SPRING 2003
Senior Perspective Course
SRP435, ENG 435, PHL 435
LITERATURE, PHILOSOPHY, AND ECONOMICS: CRITICAL
REPRESENTATIONS OF COMMERCIAL LIFE
GENERAL INFORMATION
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Drawing on contemporary work in critical theory, literary criticism, aesthetics,
and rhetoric, this course examines the representation of economic phenomena
in selected literary and philosophical texts. The course will explore 1) how
an analysis of such texts can reveal underlying social forms such as private
property, the commodity, wage labor, and capital; and 2) how these ethically
consequential forms tie in with problems of poverty, unequal distributions of
income and wealth, overconsumption and depletion of natural resources, competition
and conflict, and social instability.
TEXTS
Patrick Murray, ed., Reflections on Commercial Life: An Anthology of Classic Texts from Plato to the Present (Routledge) ISBN 0-415-91196-6
Charles Dickens, Hard Times (W.W. Norton/Norton Critical Edition), ISBN 0-393-95900-7
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (Penguin/Viking Critical Library), ISBN 0-14-024775-0
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1) Term Project & Presentation (20%)
All students will be required to undertake and complete a project which may
be an original paper or a creative work such as a short story, play, or set
of poems (5-10 written pages or equivalent). Also acceptable are substantial
and original art works (performance pieces, painting, drawing, music, film,
websites, etc.). All creative options must be clearly relevant and related to
the class materials. All works must be created during and for the specific purposes
of this course. Students will make a 5-minute in-class presentation describing
and/or performing their projects (see Schedule below).
All projects must be approved by the instructor in advance (see
Schedule below). Students choosing to write a paper must follow the guidelines
provided by the instructor. For further information on the writing and grading
of essays see Grading Standards and Procedures,
and Grading of Essays and Other Written
Work. ALL PROJECTS ARE DUE ON THE LAST DAY OF REGULAR CLASS (see
Schedule below).
2) Two Essay Exams (30% each)
Exams will ask students to read closely, analyze, and comment on a particular
passage from one of the texts studied and/or develop a theme/issue related to
the readings, lectures, or class discussions. The same criteria which apply
to papers will be used in the grading of exams (see "Grading
of Essays and Other Written Work"). Students should expect to do a substantial
amount of writing (4-6 handwritten pages) during an exam and must bring paper
and pens to each examination (no pencils please). All handwriting in an exam
must be neat and easily legible. No credit will be given for illegible exams.
3) Participation and Other Performance (20%)
In addition to other grades, the instructor will assess and grade each student's
overall accomplishment, development, and involvement in the course. This grade
will take into account aspects of a student's performance such as class participation,
preparation, contributions, effort, attentiveness, interest, improvement, responsibility,
etc.
4) Grading Scale, Attendance, and Other Policies
All aspects of the course will be graded on a 100-point scale where 90-100 = A, 87-89 = B+, 80-86 = B, 77-79 = C+, 70-76 = C, 60-69 = D, and 0-59 = F
Make-ups/extensions for a missed deadline will only be given in cases of documented serious illness or other valid, non-frivolous excuses such as documented participation in official University sports or academic/service events (it will be up to the instructor to determine and decide on the acceptability of an excuse).
An attendance measurement will be calculated equal to the percentage of total class time attended. The course grade may not exceed that percentage (i.e. if a student attended only 75% of the total class time, the course grade may not be higher than 75 or C). Notice also that, at the discretion of the instructor, any student missing more than 30% of the total class time may fail the course.
All students in the class are expected to observe the University's guidelines on student conduct as described in Creighton University's Student Handbook (see "Code of Conduct," and especially the section on "Academic Misconduct" dealing with problems of plagiarism, cheating, etc.). Cheating in exams, engaging in plagiarism, and other forms of academic dishonesty will result in failing the given assignment or, at the discretion of the instructor, the entire course. Problems such as repeated lateness arriving to class, inatentiveness, or disruptive behavior may adversely affect the class participation grade. Seriously disruptive behavior can also result, at the discretion of the instructor, in more severe penalties, including failing the entire course.
READING AND DISCUSSION SCHEDULE
In the online version of the syllabus you may click here for Course's Guiding Questions and Concerns
In the online version of the syllabus you may click on selected individual subjects for study questions. These questions will guide class discussions. All reading must be completed BEFORE the day when it is scheduled for discussion.
Tuesday Jan 21
Tuesday Jan 28
Tuesday Feb 04
Tuesday Feb 11
Tuesday Feb 18
Tuesday Feb 25
Tuesday Mar 04
Tuesday Mar 11
Tuesday Mar 25
Tuesday Apr 01
Tuesday Apr 08
Tuesday Apr 15
Tuesday Apr 22
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