SCHOOL OF COMMUNICATION
CMNS 224-3 & 286-3
(These courses are co-requisites – you must take BOTH of them)

SOCIAL ISSUES AND COMMUNICATION
REPRESENTING THE ECONOMY:
WORK, WEALTH AND WELFARE IN POLITICAL AND POPULAR CULTURE

Prerequisites:

CMNS 110 and CMNS 130. It is also hoped that students will have taken some Arts courses in their first year, at least a few of which required essay writing.

Overview:

These courses are an historical and theoretical introduction to how the economy has been conceptualized and represented in North American political and popular culture over the past two centuries. Interdisciplinary in scope, they will draw on sources from sociology, political theory, economics, literature and art in order to understand the context in which economic debates are carried on and the stakes involved. Some central questions raised in this course include: How can the economy be understood to structure everyday life in both visible and invisible ways? How do the framing of economic problems reflect specific attitudes and assumptions embedded in social practices, historical traditions, moral beliefs, and family status? To what extent are social relationships and thus self-identity shaped by economic contexts? As the course progresses, the history of modern society’s ambivalent attitudes to work, wealth, welfare, the conflict between competition and cooperation, along with other themes will be discussed.

As a double course, students will be introduced to historical and theoretical material in the early weeks, which will serve as a foundation for analyzing contemporary debates later on. No specialized knowledge is presupposed. However, as one of the aims of this course is to develop student’s skill in critical thinking and writing, essay writing skills and the careful evaluation of principal arguments will be stressed. I advise all students to read the excellent books on writing I have listed below. This course is intended to give students a strong foundation for pursuing more advanced studies in the political economy, social policy, or cultural studies streams of communication as well as similar topics in other disciplines.

Readings:

Course readings will consist of primary and secondary scholarly sources, popular newspaper and television journalism, films, plays, novels and some selections from the “success/self-help” genre of popular business literature. Specific readings will be announced each day in class. Students must keep up with the readings as lectures and class discussion will be based on interpreting and critically evaluating the points of view presented in the readings. Attendance and contribution to class discussion is expected.

Required Texts:

(subject to change with notice)
Heilbroner, Robert, The Veil of Economics. W.W. Norton and Co., 1989.
Leidner, Robin, Fast Food, Fast Talk: Service Work and the Routinization of Everyday Life. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1993.
Mistry, Rohinton. A Fine Balance. McClelland and Stewart, 1995.
Miller, Arthur, Death of a Salesman. Penguin, 1976.
Globe and Mail subscription. Call 1-800-387-5400 for student rate of approx. $6 per month. Please do this at least a week before class begins.
Reading Kit: Will be available on Library reserve when class commences.

Highly Recommended Texts:

Flower, Linda, Problem Solving Strategies for Writing. Harcourt and Brace, 1993.
Hall, Donald, Writing Well. Addison, Wesley, Longman, 1998.

Assignments:

(subject to change with notice)
As a six credit (double) course the marks add up to 200% instead of 100%. You will receive the same grade for CMNS 224 and 286.
Tutorial Participation and Presentation 15%
Book Review (5 pages) 20%
First Mid-term (in-class, with questions handed out previous week) 30%
Second Midterm (in-class, with questions handed out previous week) 35%
Essay (10-12 pages) 40%
Group Project (details to be given in class) 25%
Final Take-Home Exam 35%

Note: This course is scheduled in a condensed time slot. Readings will be assigned every class. Budget at least three hours per day for reading and assignments.

The School expects that the grades awarded in this course will bear some reasonable relation to established university-wide practices with respect to both levels and distribution of grades. In addition, the School will follow Policy T10.02 with respect to "Intellectual Honesty," and "Academic Discipline" (see the current Calendar, General Regulations Section).