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CSUDH Habermas UWP

California State University, Dominguez Hills
University of Wisconsin, Parkside
Created: June 6, 2001
Latest update: November 18, 2001
jeannecurran@habermas.org

Graduate Social Theory Readings
Week of November 19, 2001: Week 12

• Online Readings:
  • Divided We Fall: America's Two Civil Religions Excellent and relatively brief article by Robert Wuthnow
  • Harvard's Prize Catch, a Delphic Postcolonialist By Emily Eakin, New York Times, p.A 21, Saturday, November 17, 2001. Excellent readable piece on a leading Postcolonialist. backup
  • Instructions for Thesis Project
  • jeanne's November Novel This is the novel jeanne has undertaken to write in November to match your writing of your thesis project. I think the experience of doing a thesis project, at least one that you do for yourself, in a specifically limited time frame, is an important learning tool for all graduate students.

• Hardcopy Readings:
  Readings in Social Theory, ed. by James Farganis.
  • Chapter 4. The Protestant Ethic and the Sprit of Capitalism by Max Weber. Pp. 107 - 114.

    Note particularly the section on the "production of private wealth." at p. 109.

    Note also Weber's explanation of the justification of unequal distribution of wealth. at p. 111.

• Concepts for Conceptual Linking:

  • "utilitarian worldliness" - p.111
  • "begging and religion" - p. 111
  • "labor as a calling" and "capitalism" - p.112

• Some Suggested Measures of Learning:

  Comment on one of the following topics, or do something of your own choosing.

  1. Prepare the discussion topics on Divided We Fall: America's Two Civil Religions By Robert Wuthnow.

  2. How could you conceptually relate our Civil Religions to the Thesis Projects we are currently working on?

     Consider the role that religion plays in this war. Consider the position taken by fundamentalists of both religions involved.

  3. Notice the extent to which postcolonialist, American studies, cultural studies spokespersons tend to come from Literature. Why do you suppose that is the case? Aren't these issues of sociology?

     Consider the imaginary and one of the ways of enriching it is through story telling. Note that these fields are dealing with past suppression. What is suppressed is often in the unconscious, hard to reach. Literature draws out the imaginary. The whole Frankfurt school came with a background in literary theory.