ISSUES IN SOCIAL THEORY AND RESEARCH: MARGINALITY, NEOLIBERALISM AND THE STATE

SOC4COR

2020

Credit points: 30

Subject outline

In this subject you will closely read an ethnography: Bourgois & Schonberg's Righteous Dopefiend (2009); a gritty urban monograph dealing with a community of marginalized and disenfranchised homeless addicts in San Francisco. Bourgois & Schonberg take the particular insights of their ethnographic field and use them to illuminate the larger issues of race, class, gender, femininity, masculinity, violence, humour, sadness, criminality and morality. Their work is also an example of a critically applied social science, in that the authors sought to influence policy in relation to health service delivery for homeless addicts. In exploring such themes Bourgois & Schonberg's work dissolves the putative divide between anthropology, sociology and development studies, and gives us concrete examples of some of the big-ticket concepts that you will be tackling throughout your Honours year.

School: Humanities and Social Sciences (Pre 2022)

Credit points: 30

Subject Co-ordinator: Anthony Moran

Available to Study Abroad/Exchange Students: No

Subject year level: Year Level 4 - UG/Hons/1st Yr PG

Available as Elective: No

Learning Activities: N/A

Capstone subject: No

Subject particulars

Subject rules

Prerequisites: Acceptance by Honours convenors of application to enrol in the Sociology and Anthropology honours program

Co-requisites: N/A

Incompatible subjects: N/A

Equivalent subjects: N/A

Quota Management Strategy: N/A

Quota-conditions or rules: N/A

Special conditions: Core subject for Sociology students and students undertaking joint Honours degrees that include Sociology

Minimum credit point requirement: N/A

Assumed knowledge: N/A

Career Ready

Career-focused: No

Work-based learning: No

Self sourced or Uni sourced: N/A

Entire subject or partial subject: N/A

Total hours/days required: N/A

Location of WBL activity (region): N/A

WBL addtional requirements: N/A

Graduate capabilities & intended learning outcomes

Graduate Capabilities

COMMUNICATION - Communicating and Influencing
COMMUNICATION - Cultural Intelligence and Global Perspective
DISCIPLINE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
INQUIRY AND ANALYSIS - Creativity and Innovation
INQUIRY AND ANALYSIS - Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
INQUIRY AND ANALYSIS - Research and Evidence-Based Inquiry
PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL - Adaptability and Self-Management
PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL - Ethical and Social Responsibility
PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL - Leadership and Teamwork

Intended Learning Outcomes

01. Demonstrate advanced writing and critical thinking skills
02. Demonstrate high level engagement with social theory for the social sciences

Melbourne (Bundoora), 2020, Semester 1, Day

Overview

Online enrolment: Yes

Maximum enrolment size: N/A

Subject Instance Co-ordinator: Anthony Moran

Class requirements

SeminarWeek: 10 - 22
One 3.00 hours seminar per week on weekdays during the day from week 10 to week 22 and delivered via blended.
We require a room at Bundoora campus with video-conferencing, to accommodate regional students.

Assessments

Assessment elementCommentsCategoryContributionHurdle%ILO*

Oral presentation (2000 word equivalent)

N/AN/AN/ANo25SILO1, SILO2

One 1,500-word annotated bibliography

N/AN/AN/ANo15SILO1, SILO2

One 5,000-word essay

N/AN/AN/ANo60SILO1, SILO2