Instructions:
The reading summary is a short summary of one of the assigned course readings. For example, one could choose to do Fanon, chapters 3 for the readings of February 13. Importantly, the assignment applies to only one of the assigned readings; you are not required to do all the readings for that lecture but just one chapter. The reading assignment’s length will be 2 to 3 double spaced pages, with 10-to-12-point font.
The reading summary is made up of some basic components. First, you are to summarize what the reading is saying. This involves focusing on the central concepts discussed in the chapter. You do not have to summarize all the issues discussed. Simply choose a maximum of two concepts and summarize what they mean and how they relate to the course material. Second, what do these concepts and/or ideas mean for the overall study of human rights in the global economy. Do they help us to understand the economic conditions of the global south? Do they help us to understand how race and colonialism impact global inequality? Or, alternatively, do you think that these concepts miss something? Here you could take a critical perspective. Do you think that the concepts could be improved?
This is a simple and straightforward assignment. It is designed to make sure that you are doing the readings. As a result, it does not require a thesis or a bibliography. It is like what might be called a book report. You may ask: what is the reading trying to say? How can I explain this reading to someone not familiar with the course material.
COURSE TEXTS:
Evans Tony, Human Rights in the Global Political Economy: Critical Processes, Lynne Rienner Publishers, London, 2011 (Recommended).
Fanon, Frantz, The Wretched of the Earth, Grove Press, New York, 2004 (Recommended).
Kocka Jurgen, Capitalism: A Short History, Princeton University Press, 2016 [Required].
Ravenhill John, Global Political Economy (fourth edition), Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2014 (Recommended).
Sen Amartya, Development as Freedom, Random House, New York, 1999 (Required).
Usher Dan, Political Economy, Blackwell, 2003 [Required].
Choose one of the following chapters we have discussed throughout the class duration:
May 27: Economics and Political Economy; Sackrey, Chp. 1; Usher, Chp. 1
May 29: Adam Smith and the Origins of Capitalism; Sackrey, Chp. 2; Ravenhill, Chp. 2; Kocka, Chp. 1
June 3: Marx and Modern Capitalism; Ravenhill, Chp. 1/Introducing the Thought of Karl Marx: Sackrey, Chp. 3; Kocka, Chp. 2; Usher, Chp. 2
June 5: The Thought of Max Weber; The Persistence of Bureaucracy (The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism): Kocka, Chp. 1
June 10: John Maynard Keynes; Sackrey, Chps. 7-9
June 12: The Growth and Significance of Consumption; Veblen and Keynes: Sackrey, Chps. 4-5; Usher, Chp. 3
June 17: Colonialism and Neo-colonialism
June 19: Justice in the Global Community? Sen, Introduction, Chps. 1-3; Ravenhill, Chps. 3 and 5; Kocka, Chp. 3
June 24: Society and the Affects of Poverty; Sen, Chp. 4; Ravenhill, Chp. 12; Usher, Chp. 4
June 26: Western Models, Colonialism, and the Idea of Development; Ravenhill, Chp. 7; Kocka, Chp. 4
July 3: The Question of Democracy: Race, Class and Gender; Sen, Chp. 6
July 8: Japanese Capitalism: A Non-Western Approach? Tsuru, Chps. 1-5 (suggested)
July 10: Human Rights as a Global Paradigm? Evans, Introduction, Chp. 2; Usher, Chp. 8
