Ivan Brady, Ph.D., Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus
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Ivan Brady, Ph.D., Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus |
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| Other Interests |
Resume .pdf |
| Honors 200 Introduction to Social Science (3 Semester Hours) |
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This course will introduce fundamental perspectives in the social sciences -- anthropology, history, economics, political science, and sociology. It is problem-oriented and comparative in nature, that is, concerned with the similarities and differences among the social sciences themselves and between the social sciences, the natural sciences, the humanities, and philosophy. Readings range from scientific essays to history, fiction, and poetry. The basic organizing questions of each of the social sciences will be asked of each reading to see what can be learned, to reveal the relevance and irrelevance of certain kinds of questions in particular contexts, to illustrate the need to create new questions tailored to the research interests and the contexts to which they are applied, and to reinforce the value of systematic thinking in general. Discovering and becoming conversant with these questions and principles are the primary goals of the course. Main Texts (required): (1) Crichton, Michael. Eaters of the Dead. New York: Knopf, 1976. (2) Mayr, Ernst. One Long Argument: Charles Darwin and the Genesis of Modern Evolutionary Thought. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1991. (3) Mead, Margaret. Coming of Age in Samoa. New York: Morrow, 1973. (4) Melville, Herman. Typee. New York: New American Library, 1964. (5) Sandars, N.K. (ed.). The Epic of Gilgamesh. New York: Penguin, 1972. Reference Works (required): (1) Barrett, Richard A. Culture and Conduct. 2nd ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1991. (2) Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. The Craft of Research. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1995. Honors 200 Introduction to Social Science SCHEDULE
Reading assignment order: Mead, Melville, Gilgamesh, Crichton, Mayr. Booth (1) Introduction: What is social science? What is social about it? What is scientific about it? As compared to what? How do the component disciplines differ, overlap, compete? Readings: Barrett, chapters 1-3; Booth et al., pp. 1-11; handouts Hunt and Colander, "Social Science and Its Methods"; Lakoff and Johnson, "The Myths of Objectivism and Subjectivism"; Brady, "Anthropological Poetics." (2) The Mead Controversy: What is it? Who was Margaret Mead? What was her primary research goal in Samoa? How should we evaluate her work? Why is Derek Freeman so widely challenged in his criticism of Mead's work? Readings: Coming of Age in Samoa. (3) Typee? [No, actually I have a secretary.] What is the story line in Typee? Is there ethnography in fiction? What exactly is historical about this novel? Why is the topic of cannibalism so important to the novel's popularity? Can we believe the inferences about cannibalism? Why is that a problem? How would sociologists deal with these data? Can we make any inferences about Marquesan social, political, and economic organization from Melville¹s account? What would it take to validate these inferences from a social science perspective? Readings: Typee; handouts: Brady and Kolata on cannibalism.
(4) Gilgamesh: What is the story line here? What is the history of the (5) Crichton: Who are the "eaters of the dead"? Who was Ibn Fadlan? How reliable is his account? How do we establish reliability, authenticity, and validity for such texts? What kinds of distortions are possible (if not likely) in Crichton's rendering of the various manuscripts as one coherent story? What kinds of social science inferences can be made from this text? Are we back to cannibalism in some special way (e.g., cautionary tale about moving from familiar [Own] to strange [Other] and back again)? Readings: Eaters of the Dead; Barrett, Chapter 6, "The Native's Rationale and Symbolic Meaning," Chapter 7, "Intracultural Variation." (6) One [Not So] Long Argument: What, in a nutshell, is Mayr's argument? Why is it of any concern to social science? How does Mayr tell his "story"? How< does the form and content of this text differ from Mead, Melville, Gilgamesh, and Crichton? Be specific. How do we judge reliability, authenticity, and validity in this case? How much faith is required to get a satisfactory reading? Any fiction involved? As social scientists, what can we learn about Mayr and his society from reading this text? Readings: One Long Argument.
(7) Review. Graded discussions. Rewrite and hand in answers to the questions on social science from (1). New overview question: "What are the basic organizing questions of the social sciences?" Be specific. Be prepared to answer this question in class. Be prepared to specify your sources in answering and to defend your assertions in rational terms. Readings:
Readings: All must be done as assigned in advance of each class. Written Assignments: The study questions listed in the schedule must be> answered, written up, and handed in according to the calendar (attached). Do> your own work. No exceptions. Fudging will get you in trouble here. Plagiarism will get you dismissed from class with a failing grade and in trouble with the administration. Don't risk it. Tests: Beyond the writing assigned through the study questions, there are no written tests per se. You will be graded on the quality and quantity of your class discussions, however. And you must be able to answer questions effectively during the review period at the end of the semester. Attendance: Mandatory. More than two unexcused absences will result in a failing grade. If you have to miss a class because of some serious problem and it is possible to inform the instructor in advance, please do so. No flimsy excuses will be accepted for anything, including late assignments. Do the work. Come to class. You will succeed.
HONORS 200
SURVIVAL TIPS 1. Attend all classes. 2. Take notes. 3. Do all assigned readings on time. 4. Turn in all assignments on time. 5. Keep focused. Review the course description each time you start an assignment (e.g., ask the question, "What does this have to do with social science?"). 6. Read for overviews or general arguments. 7. Be prepared to support each important argument read or reported with at least one specific example from the readings and/or your own personal experience. 8. Be pithy and coherent -- to the point. 9. Be convincing. 10. Be literate. 11. Cite your sources consistently and professionally. 12. Cross - reference class material and readings. What goes with what and why? Is there anything in a particular reading that will help you elaborate a point made in class? A point you need to make in answering assigned questions? 13. Force the issue. HOW does Barrett relate to problems identified for class purposes in, say, Melville or Mead? 14. Push the margins on quality and quantity. You should have trouble fitting what needs to be said into the assigned writing space. If not, you are not approaching the assignment correctly. 15. Volunteer information/answers when appropriate. Hiding behind the dominant talkers does not earn points. 16. Be self-conscious. What you already know counts in this class. In fact, much of this class is designed to make you aware of what you know, or think you know, or know but don't know that you know, etc. Add that to what you learn that is new and you have the whole package. But note that BOTH kinds of information are essential to the goals of the course and your progress in meeting them. 17. Be confident. Nothing in this class is beyond your ability to do it. But you have to do it. 18. Don't skim. Time spent looking for shortcuts is time wasted. 19. Re-read. 20. Rewrite. |