215]; Weber, “From ‘The Types of Legitimate Domination’” [pages 217-223]; Edles and
Appelrouth, “Introduction to ‘Bureaucracy’” [pages 223-225]; Weber, “From ‘Bureaucracy’” [pages 225-233])
Post #18. Compare the theoretical/methodological perspectives of Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm).
· Thursday
· In class: group activities based on post #18.
· Homework for next class: review Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber
<Begin drafting the Weber section of the mid-term paper.>
· Week of Monday, November 7
· Tuesday
· In class: Review the theoretical/methodological perspectives of Marx/Engels, Durkheim, and Weber, the contemporary relevance of their perspectives, and the political implications of their differences.
· Homework for next class: continue drafting mid-term paper.
· Thursday
· In class: discuss drafts of mid-term paper
· Homework for next class: complete writing mid-term paper
<Mid-term paper due via Turnitin.com on Blackboard by Monday, November 14, before 11:55pm>
PART FOUR: CONTEMPORARY RELEVANCE OF CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES
· Week of Monday, November 14
· Tuesday
· In class: choose and start work on group projects and final papers
· Homework for next class
Post # 19. Review – What’s different and what’s similar in regard to common-sense understandings and theoretical understandings? (due by Wednesday of this week, before 11:55pm)
· Thursday
· In class: continue working on group projects and final papers
· Homework
Work on group projects and final papers
Post #20. Review – What is theory? Why is theory important? But why is theory—like common sense understandings—rooted in culture and power, as situated in specific
historical times, geographic places, and politico-social relations? (due by next Monday, before 11:55pm)
· Week of Monday, November 21
· Tuesday
· In class: continue working on group projects and final papers
· Homework: Work on group projects and final papers
· Thursday: Thanksgiving vacation—No class
· Week of Monday, November 28
<Group projects due via posting on Blackboard by each group member by
Monday, November 28, before 11:55pm>
· Tuesday,
· In class: presentation of group projects
· Homework: work on final papers
· Thursday
· In class: presentation of group projects
· Homework: work on final papers
· Week of Monday, December 5
< Final papers due via Turnitin.com on Blackboard by Thursday, December 8, before 11:55pm>
Some Questions to Ask about a Theory
1. What are the theory’s historical, geographic, and politico-social contexts?
2. What principal question(s) does the theory ask?
a. How important are these question(s) relative to other possible questions, in terms of both scholarly research agenda and real-world problem solving?
b. How does the theory answer the question(s) it asks?
c. What empirical evidence does the theorist use to support the answers?
d. Is evidence presented for contemporaneous comparisons and for comparisons over time?
e. How representative, valid, and persuasive is the evidence?
f. What are alternative answers to the question(s) asked?
g. To what extent does the theorist recognize and address the alternatives?
h. Is evidence for the alternative answers more or less persuasive than for the theorist’s own answers?
3. What pertinent questions does the theory not ask, and why not?
a. What are the repercussions, if any, of not asking such questions?
4. How fruitful is the theory in provoking questions, providing insights, and suggesting practical actions and solutions?
a. To what extent do these pertain to phenomena across realms of society and across places and times?
b. Are the theory’s questions, insights, and suggested actions/solutions more or less fruitful than those derived from alternative theories?
5. What are the theory’s assumptions about human nature, society, and the world?
a. How do these compare to the assumptions of alternative theories?
6. In what ways have the theory’s historical, geographic, and politico-social contexts influenced the theorist’s assumptions, questions, evidence, insights, and limitations?
7. Can the theory be decomposed into a coherent set of assumptions and propositions (including observable implications such as hypotheses) about the question(s) it addresses?
8. Can the theory be expressed as an abstract model (that is, as a simplified representation of a phenomenon for a specific purpose) involving properly delineated social actors, relationships, processes, conditions, and rules?
9. What is the range of the theory’s observable implications (hypotheses/empirical research questions and predictions) across realms of society and across places and time?
10. Are the theory’s observable implications falsifiable?
Course Contract
Submission deadline: See syllabus.
Submission date & time: ______________________________________________
Course# & title: _____________________________________________________
Professor: _________________________________
Professor’s office number, office hours/days, & email address:
__________________________________________________________________
Graduate Assistant: __________________________________________________
Graduate Assistant’s office number, office hours/days, & email address:
_______________________________________________________
I, ________________________________ (Panther ID # ________________), have carefully read the course syllabus. I understand the course requirements concerning assignments, participation, deadlines, citizenship, and grading. I agree to follow and fulfill these requirements. I specifically agree to:
· Not represent someone else's work as my own.
· Not cheat or aid in another student’s cheating.
· Be honest in my academic endeavors.
· Understand that if I am found responsible for academic misconduct, I will be subject to the academic misconduct procedures and sanctions as outlined in the FIU Student Handbook.
· Understand that all course assignments must be completed in order to be eligible to earn a passing grade.
I also agree to:
· Acknowledge that all course assignments must be completed in order to be eligible to earn a passing grade.
· Keep track of the exams/assignments and course schedule.
· Acknowledge that discussion post scores and class attendance/participation scores represent built-in extra-credit points and that there are no other extra-credit assignments .
· Complete assignments thoughtfully and submit them before the deadlines listed in the course syllabus.
· Email the Graduate Assistant promptly if I have a valid (ideally, documented) excuse for missing class or submitting an assignment late.
· Not request to submit an assignment late unless a valid excuse has been reported promptly (ideally, beforehand) and documented adequately.
· Submit any excused late assignments as hard copy, together with documentation of the approved excuse.
· Recognize that online-posted assignments must be completed and submitted before the listed deadlines.
· Not ask if I can get points-credit for submitting any assignment late without a valid (ideally, documented) excuse.
· Acknowledge that excused late assignments will not be scored/graded until the instructors prepare final grades at the end of the semester (with the exception of lateness due to university-sanctioned activities, circumstances sanctioned by the Disability Resource Center, circumstances affecting the broader university community, or other such circumstances).
· Not ask for special grading favors.
1. Arrive on time for class sessions ; not engage in distracting or discourteous behavior of any kind during class sessions; remain in class until the session ends (unless discussed with the instructor before the session begins); and contribute to a classroom ambience of focused, enthusiastic, and supportive learning.
1. Acknowledge that the instructor has the discretion to deduct points from your attendance/participation score if you arrive late to class or leave class early without a valid (ideally, documented) excuse.
1. Be a responsible, enthusiastic, hardworking, and supportive member of my assigned student group.
1. Make helpful suggestions to the instructors at any time concerning how to improve any aspect of the class.
1. Do my best to make this class stimulating, creative, productive, and enjoyable!
