Overview

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Interdisciplinary study of a selected theme that has made a lasting contribution to the humanistic tradition in more than one field of endeavour (e.g., philosophy, politics, literature, economics, religion). May be repeated once for credit when a different topic is taught. Students who have credit for a course with this content under another Humanities course may not take this course for further credit. Breadth-Humanities.

COURSE DETAILS:

In the midst of this “polycrisis,” what are the potentials for collective action toward positive change? Where can we find points of light in the darkness? And what can we learn from previous periods of turbulence and the forms of cultural creativity that emerged from them?

Through readings, discussion, videos, class presentations, and written and creative work, we will aim to identify, articulate, and where possible to connect with, the most promising strands of work toward social and ecological reconciliation. We will explore the work of artists, critical thinkers, digital activists, and communities responding to the challenges of war, authoritarianism, disaster, and climate change in ways that build possibilities for hopeful, collaborative, and richly more-than-human futures. 

We will ask: what are the forms of social, ecological, media, and arts-based activism that address our global challenges most directly, at local or global scales? What are the critical leverage points at which we could apply our energies to contribute toward positive change? What are the potential points of connection—in public discourse, mass and social media, and organizational alliance—where these leverage points could be made visible, audible, and evident? Are there movements exploring alternatives, including utopian or “ecotopian” experiments occurring in other places that represent the “prefigurative politics” of a more promising future? What can we, as members of a university community, citizens of a large west coast metropolis, and participants in media and other social networks, do to contribute to this future-crafting? How does our time reflect, in all of these dimensions, previous times of turbulence and creative social transformation? And what can we learn from those previous experiences?

In addition to class activities and assignments, we will incorporate a series of online public expert panels, to be organized through the Institute for the Humanities and the J. S. Woodsworth Chair in the Humanities, and to take place during class time three or four times during the term.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

In taking this course, students will be able to gain the following:

1. Broad exposure to global social and ecological challenges and radical proposals for addressing those challenges;
2. A basic understanding of key theories of social change, as found in fields including cultural and media studies, communication studies, political theory, and the sociology of social movements;
3. A working understanding of diverse perspectives on contemporary controversies over the ethical and political implications of digital information technologies, including artificial intelligence;
4. An extended experience in applying relevant theoretical perspectives to the critical analysis of a select activist initiative, group, or community;
5. An opportunity to apply relevant theoretical perspectives to a creative, advocacy, or service project related to course themes; and
6. Practice in critical thinking, reading, writing, researching, analysis, and presentation (verbal and/or audio-visual) appropriate to an upper-level university Humanities course.

Grading

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

REQUIRED READING NOTES: