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Core Studies 3
Spring 1999
Prof.
P. Currah
PEOPLE, POWER, AND POLITICS
Essay Assignments
Essay Assignment 2: (Choose one topic)
Note: You may refine any of these topics, develop different approaches to them, to suit your own interests.
1. Michael Levine writes, "The U.S. Constitution is for white people." How was race embedded into the U.S. Constitution? Is Levine's statement still true? Why or why not?
2. How does the "racial context" of Latin America differ from that of the US? From your analysis, what larger conclusions might you draw about the concept of race and its relation to power?
3. Which theory of feminism described in the article by Jaggar and Rothenberg best explains the wage gap between men and women? Why? (Evaluate all the theories of feminism in relation to this question.)
4. Identify and examine the connections between sexism and homophobia. How does the cultural construction of gender categories relate to cultural anxieties about sexual orientation?
Due:
May 6th, in class.
Drafts:
You may turn in drafts (hard copy or email) to me at any stage of this process.
Length:
Five - six pages, typed and double-spaced, including endnotes, footnotes, or works cited.
Style
All references must be cited, following the style guidelines. You may use the either
the MLA, APA, or Chicago style systems for this class. For a list of citation style guides
online, see my writing guide at http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/polisci/pcurrah/writing.htm#sources.
Also, you will find links to style guides and a lot of other helpful information about
writing on my Writing Tips page:
P. Currah's Writing
Guide
Brooklyn College Policy on Academic Integrity
Essay Assignment 1: (Choose one topic)
1. What are some of the differences between Weber's notion of a status group and Marx's notion of class? From your analysis of these differences, how might you characterize the differences between Marx's (explicit) theory of power and Weber's more implicit theory of power? You might analyze this question by referring to Steinberg's analysis of "the underclass," Frankenberg's analysis of "whiteness," or Katz's analysis of "heterosexuality." How would Marx and Weber's characterization of these identities differ?
2. Discuss the similarities and differences between Locke and Marx's theories of labor, the state, and power.
3. Describe the assumptions of human nature in the theories of Locke, Marx, Weber, and Foucault. How do the differences in these theorists ideas about human nature affect their theory of power?
4. How is Foucault's analysis of "truth" not simply a reiteration of Marx's notion of ideology or the "third dimension of power"? This is another topic you might analyze by referring to Steinberg's analysis of "the underclass," Frankenberg's analysis of "whiteness," or Katz's analysis of "heterosexuality."
Due:
March 18th, in class.
Drafts:
You may turn in drafts (hard copy or email) to me at any stage of this process.
Length:
Five - six pages, typed and double-spaced, including endnotes, footnotes, or works cited.
Style
All references must be cited, following the style guidelines. You may use the either
the MLA, APA, or Chicago style systems for this class. For a list of citation style guides
online, see my writing guide at http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/polisci/pcurrah/writing.htm#sources.
Also, you will find links to style guides and a lot of other helpful information about
writing on my Writing Tips page:
P. Currah's Writing
Guide
Brooklyn College Policy on Academic Integrity