Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Fall 2021 - CA 811 G100

Interdisciplinary Graduate Seminar I (5)

Class Number: 7287

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Sep 8 – Dec 7, 2021: Wed, 9:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
    GOLDCORP

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Critical study of contemporary issues in the fine and performing arts, with emphasis on concerns common to diverse artistic disciplines and the interaction between art and society. Students with credit for FPA 811 may not take this course for further credit.

COURSE DETAILS:

The course will discuss important contemporary critical and theoretical issues concerning politics, the arts, and society more broadly today. This course will have a particular emphasis on the following topics (but will not be limited to these): the place of art in urgent times, when environmental breakdown and political/economic crises brought on by decades of neoliberalism are dominant topics of they day; contemporary Indigenous thought and politics; critiques of race and racism. Readings for the final several weeks of the term will be chosen collectively by the class so that we can address issues of specific interest to the members of the seminar.

Grading

  • Participation/Discusion 20%
  • Short Presentation 20%
  • Short writing assignments 25%
  • Final Essay 35%
  • Grade breakdown is provisional and may well change

NOTES:

Course readings

All readings will be made available on Canvas for you to download. I expect you to print them out to have them available in class for close discussion. Some of you may wish to purchase the books from which some readings are taken. I highly recommend buying the following books, though we will not read the entirety of all of them. I will ask you to read all of Thomas King's The Truth About Stories and we will read most of The Old is Dying... We will read relatively short excerpts from Minima Moralia and As We Have Always Done, but they are both such amazing books that having them on your shelves is a nice idea if you have the means to buy them.

  • Theodor Adorno, Minima Moralia
  • Nancy Fraser, The Old is Dying and the New Cannot be Born
  • Thomas King, The Truth about Stories (This text can be listened to on the CBC website in its original form as a lecture. It is very moving to listen to.)

  • Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, As We Have Always Done

Note that this list is not the entirety of what we will read. I have not ordered the books from the bookstore. However, I would recommend ordering them through Pulp Fiction Books (http://pulpfictionbooksvancouver.com/newbooks.html) or Massy Books (https://www.massybooks.com/about/) in Vancouver. Pulp Fiction has several stores in town and Massy is located in Chinatown, less than10 minutes from the SCA building by foot. Get your books and some soup at Phat Mao almost next door in one trip! Both offer discounts for many books. Pulp Fiction delivers locally. They both may offer shipping in case you are not yet local. The Adorno and Fraser books are frequently available from the publisher, Verso Books, at a significant discount (www.versobooks.com).

I will finalize the reading list before the start of term.

Details on assignments, readings, and course procedures will be provided the first day of class. Due to necessary travel for my research (pandemic pending), one or two weeks of class may be conducted online.

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

All readings will be made available in Canvas.

Graduate Studies Notes:

Important dates and deadlines for graduate students are found here: http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/current/important_dates/guidelines.html. The deadline to drop a course with a 100% refund is the end of week 2. The deadline to drop with no notation on your transcript is the end of week 3.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating.  Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community.  Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

TEACHING AT SFU IN FALL 2021

Teaching at SFU in fall 2021 will involve primarily in-person instruction, with approximately 70 to 80 per cent of classes in person/on campus, with safety plans in place.  Whether your course will be in-person or through remote methods will be clearly identified in the schedule of classes.  You will also know at enrollment whether remote course components will be “live” (synchronous) or at your own pace (asynchronous).

Enrolling in a course acknowledges that you are able to attend in whatever format is required.  You should not enroll in a course that is in-person if you are not able to return to campus, and should be aware that remote study may entail different modes of learning, interaction with your instructor, and ways of getting feedback on your work than may be the case for in-person classes.

Students with hidden or visible disabilities who may need class or exam accommodations, including in the context of remote learning, are advised to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (caladmin@sfu.ca or 778-782-3112) as early as possible in order to prepare for the fall 2021 term.