Leontina Hormel

SOC404-07: POLITICAL ECONOMY
Professor Leontina (LT) Hormel
Wednesdays 5:30-8:20 p.m. / TLC 22

Office Hours: M/W 2:30-5 p.m. & by appointment
Office Location: Phinney 115
Office Phone: 885-6735

Note: I do not accept correspondence via email, unless you wish to arrange an office appointment. Mark the subject header "Office Appointment" and send to lhormel@uidaho.edu; otherwise, I will not read the content of your message.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to classical and contemporary political economic critiques. The course will tend to have a global outlook by investigating the economic history of the environment and the current economic crises facing the international community. But, it will also take a hard look at the experiences of workers in the U.S. while the economic system continues to intensively globalize. Students will be encouraged to analyze and discuss the course materials critically in order to develop their own perspectives on this subject.

REQUIRED TEXTS

(available in the bookstore and on reserve in the library)

Albert, Michael. 2004. Parecon: Life After Capitalism. New York: Verso.

Foster, John. 2002. Ecology Against Capitalism. New York: Monthly Review Press.

Marx, Karl. 1995 [1867]. Capital (A new abridgement). Oxford & New York: Oxford University Press.

Waring, Marilyn. 1999. Counting for Nothing: What Men Value and What Women Are Worth. Toronto & Buffalo: University of Toronto Press.

Selected chapters will be available on e-reserve for Adam Smith, Thomas Robert Malthus, David Ricardo, W.E.B. DuBois, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Ida B. Wells, John Maynard Keynes, Karl Polanyi, Paul Baran and Paul Sweezy, Vine Deloria Jr., and Immanuel Wallerstein.

RECOMMENDED TEXT

Dowd, Douglas. 2000. Capitalism and its Economics: A Critical History. London & Sterling VA: Pluto Press.

GRADING

The best thing you can do to maintain a good grade in this course is to keep up with the readings. I have tried to be sensitive to students' workloads, so during most weeks, the readings will amount to no more than 100 pages. Keeping up with the readings will help you make better sense of class lectures, and will also enhance class discussion and debate of the material. Generally, the less reading students do, of course, the more you have to listen to me!

Below are the graded assignments for this course. NO MAKE-UP ASSIGNMENTS will be offered to students without formal, written evidence for an excused absence (see explanation in course expectation section).

3 Mid-term in-class exams (45%) Designed to take an hour to complete (February 14, March 21, and April 25), exams include a combination of multiple choice, true-false, and short answer questions. Questions will test student comprehension of each theorist's main claims and will also emphasize the historical context for the theoretical frameworks. As such, exams encompass reading, lecture, and discussion materials. Quizzes (mentioned below) will prepare students for content in the exams. An optional final exam will be available to students who seek an opportunity to improve their grades. The EXAM WILL BE HELD AT 5:30 P.M. ON MAY 9 and will include questions from previous exams and quizzes, plus content covered toward the latter part of the term. No penalty will be given to those whose performance is worse than in the previous in-class exams. If a student's grade on the final exam is better than in a previous exam, the better grade will replace the previous grade.

Case study essay (25%): 10 page essay examining a case study assigned mid-way through the term. DUE WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, BY 5:30 P.M.; NO LATE ASSIGNMENTS ACCEPTED (EARLY SUBMISSIONS ALWAYS WELCOME).

Randomly-Assigned Quizzes (30%): Quizzes are intended to motivate students to keep up with reading assignments and to test comprehension level. Quiz content will include reading content for that week, plus questions regarding past readings. Thus, quizzes enable students to build comprehensive understanding of course materials. Some content will be passed on to exams.

Note: Those students who would prefer to examine more thoroughly a particular topic within the area of political economy are welcome to create an in-depth assignment with me. Please talk with me if you are interested in developing your own assignment in this course.

ATTENDANCE POLICY FOR THIS COURSE

This is a course in an institution of higher education, thus it is assumed that students will handle attendance maturely and responsibly. Class attendance is NOT recorded. If I notice patterns of absenteeism among particular individuals, I may confer privately with her/him. As a general rule, continual absence from class sessions will inhibit a student's ability to master course material and to complete this course successfully. Keep in mind class sessions are opportunities for students to engage in course topics.

Except in emergency situations, students are expected to submit all assignments by deadlines, regardless of whether or not they are in class when the assignments are due.

Only the following, at the discretion of the professor, are possibly legitimate reasons for an absence:

• Death or serious illness in family;
• Medical emergency or illness (this does not include a non-emergency medical appointment that could have been scheduled for another time without significant difficulty);
• Emergency child-care responsibilities;
• Religious holiday, in accordance with state law;
• Participation in University of Idaho-sponsored athletic events, University of Idaho dramatic or musical performances, University of Idaho-sanctioned professional or academic conferences, etc.; or
• A similar type of situation/problem (at professors' discretion).

You should provide reasonable documentation for an absence, unless because of special circumstances I waive this requirement. Please discuss schedule conflicts in advance with me. As specified at the beginning of this syllabus, I do not accept any correspondence via email except to arrange office appointments.

Note that vacations, work schedule issues (except in cases of exceptional financial need, at my discretion), driving someone to an airport, etc., are not legitimate excuses for an absence.

WISH TO ATTEND A CLASS SESSION LATE, OR TO LEAVE EARLY?

To ensure a sound learning environment for all students taking this course, the door will be closed 10 minutes after the class session begins. If you are more than 10 minutes late and the door to the room is closed, you have officially missed class for the day. If you anticipate being late for class (conflicting doctor's appointment, childcare arrangements, work arrangements, and so on), let me know as soon as you are aware that you might be late one day. Also, if you need to leave early from class on a particular day, please let me know BEFORE class session begins. Otherwise, students are expected to attend the full class session - no early exits. Those who need to use the restroom are excused (I can tell since you will not put all of your books away and take off with your book bag to do this). Please acknowledge that these measures are taken to reduce interruptions in the class and to maintain respect in our classroom. Thanks, in advance, for cooperating.

CODE OF CONDUCT AND RESPECT

You are probably quite familiar already with the controversial topics that sociology explores. We are bound to discuss topics throughout the term that may be emotionally-charged for some students (even if it, perhaps, doesn't seem like a big deal to you). In light of this potential for conflict in the classroom, I ask that we follow a code of conduct. The code of conduct includes the simple idea that "you do unto others what you would like done unto yourself". How this translates into our own conduct in class comprises the following: listen attentively to individuals who present ideas in class; do not hold conversations with peers in the background of class presentations/discussions; and put away all materials that are not related to the course during class sessions (newspapers, magazines, cell phones - turn the ringer off, portable video games, portable media players, and so on). In addition, when you pose your own position before the class, please recognize that others' ideas may vastly differ from your own. Be sure you don't make fun of, or degrade, others who hold different perspectives. Failing to abide by any of the terms in this code of conduct may result in expulsion from class sessions. Again, thanks, in advance, for your cooperation!!

PLAGIARISM

Plagiarism is not accepted in any student's work in this course. I will discuss more specifically in class what is considered plagiarism. Briefly, I consider plagiarism to be the duplication of someone's ideas (a famous writer/researcher's ideas and even a fellow student's ideas) without proper reference of WHO made these ideas, as well as WHEN and WHERE these ideas were made. A bibliography alone is not sufficient for avoiding plagiarism. Please discuss with me individually if you are not sure what constitutes plagiarism. The safest rule to follow is to acknowledge the source of an idea whenever you are in doubt. I will fail an assignment if I identify any plagiarized ideas in it. If a student plagiarizes a second time in the same course, that student will fail the entire course. Note that I am not able to determine whether a student intended to plagiarize, but can only determine whether plagiarism has taken place.

Week One January 10: INTRODUCTION TO COURSE

Week Two January 17: ADAM SMITH

Week Three January 24: MALTHUS & RICARDO

Week Four January 31: MARX

Week Five February 7: MARX

Week Six February 14: FIRST MID-TERM EXAM & KEYNES

Take first mid-term exam at beginning of class, then lecture/discussion on Maynard Keynes

Week Seven: February 21: POLANYI

Week Eight: February 28: BARAN & SWEEZY

Week Nine March 7: CAPITALISM FROM THE MARGINS

W.E.B. Dubois, Ida B. Wells, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, & Vine Deloria, Jr.

** SPRING BREAK **

Week Ten March 21: SECOND MID-TERM EXAM & COUNTING FOR NOTHING

Week Eleven March 28: COUNTING FOR NOTHING

Week Twelve April 4: ECOLOGY AGAINST CAPITALISM

Week Thirteen April 11: IMMANUEL WALLERSTEIN & ECOLOGY AGAINST CAPITALISM

Week Fourteen April 18: PARECON

Week Fifteen April 25: THIRD MID-TERM EXAM & PARECON

 

** CASE STUDY ESSAY DUE 5:30 P.M. ON MAY 2 AT PHINNEY 115 **

** OPTIONAL FINAL EXAM (FOURTH EXAM) ON
WEDNESDAY, MAY 9, AT 5:30 P.M. **