GEOGRAPHY 211 UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA FIRST TERM 2017/2018 SIMON SPRINGER POLITICAL & ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHIES Lecture Time: Mon & Wed 14:30-15:50 COR B112 COURSE DESCRIPTION This course introduces students to some of the major thematic concerns that have traditionally shaped political geography as a sub-discipline. It also allows students to engage with emerging issues that are likely to become focal points in shaping future debates among political geographers. The aim of the course is to explore the co-constitutive relationship between politics and space. As the political organization of society has spatial consequences, so too does geography influence our understanding of political relationships. These relations are negotiated and contested in multiple ways that cut across different locations, scales, and temporalities. Accordingly, we will examine political concerns, disputes, accommodations, and consequences from a geographical perspective, where students can expect to acquire a critical appreciation for the historical trajectories and evolving implications of states, sovereignty, territoriality, nationalism, colonialism, democracy, ethnic conflict, policing and crime, terrorism, war, environmental justice, and political activism. Evidence will be based on both national and international examples. KEYWORDS: anarchism, colonialism; democracy; nation; state; social justice; territory; war REQUIRED TEXTS There is no required textbook for this course. All readings are available through UVic libraries. EVALUATION Attendance and Lab Participation 2 Film Reflections (15% each) Group Presentations Final Exam 10% 30% 30% 30% PREREQUISITE: GEOG 101b and second-year standing OFFICE HOURS & LOCATION Monday 13:30 p.m. – 14:30 p.m. or by appointment David Turpin B310 Telephone: 250-721-7340 1 GEOGRAPHY DEPARTMENT INFO • • • Geography Department website: http://geography.uvic.ca Undergraduate Advisor: Dr. Phil Wakefield - pmw@uvic.ca Graduate Advisor: Dennis Jelinski - jelinski@office.geog.uvic.ca COURSESPACES I will post the course syllabus, outlines of slide presentations, and any additional relevant materials on the course’s COURSESPACES website. POLICY ON LATE ASSIGNMENTS • Assignments submitted ON TIME will receive my full attention & useful feedback. • Please speak with me well in advance if you anticipate a delay in submitting your work, particularly when dealing with illness or family conflicts. • 5% per day penalty for late assignments including weekend days. For example, 5% will be deducted from the assignment (due in class) if the assignment is submitted later in the day. If the assignment is submitted the next day, 10% will be deducted from the assigned grade, and so forth. • Assignments submitted more than one week late will NOT be graded. • You may submit assignments electronically to meet a deadline but a hard copy MUST be submitted as soon as possible afterwards for marking. If a hard copy is not submitted, your assignment will NOT be marked. ** All assignments must be done exclusively for this course. PLAGIARISM Plagiarism in writing term papers will not be tolerated. Plagiarism detection software will be used in case of doubt. Plagiarism means representing someone else’s work as your own. It is a serious offence, punishable by academic sanctions. When you incorporate the words, ideas, graphics, or other products from someone else’s work into your projects, you must give credit by providing a citation and reference to the source work. It is your responsibility to: • understand what plagiarism is, • be familiar with and understand the information on plagiarism outlined in UVic Libraries’ plagiarism policy at http://library.uvic.ca/instruction/cite/plagiarism.html • be familiar with UVic’s policies on student responsibilities, conduct, discipline, and academic offences, as described in the Undergraduate Calendar. Students are reminded that submitting for credit any academic work which has been submitted (or where credit has already been obtained) in another course is listed among academic offences. RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE Please notify me immediately once you know that any date proposed for assignments or papers conflict with dates of special significance in your religion. We will arrange alternative dates to accommodate individual needs. 2 ACCESSIBILITY Students with diverse learning styles and needs are welcome in this course. In particular, if you have a disability/health consideration that may require accommodations, please feel free to approach me and/or the Resource Centre for Students with a Disability (RCSD) as soon as possible. The RCSD staff are available by appointment to assess specific needs, provide referrals and arrange appropriate accommodations http://rcsd.uvic.ca/. The sooner you let us know your needs the quicker we can assist you in achieving your learning goals in this course. POSITIVITY AND SAFETY The University of Victoria is committed to promoting, providing and protecting a positive and safe learning and working environment for all its members. Discriminatory language is not welcome or tolerated in lectures, seminars, tutorials, or written work. This includes but is not limited to sexist, racist, ethnocentric, ageist, homophobic, or transphobic language. GRADING SYSTEM As per the current Academic Calendar: Grade Grade point value Grade scale Description A+ A A- 9 8 7 90-100% 85-89% 80-84% Exceptional, outstanding and excellent performance. Normally achieved by a minority of students. These grades indicate a student who is self-initiating, exceeds expectation and has an insightful grasp of the subject matter. B+ B B- 6 5 4 77-79% 73-76% 70-72% Very good, good and solid performance. Normally achieved by the largest number of students. These grades indicate a good grasp of the subject matter or excellent grasp in one area balanced with satisfactory grasp in the other area. C+ C 3 2 65-69% 60-64% Satisfactory, or minimally satisfactory. These grades indicate a satisfactory performance and knowledge of the subject matter. D 1 50-59% Marginal Performance. A student receiving this grade demonstrated a superficial grasp of the subject matter. F 0 0-49% Unsatisfactory performance. Wrote final examination and completed course requirements; no supplemental. COURSE EXPERIENCE SURVEY (CES) I value your feedback on this course. Towards the end of term, as in all other courses at UVic, you will have the opportunity to complete an anonymous survey regarding your learning experience (CES). The survey is vital to providing feedback to me regarding the course and my teaching, as well as to help the department improve the overall program for students in the future. The survey is accessed via MyPage and can be done on your laptop, tablet, or mobile device. I will remind you and provide you with more detailed information nearer the time but please be thinking about this important activity during the course. 3 OUTCOMES & RESPONSIBILITIES EXPECTED OUTCOMES This course has two primary objectives: • To identify the key theoretical concerns and debates that have informed and continue to shape political economic geography as a sub-discipline. • To allow students to develop a critical appreciation for the complex roles and multiple ways in which political and economic geographies are implicated within and woven through our everyday lives. You can expect to acquire the following skills: • Critical Thinking: by applying lectures and readings through film analysis assignments, students will develop an ability to think critically about the geopolitical ideas that have historically shaped and continue to inform political events. • Communication: to develop written communication skills through written work, and to develop verbal communication skills and self-confidence though tutorial discussions and group presentations. • Time Management and Personal Responsibility: by attending lectures and tutorials, and by handing in assignments on time. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES • Attending lectures, participating in tutorials, and reading required materials. • Attending student presentations. • Viewing films screened in the tutorials, writing three assignments. • Writing a final exam 4 ASSESSMENT & ASSIGNMENT DETAILS LAB PARTICIPATION – (10%) – ONGOING THROUGHOUT TERM • This includes engaging in discussion, asking questions, offering answers, and active listening, where none is prioritized over the others. If you regularly show up to tutorials prepared, and remain committed to and engaged with the course materials throughout the term, this is an easy 10% to achieve! FILM REFLECTIONS – (2 worth 15% each = 30%) – Due Date: At the start of your Lab exactly 2 WEEKS after you screened the film in your Lab section. Assignments should be handed in to your Lab Instructor. LENGTH: • Each reflection should be no more than 2 pages double-spaced (i.e. between 500 and 600 words total). Please do not exceed this limit! Students are asked to provide a short commentary on TWO of the three films we will screen during the lab sessions held during weeks 2, 5, and 8. It is up to you to decide which two films you choose to write about, but regardless of the two you choose, you are expected to view and participate in the discussion of all three films. This assignment is not meant to be a simple summary of the film. Instead, your task is to provide a thoughtful analysis and critique, which draws on course readings and lectures. You will need to discuss how the film exemplifies and engages with that week’s thematic concerns, and also how the film helped you to interpret the concepts under consideration. One of the major challenges for you will be to keep your reflection concise and to the point. Again, I am not looking for a summary! Prior to the screening of each film I will hand out a description, which will include an overview of the film as well as offering some specific points for you to consider that will help you to view the film with your ‘thinking cap’ on. This will better prepare you for your critical reflections. The week following the film viewing, you will gather as a group to discuss the film as well as the general concepts that we have discussed in lectures that relate to the film. The discussion represents a chance to reflect further on the film and it is in your best interest to attend and participate as this will help to inform your responses. GROUP PRESENTATION – (30% - Note that 10% of this grade will be based on Peer Evaluation) – Presentations will take place during our final two weeks of lecture. Group sizes will depend on final course enrolment, but ideally 4 to 5 students. LENGTH: • 20 MINUTES Students are asked to collaborate in preparing a presentation on the weekly themes. Your role is to reflect thoroughly on the assigned topic, offer some critical reflections on the readings, and engage the class with some questions of importance that you have drawn from these readings. I want you to be creative with your presentation and bring some additional value to your reflection on the concepts under consideration. Thus, how you choose to present to the class is entirely up to you, and I encourage you to be as creative as possible. You might have us watch a short film and then ask us questions that help us to think about the topic or concept. You might want to read poetry (possibly even your own!), or do a short play that helps us think about the idea. You can make a poster presentation, or present a piece of art or music you have created in response to the concept, or that someone else has created that helps you (and hopefully us) to think about and understand the topic at hand. You can bring a video game that you enjoy (or maybe not enjoy), have us play it in class and discuss how it might exemplify a concept. You can bring personal photographs, home videos, scrapbooks, stamp collections, and use them to explain and demonstrate the idea under consideration. Maybe you have found a website, a newspaper article, or a map that you want us to consider. Or maybe you want to take us all on a short field trip 5 around the university to show us how a concept applies within the university setting itself. If you opt for the conventional approach, and simply want to give us a Power Point presentation, that’s fine too. Your options are limited only by your own imagination, and I encourage as much creativity as possible! Wherever your interest and talent lies, I’m all for it! The only fixed criterion is that you have approximately 20 minutes to share your creativity, reflections, and ideas about the topic with us. Groups will be formed ideally based on Lab Sections and we will determine who will present on what topic during class time early in the semester. Please bear in mind that there may be some rescheduling and reassigning of groups should individuals join or withdraw from the course. FINAL EXAM – (30%) – Date & Time: TBA • Throughout the course you are encouraged to think critically about the theoretical and empirical relevance of the issues we will explore, as this will prepare you for the final exam. If you attend lectures and keep up with your readings, the exam will be a breeze. The exam is not formatted to encourage rote learning, but is instead designed to promote critical thinking. Thus, you will be asked to reflect upon and provide real world examples of particular issues and themes we have touched upon in the course. I will offer students a list of 6 or 7 questions, where you will be asked to write a short essay response to 3 questions of your choice. We will discuss the exam in further detail closer to the exam time. Please do not stress about the exam, but instead think of it as your final chance to show me how your critical thinking has developed over the duration of the course! IMPORTANT NOTES: Assignment Format: For all assignments use 12 pt. Font, Times New Roman, 2.5cm margins, number pages, and a list of references consulted (if any). DO NOT include a title page (save paper!), but DO include your title, your name, my name, the course number, and the date at the top of the first page. Please staple your paper in the top left corner. NO FANCY BINDERS PLEASE!!! requirement. And finally, and most importantly Follow the word length RELAX learning should be FUN! Please use the space below to draw a funny picture of me! ☺ 6 WEEKLY CALENDAR (Subject to revision as the course proceeds) WEEK DATE WEEKLY LECTURE TOPICS 1 SEPTEMBER 6 Course Introduction Introduction to Political Geographies 2 SEPTEMBER 11, 13 Territoriality & Boundaries LAB: We will watch the film ‘Crossing Over’ The State, Sovereignty & Nations 3 SEPTEMBER 18, (20 No Class) LAB: Film Discussion & Group Presentation Planning Democracy, Civil Society & Human Rights 4 SEPTEMBER 25, 27 Neoliberalism Colonialism & Empire 5 OCTOBER 2, 4 Indigeneity & Indigenous Knowledges LAB: We will watch the film ‘Rabbit Proof Fence’ 6 OCTOBER (9 No Class), 11 Consumption & Environmental Justice LAB: Film Discussion & Group Presentation Planning Terrorism, War, & Militarism 7 OCTOBER 16, 18 Violence & Nonviolence Identity, Difference & Otherness 8 OCTOBER 23, 25 Racism, Ethnic Conflict & Apartheid LAB: We will watch the film ‘Hotel Rwanda’ Law, Surveillance & Crime 9 OCTOBER 30, NOVEMBER 1 Public Space & Homelessness LAB: Film Discussion & Group Presentation Planning Social Movements & Activism 10 NOVEMBER 6, 8 Anarchism 11 - READING BREAK NOVEMBER 13, 15 NO LECTURES, NO READING, NO LABS, NO WORRIES! 7 12 NOVEMBER 20, 22 GROUP PRESENTATIONS 13 NOVEMBER 27, 29 GROUP PRESENTATIONS FINAL EXAM TBA FINAL EXAM REQUIRED WEEKLY READINGS (Subject to revision as the course proceeds) SEPTEMBER 6 Course Introduction Dodds, K. (2008). ‘Have you seen any good films lately?’Geopolitics, international relations and film. Geography compass, 2(2), 476-494. SEPTEMBER 11 Introduction to Political Geographies Agnew, J. 2017. Political Geography. International Encyclopedia of Geography. Malden, MA: Wiley. SEPTEMBER 13 Territoriality & Boundaries Bauder, H. (2015). Perspectives of Open Borders and No Border. Geography Compass, 9(7), 395-405. SEPTEMBER 18 The State, Sovereignty & Nations Painter, J. (2006). Prosaic geographies of stateness. Political geography, 25(7), 752-774. SEPTEMBER 20 NO CLASS SEPTEMBER 25 Democracy, Civil Society & Human Rights Englehart, N. A. (2009). State capacity, state failure, and human rights. Journal of Peace Research, 46(2), 163-180. SEPTEMBER 27 Neoliberalism Springer, S. (2010). Neoliberalism and geography: formations. Geography Compass, 4(8), 1025-1038. OCTOBER 2 Expansions, variegations, Colonialism & Empire Tuck, E., & Yang, K. W. (2012). Decolonization is not a metaphor. Decolonization: Indigeneity, education & society, 1(1). OCTOBER 4 Indigeneity & Indigenous Knowledges Shaw, W. S., Herman, R. D. K., & Dobbs, G. R. (2006). Encountering indigeneity: Re‐imagining and decolonizing geography. Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography, 88(3), 267276. 8 OCTOBER 11 Environmental Justice & Consumption Mansvelt, J. (2009). Geographies of consumption: the unman age able consumer?. Progress in Human Geography, 33(2), 264-274. OCTOBER 16 Terrorism, War & Militarism Bernazzoli, R. M., & Flint, C. (2009). Power, place, and militarism: Toward a comparative geographic analysis of militarization. Geography Compass, 3(1), 393-411. OCTOBER 18 Violence & Nonviolence Loyd, J. M. (2012). Geographies of peace and antiviolence. Geography Compass, 6(8), 477489. OCTOBER 23 Identity, Difference & Otherness Jansson, D. R. (2005). ‘A geography of racism’: Internal orientalism and the construction of American national identity in the film Mississippi Burning. National Identities, 7(3), 265-285. OCTOBER 25 Racism, Ethnic Conflict & Apartheid Chari, S. (2008). Critical geographies of racial and spatial control. Geography Compass, 2(6), 1907-1921. OCTOBER 30 Law, Surveillance & Crime Cook, I. R., & Whowell, M. (2011). Visibility and the policing of public space. Geography Compass, 5(8), 610-622. NOVEMBER 1 Public Space & Homelessness Mitchell, D. (2011). Homelessness, American style. Urban Geography, 32(7), 933-956. NOVEMBER 6 Social Movements & Activism Nicholls, W. J. (2007). The geographies of social movements. Geography Compass, 1(3), 607622. NOVEMBER 8 Anarchism Springer, S. (2013). Anarchism and geography: a brief genealogy of anarchist geographies. Geography Compass, 7(1), 46-60. NOVEMBER 13 READING BREAK NOVEMBER 15 READING BREAK NOVEMBER 20 Group Presentations NOVEMBER 22 Group Presentations NOVEMBER 27 Group Presentations NOVEMBER 29 Group Presentations TBA FINAL EXAM 9 FURTHER READINGS OF RELEVANCE: The International Encyclopedia of Human Geography is fantastic in that each entry offers a bibliography comprised of key readings on that topic. It would be useful for you to engage with some of the topics listed there as you prepare your film reflections and group presentations and the final exam. The IEHG is available through UVic Libraries. 10