SOCI 399 Outline 2006/07 Winter

COURSE NUMBER:

SOCI 399

COURSE TITLE:

Special Topics in Sociology - 2006/07 Winter - Men and Masculinities

NAME OF INSTRUCTOR:

David Long

CREDIT WEIGHT AND WEEKLY TIME DISTRIBUTION:

credits 3(hrs lect 3 - hrs sem 0 - hrs lab 0)

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

A course on a topic of figure of special interest to a member of the sociology faculty and offered on a non-recurring basis.

Prerequisites: three credits in introductory sociology

2006/07 Winter

This course is NOT an extended, feel good encounter group session in which we enter into the intimate world of SNAGs (sensitive new age guys). Neither is it feminist-bashing exercise from a “men are the new victims” perspective. Rather, this course will involve an exploration of the developmental, relational and structural conditions of men’s lives in all their diversity. This means learning to recognise that while men’s lives are grounded in everyday relations with family, co-workers and countless others, the life of each and every man is part of much larger, well-established though also quite volatile conglomeration of cultural processes and well entrenched social structures.

REQUIRED TEXTS:

Keen, Sam Fire in the Belly. Bantam, 1991.
Hussey, Mark Masculinities: Interdisciplinary Perspectives. Prentice Hall, 2003. (MIP)
Kimmel, Michael and Michael Messnerr Men’s Lives. Pearson, 2007 (ML)

MARK DISTRIBUTION IN PERCENT:


Mid-term Examination	30%
In-class presentation	15%
Research Paper	30%
Final Examination	25%
	100%

COURSE OUTLINE:

Jan. 4 What is a man? -- Definitional Exercise

Invitation to a Journey

Jan. 9, 11 Masculinity or masculinities?

Cool Hand Luke

Paradoxes of gender

Jan. 16 The Rites of Manhood

Top Gun

Jan. 17-18 I.S. Conference
Jan. 23, 25 Growing up at home

Growing up at school

Ned, RebelWAC, Animal House, Traffic

Jan.30, Feb.1 Males learning to play games

Stand By Me

Feb. 6, 8 Males playing sports

Media Collage

Feb. 13 MID-TERM EXAMINATION
Feb. 15 Funny/Cruel Men

Media Collage (our favorite clips)

Feb. 19 -23 READING WEEK
Feb.27, Mar 1 Married men

Parenthood, Cosby

Mar. 6, 8 Fathers/Sons

Father and Son

Mar. 13, 15 Intimacy and male friendships

Good Will Hunting/Brokeback Mountain

Mar. 13, 15 Men at work – Glengarry Glen Ross

Men out of work - The Street

Mar. 20, 22 Men and health: body, mind and soul

Chariots of Fire

Mar. 27, 29 Sex, Love and Power

Pulp Fiction

Apr. 3, 5 Male Violence

Tough Guise

Apr. 10, 12 What Makes an Ideal man?

The future of men

From Woody to Rocky to Denzel to Jesus

Apr. 17 Coarse Summary/ Exam Review

Required texts, assignments, and grade distributions may vary from one offering of this course to the next. Please consult the course instructor for up to date details.