SOCIAL MOVEMENTS
SOC 344
Winter 2004
Tuesday, 6:00- 8:50 PM
Basic Course Information:
Instructor: Dr. Robert J. Brulle
Office Location: PSA Buliding, Room 303
Telephone: (215) 895-2294
Email: brullerj@drexel.edu
Office Hours: Monday/Tuesday 4-6 PM
Overview: This undergraduate course provides an introduction to the key sociological concepts involved in the study of social movements. The aim of this course is to provide an understanding of the historical and social processes by which social movements arise, set in motion a process of social change, and what the outcomes of these efforts are. Among the major questions examined are:
1) How do social movement groups arise, and become formal organizations?,
2) What is the role of cultural beliefs and ideology in creating and sustaining social movements?,
3) How do social movements interact with the larger society, including corporations and the government?, and
4) What strategies and tactics are effective in promoting social change?
These factors are examined through a series of readings and class discussions on these questions, and then illustrated by examination of several key social movements. Each class consists of a lecture and discussion of a key component of social movements theory, and then an examination of one major U.S. social movement. The movements discussed in the course include the labor and civil rights movements, the rise of the religious right, feminism, the anti-war and student movements of the late 1960s, the environmental movement, and the welfare rights movement.
Course Requirements: This course has three course requirements as follows:
1. Class Participation: Students are expected to come to class having completed the assigned readings, and prepared to discuss the topics in class. There will be unannounced quizzes given in class on the assigned readings and lectures throughout the course of the quarter. There will be no makeup quizzes given. In addition, throughout the semester, a number of videos will be presented. Short exercises relating the video to the course readings will be assigned. These activities will count for 30% of the final grade.
2. Social Movement Group Research: Each student will examine one social movement organization in depth. This examination will consist of a summary of the organization’s purpose, current activities, sources of financial resources, and expenditures. The report will be approximately 3-4 pages in length. Research procedures for completing this assignment will be reviewed in the first class period. The group research assignments will count for 20% of the final grade.
3 Exams: This course will have one final examination. The examination will be multiple choice or short answers, and students are allowed to bring a single “cheat sheet” to the exam. The final exam will constitute 50% of the course grade.
Required Texts: This course has two required texts and a number of required articles on electronic reserve at Hagerty Library. The required texts are:
Goldberg, R. 1991. Grassroots Resistance: Social Movements in Twentieth Century America, Belmont CA: Wadsworth
Piven, F., and Cloward, R. 1979 Poor People’s Movements: Why they succeed, How they fail, New York: Vintage
COURSE SCHEDULE
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK ONE January 6, 2004 Course Overview and Studying Social Movement Organizations
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK TWO January 13, 2004 Social Dynamics and the Emergence of Social Movements – Part I
Theoretical Approach – Historical Materialism and Social Conflict
Readings: Piven and Cloward Chapter 1
Movement Focus: Labor Movement
Readings: Piven and Cloward, Chapter 3
Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto
Movie: Sit Down and Fight: Walter Reuther and the rise of the UAW
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK THREE: January 20, 2004 Social Dynamics and the Emergence of Social Movements – Part II
Theoretical Approach – Political Opportunity Structure and Social Movements
Readings: Sidney Tarrow, Power In Movement, Chapter 5
Movement Focus: Civil Rights Movement
Readings: Piven and Cloward, Chapter 4
Martin Luther King Jr. Letter from Birmingham Jail
Movie: Eyes on the Prize: No Easy Walk (1961-1963)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK FOUR: January 27, 2004 Defining and Creating Social Movements
Theoretical Approach – Frame Analysis and Movement Culture
Readings: William Gamson, Constructing Social Protest
Movement Focus: Rise of the Religious Right
Readings: Goldberg, Chapter 6
George C. Wallace: The Civil Rights Bill: Fraud, Sham, and Hoax
Movie: George Wallace: Setin’ the Woods on Fire
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK FIVE: February 3, 2004 Mobilization of Members
Theoretical Approach – Micromobilization, Collective Identity, and Membership Recruitment
Readings: Alberto Melucci, The Process of Collective Identity
Movement Focus: Student Movement
Readings: Goldberg, Chapter 8
James Ridgeway, The Machine
Movie: Berkeley in the 60s – Part I
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK SIX: February 10, 2004 Creating and Maintaining Social Movement Organizations
Theoretical Approach – Resource Mobilization
Readings: John McCarthy and Mayer Zald, Social Movement Organizations
Movement Focus: Anti-War Movement
Readings: Howard Zinn, The Twentieth Century: A People’s History, Chapter 7
Students for a Democratic Society, Port Huron Statement
Movie: Berkeley in the 60s – Part II
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK SEVEN: February 17, 2004 Actions for Social Change
Theoretical Approach – Strategies and Tactics of Social Movements
Readings: William Gamson, The Strategy of Social Protest, Chapter 6
Movement Focus: Feminist Movement
Readings: Goldberg, Chapter 9
Shulamith Firestong, The Dialectic of Sex
Carol Hanisch, The Personal is Political
Movie: Half The People
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK EIGHT: February 24, 2004 The Rise and Fall of Social Movements
Theoretical Approach – Cycles of Protest
Readings: Anthony Downs: Up and Down with Ecology - the Issue Attention Cycle
Movement Focus: Environmental Movement
Readings: Christopher Roots, Environmental Movements
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring
Movie: Redwood Summer
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK NINE: March 2, 2004 The Results of Social Movements
Theoretical Approach – Impacts of Social Movements
Readings: William Gamson, The Strategy of Social Protest, Chapters 3 & 8
Movement Focus: Welfare Rights Movement
Readings: Piven and Cloward, Chapter 5
Movie: Poverty Outlaw
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WEEK TEN March 9, 2003 Course Wrap-up and Exam Preview