coms 611/arth 731: history/theory/technologysterneworks.org/coms611-w17.pdf · coms 611/arth 731:...

1 Jan 2017

COMS611/ArtH731:History/Theory/TechnologyWinter2017

(Secrettitle:“let’sreadsomebookswithJonathan”)Fridays11:30-14:30,ArtsW5

ProfessorJonathanSterneOffice:ArtsW280(3rdfloor,westwing)Officehours:byadvanceappointment,please,thoughIwillstickaroundafterclasson

FridaysOfficePhone:398-5852(Irarelypickup;IcheckvoicemailaboutonceadayMWF)Email:jonathan.sterne@mcgill.ca(IcheckatleastoncedailyM-FwhenI’mintown—please

allowacoupledaysforareply.)

ProspectusThisseminarwillengagewithanumberofnewapproachestomaterialityanditsvariousothersinthehistoryandtheoryoftechnology,fromavarietyofdisciplinaryandepistemologicalperspectives.Thetermmaterialityiseverywhereinhumanitiesdiscourserightnow.Scholarswhoagreeonnothingelsewillstillspeakinthenameofmaterialityorappealtoitatkeymomentsintheirarguments.Inthisclass,wewillexaminesomecompetingapproachestothe“material”dimensionsofmedia,culture,andtechnology.Ismaterialitythekeytoanewtheoryofthehumanandecology?Isitapathbacktooldargumentsaboutbaseandsuperstructure?Isembodimentaformofmaterialityorsubjecttoit?Ismaterialityfoundintheworkingsofmachinery,infrastructure,orstandards?Relationsofpoweranddifference?Isitapathoutofthemazeofdiscourseorasupremeformofacademicself-delusion?Ismaterialitythebaseofourexistenceoraproductofit?Doesmaterialityofferusbettertheoriesofpowerortakeusawayfromthecontestsofpolitics?Thisisalsoacourseinthecraftsofwritingmediahistoryandconstructingtheory.Tothisend,wewillengageassignedtextsthroughapracticeofhermeneuticreverse-engineering.Wewillreadfromtheinsideout,engagingtheintersectionsofhistory,theoryandtechnologythroughacarefulunderstandingofthediscursivefieldsfromwhichourauthorsdrawandtowhichtheycontribute.Everyscholarshouldpracticeanddeveloptheirskillsintheseareas.Everyhumanitiesthesismakeshistoricalclaims(manyhavea“historychapter”)andthereisnosuchthingasatheoreticalscholarship,onlyscholarshipunawareofitsowntheoreticalimplications.Wewillengagehistoryandtheorybythinkingthroughhowotherswriteit,byimitatingthem,andinourimperfectimitations,tryoutawidevarietyofstyles,adaptations,andmethods.Thisisaclassinpractice,moreinthemusician’ssenseof“gohomeandpractice”thantheactivist’ssenseof“movingfromtheorytopraxis.”Classtimewillfeaturediscussionofassignedtextsandthosegeneratedbystudents,lectures,andoccasionalcreative,collaborative,orexperimentalprojects.Inlieuofamajortermpaper,studentswillproduceaseriesofshortessaysaccordingtotheprotocoldefinedbelow,andafinalrevisionessaythatmakesuseofpriorworkfromthecourse.Therewillbegueststars.

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RequiredReadingsRequiredbookswillbeavailableatTHEWORDbookstore,469MiltonSt.514-845-5640,http://www.wordbookstore.ca/.Pleasenotethattheytakecashorcheckonly.Onlinesellersobviouslywillacceptcreditcardsifyougothatroute.Booksarealsoon3-hourreserveattheHumanitiesandSocialSciencesLibrary.Forthisseminar,itisstronglyrecommendedthatyouworkwithpapercopiesofbooks,ratherthandigitalcopies.Inaddition,allrequiredandrecommendedarticleswillbemadeavailabletostudentsthroughthecoursewebsiteorothermeans.RecommendedbookswillbeonreserveattheHumanitiesandSocialSciencesLibrary.

ClassScheduleBringprintedcopiesofreadingstoclass

Alinktohelpyoudothereadings:PaulEdwards,HowtoReadaBook,http://pne.people.si.umich.edu/PDF/howtoread.pdf6Jan:Apologia:MaterialityandMoreSterne,Jonathan.“‘WhatDoWeWant?Materiality!WhenDoWeWantIt?Now!’”InMedia

Technologies:EssaysonCommunication,MaterialityandSociety,editedbyTarletonGillespie,PabloJ.Boczkowski,andKirstenA.Foot,119–28.Cambridge:MITPress,2014.

White,Hayden.“TheBurdenofHistory.”HistoryandTheory5,no.2(1966):111–34.Kittler,Friedrich.“Preface”and“Introduction.”Gramophone-Film-Typewriter,xxxix-xli;1-

19.TranslatedbyGeoffreyWinthrop-Young.Stanford:StanfordUniversityPress,1999.[Ihaveincludedthetranslatorsprefaceincaseitishelpful,butitisnotassigned.]

Gitelman,Lisa.“MediaasHistoricalSubjects.AlwaysAlreadyNew:Media,HistoryandtheDataofCulture,1-22.Cambridge:MITPress,2006.Intro

Supplemental:What’sthedealwithyourprofessor?Ifyoudon’tknow,visit

http://sterneworks.org/Text/orcheckoutMP3orTheAudiblePast(introsarefreeonline—linksonmysite).

Gitelman,Lisa.AlwaysAlreadyNew:Media,HistoryandtheDataofCulture.Cambridge:MITPress,2006.

13Jan:HermeneuticReverse-Engineering101+SomeVarietiesofMaterialistMedia

HistoriographyFoucault,Michel.“Panopticism.”DisciplineandPunish:TheBirthofthePrison,195-228.

TranslatedbyAlanSheridan.NewYork:VintageBooks,1977.

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Sundaram,Ravi.“ThePirateKingdom,”PirateModernity:Delhi’sMediaUrbanism,105-38.London:Routledge,2010.

Robles-Anderson,Erica,andPatrikSvensson.“‘OneDamnSlideAfterAnother’:PowerPointatEveryOccasionforSpeech :ComputationalCulture.”ComputationalCulture,no.5(2016).(Webversionlooksbetterthanthegeneratedpdftomyeyes,buttakeyourpick)http://computationalculture.net/article/one-damn-slide-after-another-powerpoint-at-every-occasion-for-speech.

Marez,Curtis.“’TotheDisinheritedBelongstheFuture:FarmWorkerFuturisminthe1940s.’”FarmWorkerFuturism:SpeculativeTechnologiesofResistance,43-78.Minneapolis:UniversityofMinnesotaPress,2016.

Supplemental:Foucault,Michel.“QuestionsofMethod.”InTheFoucaultEffect:StudiesinGovernmentality,

editedbyGrahamBurchell,ColinGordon,andPeterMiller,translatedbyColinGordon,73–86.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1991.

Spigel,Lynn.MakeRoomforTV:TelevisionandtheFamilyIdealinPostwarAmerica.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1992.

Siegert,Bernhard.“CulturalTechniques:OrtheEndoftheIntellectualPostwarErainGermanMediaTheory.”Theory,Culture&Society30,no.6(November1,2013):48–65.

20Jan:Ecology Maxwell,Richard,andTobyMiller.GreeningtheMedia.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,

2012.Supplemental:Bennett,Jane.VibrantMatter:APoliticalEcologyofThings.Durham:DukeUniversityPress,

2010.Gabrys,Jennifer.DigitalRubbish:ANaturalHistoryofElectronics.AnnArbor:Universityof

MichiganPress,2011.Starosielski,Nicole,andJanetWalker,eds.SustainableMedia:CriticalApproachestoMedia

andEnvironment.NewYork:Routledge,2016.27Jan:ScienceandTechnologyStudies(classendsearlyat2pm)Medina,Eden.CyberneticRevolutionaries:TechnologyandPoliticsinAllende’sChile.

Cambridge,Mass.:MITPress,2011.Supplemental:ReadingsontheMorzovcontroversy(TBA)Akrich,Madeleine.“TheDe-ScriptionofTechnicalObjects.”InShapingTechnology,Building

Society:StudiesinSociotechnicalChange,editedbyWiebeBijkerandJ.Law,205–24.Cambridge:MITPress,1992.

Latour,Bruno.ReassemblingtheSocial:AnIntroductiontoActor-Network-Theory.Oxford;NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,2005.

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Turner,Fred.TheDemocraticSurround.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,2013.Peters,Benjamin.HowNottoNetworkaNation:TheUneasyHistoryoftheSovietInternet.

Cambridge,Massachusetts:TheMITPress,2016.3Feb:SurveillanceBrowne,Simone.DarkMatters:OntheSurveillanceofBlackness.Durham:DukeUniversity

Press,2015.SimoneBrownewillbevisitinganddeliveringpublictalksthatweekatMcGill(Weds1

Feb)andConcordia(Thrus2Feb).WemayalsohavesomevisitorsfromConcordia.Supplemental:Gandy,Oscar.ThePanopticSort:APoliticalEconomyofPersonalInformation.Boulder,Colo.:

Westview,1993.Gates,Kelly.OurBiometricFuture:FacialRecognitionTechnologyandtheCultureof

Surveillance.NewYork:NewYorkUniversityPress,2011.Magnet,Shoshana.WhenBiometricsFail:Gender,Race,andtheTechnologyofIdentity.

Durham:DukeUniversityPress,2011.Mirzoeff,Nicholas.TheRightToLook:ACounterhistoryofVisuality.Durham:Duke

UniversityPress,2011.10Feb:Containment+theMaterialFormofScholarshipClassmeetsintheCulturalStudiesScreeningRoom,3475Peel,Room101.Galison,Peter.“VisualSTS.”InVisualizationintheAgeofComputation,eds.Annamarie

Carusi,AudSisselHoel,TimothyWebmoorandStevenWoolgar,197-224.London:Routledge,2014.

Galison,PeterandJeremyPacker.“AbstractMaterialism:PeterGalisonDiscussesFoucault,KittlerandtheHistoryofScienceandTechnology.”InternationalJournalofCommunication10(2016),Feature3160-3173.ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/download/4607/1699

ThefilmContainmentwillbescreenedduringourseminartime,followedbyadiscussionwithPeterGalison,ourspecialgueststar.DarinBarney’sinfrastructureseminarwillbevisitingours.

Supplemental:Michaels,Eric.ForaCulturalFuture:FrancisJupurrurlaMakesTvatYuendumu.Artand

CriticismMonographSeries ;;v3;Melbourne:Artspace,1987.Daston,Lorraine,andPeterGalison.Objectivity.Cambridge,Mass.:ZoneBooks,2007.Hayles,N.Katherine.“TheDigitalHumanities:EngagingtheIssues”and“Close,Hyper,

Machine.”HowWeThink:DigitalMediaandtheContemporaryTechnogenesis,19-79.Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,2012.

17Feb:MatterBarad,Karen.MeetingtheUniverseHalfway:QuantumPhysicsandtheEntanglementof

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MatterandMeaning.Durham:DukeUniversityPress,2007.Thisislikelytobeamoredifficultbook.Youmaywanttostartonitearly.

Supplemental:Simondon,Gilbert.OntheModeofExistenceofTechnicalObjects.TranslatedbyNinian

Mellamphy.London,Canada:UniversityofWesternOntario,1980.(AnewtranslationwillbepublishedinApril.)

Haraway,Donna.“SituatedKnowledges:TheScienceQuestioninFeminismandthePrivilegeofPartialPerspective.”FeministStudies14,no.3(1988):575–99.

Pinch,Trevor.“KarenBarad,QuantumMechanics,andtheParadoxofMutualExclusivity.”EditedbyKarenBarad.SocialStudiesofScience41,no.3(2011):431–41.

24Feb:DigitalEconomyGopinath,Sumanth.TheRingtoneDialectic:EconomyandCulturalForm.Cambridge:MIT

Press,2013.SumanthGopinathwillbevisitingourseminaronthe24thanddeliveringatalklaterthat

day.Supplemental:Ohmann,Richard.SellingCulture:Magazines,MarketsandClassattheTurnoftheCentury.

NewYork:Verso,1996.Stabile,CarolA.WhiteVictims,BlackVillains:Gender,RaceandCrimeNewsinUsCulture.

NewYork;London:Routledge,2006.Novak,David.Japanoise:MusicattheEdgeofCirculation.Durham:DukeUniversityPress,

2013.3March:ReadingWeekPleasepostphotosofpalmtreestothecoursewebsite.9March11:30-14:30Infrastructure:**NOTEALTERNATETIMEANDDAY**Starosielski,Nicole.TheUnderseaNetwork.Durham:DukeUniversityPress,2015.NicoleStarosielskiwillbevisitingDarinBarney’sinfrastructureseminaronthe9thof

March.Wewilljointhem.Paperswillbedue24hoursearlythisweek.ShewillalsobespeakingattheClimateRealismconference.

Supplemental:Bowker,GeoffreyC.,andSusanLeighStar.SortingThingsOut:ClassificationandIts

Consequences.Cambridge:MITPress,1999.Sandvig,Christian,“TheInternetasInfrastructure.”InDutton,WilliamH,ed..TheOxford

HandbookofInternetStudies,86-106.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress,2013.Parks,Lisa,D,andNicoleStarosielski.SignalTraffic:CriticalStudiesofMedia

Infrastructures,2015.

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10March:ClimateRealismConference.Attendanceencouraged!http://www.climaterealism.ca17March:Disability

Ellcessor,Elizabeth.RestrictedAccess:Media,DisabilityandthePoliticsofParticipation.New

York:NewYorkUniversityPress,2016.Supplemental:Schweik,SusanM.TheUglyLaws:DisabilityinPublic.NewYork:NewYorkUniversity,

2009.Siebers,Tobin.DisabilityAesthetics.AnnArbor:UniversityofMichiganPress,2010.Mills,MaraandJonathanSterne.“Dismediation:ThreeProposals,SixTactics.”Forthcoming

inDisabilityMediaStudies,eds.ElizabethEllcessorandBillKirkpatrick.NewYork:NYUPress,2017or2018.

24MarchRemedial/ShoreingUpWeekProfwillbeattheSocietyforCinemaandMediaStudies.Classmeetssansproforwe

reschedule.YouwillchooseonebookfromamenuIprovidetofillagapinyoureducation.Youmayproposealternatives.Yes,it’scheatingifyoureaditforanotherclassthisterm.

31MarchMediaArchaeology/MediaArtHistoryElcott,Noam.ArtificialDarkness:AnObscureHistoryofModernArtandMedia.Chicago:

UniversityofChicagoPress,2016.Supplemental:Baudry,Jean-Louis.“IdeologicalEffectsoftheBasicCinematographicApparatus.”Film

Quarterly28,no.2(1974):39–47.Thompson,Emily.TheSoundscapeofModernity:ArchitecturalAcousticsandtheCultureof

ListeninginAmerica1900-1930.Cambridge:MITPress,2002.Huhtamo,Erkki,andJussiParikka,eds.MediaArchaeology:Approaches,Applicationsand

Implications.Minneapolis:UniversityofMinnesotaPress,2011.Schmidgen,Henning.“CameraSilenta:TimeExperiments,MediaNetworksandthe

ExperienceofOrganlessness.”Orisris28(2013):162–88.

7AprilLong-TermHistoriographyTomlinson,Gary.AMillionYearsofMusic:TheEmergenceofHumanModernity.Cambridge:

MITPress,2015.Thismayalsobeadifficultbookforsomepeople.Planahead.Supplemental:Cowan,RuthSchwartz.MoreWorkforMother:TheIroniesofHouseholdTechnologyfromthe

OpenHearthtotheMicrowave.NewYork:BasicBooks,1983.

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Leroi-Gourham,André.GestureandSpeech.TranslatedbyAnnaBostockBerger.Cambridge:MITPress,1993.

Stiegler,Bernard.TechnicsandTimeI:TheFaultofEpimetheus.TranslatedbyRichardBeardsworth.Stanford:StanfordUniversityPress,1998.

Zielinski,Siegfried.DeepTimeoftheMedia:TowardanArchaeologyofHearingandSeeingbyTechnicalMeans.TranslatedbyGloriaCustance.Cambridge:MITPress,2008.

CourseRequirementsandExpectationsEtiquette:1.Fullandcompleteattendance,attention,participation,listeningandreading(ofrequiredtexts).Iexpecttheverybestyoucangive.2.Goodfaithandgoodhumortowardyourcolleaguesintheclassroom.Forboth:disagreementsareexpectedandencouraged,butpleasekeepnitpickingtoaminimum;personalattacksandintimidationarenotacceptableunderanycircumstances.Ifyouhavesomethingcriticaltosay,bepreparedtoexplainhowthepiececouldbeimprovedgivenwhattheauthorhopedtoachieve.FollowtheGoldenRule.Encouragebasicquestionsaswellasadvancedones.Ifyoudon’tknowsomething,admitit.Youareprobablynotalone.Finally,wewanttoavoidseek-and-destroyhermeneutics.Therefore,studentsareallowedone(1)seek-and-destroyanalysisofareadingperterm,forwhenyoujustcan’tstandit.Butchoosewisely.Onceyou’veusedit,you’veusedit.3.Yourjobasaparticipantistolistenactivelytowhatothershavetosayandadvancethediscussion.Ifyouareconfidentcontributoruseyourconfidenceforgoodandnotevil.Helpbringothersintodiscussion,refertoyourclassmatesbyname,andbepositiveaboutthecontributionsofthosewhodonotsayasmuch.4.Whilepersonalanecdotesareallowed,keepinmindthisisaPhDseminar.Othersmaydisagreewithyourinterpretationofyourexperience.Thisisencouragedandallowed.Ifyouarenotcomfortablewiththis,donotshareyourstory.5.AwkwardSilencesandhesitationareokay.Don’tfeelyouneedtorushtospeakanddon’tworryifyouneedalittletimetoarticulatesomething.Contributingtoclassdiscussionismorethanthefrequencyofthetimesyourhandgoesupandthenumberofwordsyousay.Ifyouarestrugglingtoarticulatesomething,that’sprobablyasignthatyouaresayingsomethingthatisnewandnotobvious.6.Difficultcontent:There’sbeenalotoftalkinthepressaboutcontentwarningsandstudentcomfortintheclassroom.Asyourprof,Iwillneverdoanythingintentionallytoshockortraumatizestudents.Atthesametime,it’sourjobtodiscussdifficultsubjectsinclass,andnobodycanpredicttheeffectsomematerialsmayhaveonsomeone.Iwilltryandgivepreviewsofthekindsofcontentyouwillencounterbeforeyouencounterit.IfIforget,feelfreetoask.Ifyouarehavingdifficultydealingwithaclassdiscussionora

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readingorrecording,youmayraisetheissueaspartofthediscussion(keepinginmind#4above),oryoumaysimplydiscretelystepoutofclass.Anotetotheprofwouldbehelpfulafterthefactsothatweknowwhathappenedanddon’tthinkyoujustgotupandleft. TechnologyPolicy Thiscoursewillencouragethethoughtfuluseofscholarlytechnologiessuchastalkingandreading,computersandtheinternet,penandpaper,projectionandchalkboards,etc.Forour“talkingaboutideas”components,youwilluseawritingutensilandpaper(unlessyoubringmeanotefromtheOfficeforStudentsWithDisabilities).Theclassroomwillnotbeanenvironmentof“ambientcomputing.”Ifyouneedtoopenacomputer(oranydevicewithascreen,microprocessorandinternetconnection)tolookstuffup,youwilldothatandthenclosethedevice. Ifwehavegroupactivities,computingdevicesmaybeinvolved,dependingontheactivity.Wewilldiscussthistechnologypolicyonthefirstdayofclass. Product(and%ofsemestergrade):I. Participation(20%)Iexpecteveryonetoparticipateregularlyinclassdiscussion.Youshouldcomeeveryweekhavingdoneallofthereadingsandreadytodiscussthem.Inotice(andappreciateit)whenstudentsmakegoodcontributionstothecourseonlineorinotherwaysbesidesspeakingupinclass.PleasenotethatIdistinguishbetweenquantityandquality.Ialsonoticewhenstudentsareroutinelylateand/orabsent.SeeEtiquetteaboveformyexpectations.Ifnecessary,Iwillkeepaspeakerslistandcallonpeople.II. SemesterProject(80%),aka,“TheProcess.Committotheprocess.”1. 12January:Thecommitment.By5pmon12January,youmustsubmitaproposedtopictomeforyoursemesterproject.The1-2pagedocumentwilloffera1-paragraphdescriptionofwhatyouintendtoresearch,andalistofpotentialplacestogolookingforprimarysourcematerialsthatmatcheswellwiththekindsofmaterialsdiscussedinthereadings.Pleasealsolist5secondarysourcesyoucanconsult,ideallyotherscholarsinyourfield(orarelatedfield)whohavewrittenaboutyourtopic.Note:Thiscommitmentisnotprovisional;onceIapproveit(andImayaskyoutomodify),youarecommittedtoitfortheentireterm,thoughyoucantakeitanywhereyoulike.

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Yourtopicshouldbebroadenoughtokeepyouinterestedfor12weeks,narrowenoughtoactuallyyieldsomethinglikeaconferencetalkorajournalarticle.Importantly,yourtopicdoesnothavetobecompletelyoriginal.Youcanresearchsomethingthat’salreadybeenresearched.Thereisnoburdenoforiginalityatallinobjectchoice.Infact,Irecommendavoidingtheimpulsetobetoocleveratthisstage.Youmustalsoavoidyourplanneddissertationorthesistopic.Choosesomethingsimilar,allied,orthogonalorcompletelydifferenttoit,solongasyou’recomfortablewiththetopicandit’sinterestingtoyou.Thiswillallowyougreaterroomtoexperimentandalso,freeyouofacertainamountofego-investmentinthetopic.Icanprovideexamplesfrompriorseminars.2. Weekly(exceptasnoted):thedossier.Eachweek(byThursday,5pm),youwillacquireatleastoneartifactordocumentforyoursemesterprojectinthathassomerelationtotheweek’sreadingassignment.SomeweeksIwillgivemoredirectguidancethanothers.Ifyourobjectisnotdigital,youwillfindawaytodocumentitdigitally,andpostyourdocumenttoafolderontheMyCoursessiteforthisclass.Youare,ofcourse,welcometocollectmore,butthisismeanttobeaprocessofweeklyaccumulation.Evenifyoucollectalotofdocumentsinasingleweek,youareexpectedtokeepatitweekafterweek.3. Weekly(exceptasnoted):papers.Eachweek(byThursday,5pm),youwilluploadtoMyCoursesashortpaperofapproximately500-800words(2-3pagesdouble-spacedinastandardfont,excludingcitations).Iftheclasspreferstodothisbylistserv,wecanshareworkthatway.Thepaperwillmakeuseofthedocumentorartifactyouacquiredfortheweek(ifyouacquiredmorethanone,focusonone,thoughothersmaybementionedifnecessary;youmayalsorefertomaterialfrompreviousweeks).Thepapermustbewritteninthestyleoftheauthorwehavereadfortheweek.Basedonyourownhermeneuticreverse-engineeringofthetext,chooseanaspectoftheweek’sassignedreadingtoimitateandtryyourbesttoimitateit.Yourjobistotryandoccupythesamediscursiveheadspaceasthereading,exceptwithyourownmaterial.Therelevantaspectsof“style”hereareuptoyourinterpretation.Isitsomethingabouttheauthor’sprosestylethatisrelevant?Heranalyticalapproachortheoreticalcommitments?Thetypesofsourcematerialsheuses?Wewilldiscussthemechanicsofthisinclasson13January.Bringyourpapertoclass(andyourartifactifit’sgoodforshow-and-tell)andbepreparedtodiscussyourchoices.

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4. Weekly(exceptasnoted):in-classreadings.Eachweek,wewillhaveoneormorestudentsreadfromtheirpapers,whichwillleadusintoadiscussionoftheassignedtextfortheweek.Imayreviseormodifythispracticeasseemsfittingforclassdiscussion.Imaynotdothiswhenguestsarevisitingifitmakespeopletoonervous.Wewilldiscuss.5. 18April,5pm:The“Not-Really-Final”paper(postedintheappropriateplaceonthecoursewebsite).Bythetimeyoureachthisstage,youwillhaveproducedover20pagesoftext,inmanydifferentstyles.Forthisproject,youwillrevisethemintoasinglepaper,withacoherentargumentativearcandstyle.Thisisstrictlyanexerciseinwritingandrevision.Youmustgetmypermissiontodoadditionalresearch;newresearchatthisstagewillinterferewiththemainpurposesofthisassignment,whichistofocusonwritingandrevision.Inexchangeforthisrequirement,youareallowedfactualgapsinthepaper,notingplaceswhereyouwouldneedtodomoreresearchonatopicbeforeactuallypresentingorsubmittingtheworksomewherebeyondthisclass.Forthepurposeofthisassignment,youmaychoosetoproduceeither:

a) apaperofnolessthan1800andnomorethan2000wordsexcludingfootnotesandbibliography,suitableforconferencepresentation.Thewordlimitisstrictbecauseatmostconferencesyouwouldhaveastricttimelimitbetween12and20minutes.I’mgivingyousomewherebetween15-20minutesasifyouweretoread2000wordsaloudatareasonablepace.(Idon’tendorsethepracticeofjustreadingpapersaloudatconferences,butit’saguideforwhatyoucouldcover.)b) apaperofatleast7000butnomorethan9000wordsincludingnotesandbibliographyintheformatofsomethingthatcouldbesubmittedtoajournal.Again,theupperlimitisstrictbecauseitwouldbestrictwithajournal.

OtherPoliciesFrench:YouhavetherighttosubmityourwrittenworkinFrenchandsomeyearsoneormorestudentsinmyseminarschoosetodoso.IfyouplantowriteinFrench,pleasegetintouchwithmeduringadd-dropsowecantalkabouthowtohandleit,asIamnotparticularlygoodatFrench.Normallyit’snotaproblembutweshoulddiscusshowitwillwork.ClassdiscussionsareinEnglish,butyouareencouragedtoresorttoFrenchifyoucan’tfindtherightwordinEnglishandwe’llfigureitouttogether.YouarealsowelcometoreadcoursematerialsinFrench(wheretheyareavailableinFrench).Discussionsoflinguisticandtranslationdifferencesareawelcomepartoftheseminar.Accommodation:Ifyourequirespecialaccommodationsorclassroommodificationsofanykind,pleasenotifyboththeprofessorandOfficeforStudentswithDisabilitiesbythe

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endofthefirstweekinwhichyouareenrolledinthecourse.TheyarelocatedinRoomRS56,RedpathLIbrary,398-6009(voice),398-8198(TTD),[http://www.mcgill.ca/osd/].Nondiscrimination:IfthereissomethingIcandotomaketheclassmorehospitable,pleaseletmeknow.Ivalueequalityofopportunity,andhumandignityanddiversity.InaccordancewithUniversitypolicy,Iwillnottoleratediscriminationorharassmentonthebasisofrace,color,ethnicornationalorigin,civilstatus,religion,creed,politicalconvictions,language,sex,sexualorientation,socialcondition,age,personaldifferenceortheuseofassistivetechnologyinnegotiatingthatdifference.Amongotherthings,thismeansthatyoudonothavetoagreewithyourteacher,theassignedreadings,orthemajorityofyourclassmatesinordertodowellinthiscourse.Youare,however,obligatedtodemonstrateanunderstandingofthecoursematerialwhetherornotyouagreewithit.Auditors:Iwouldlikeauditorstoparticipateintheweeklywritingexercisesfortheweekstheywillattend,sothateveryoneintheroomisonequalfooting.IfIgrantyoupermissiontoaudit,youareboundbythesameettiquetterulesastheenrolledstudents.Therewillbeexeptionstothispolicyfordayswhenwehaveoutoftownvisitors.HowtoInterpretMcGill’sInflatedGraduate-LevelGrades:A: GoodworkA-: SatisfactoryB+: ThereisaproblemwithwhatyousubmittedB: ThereisasubstantialproblemwithwhatyousubmittedB-: Lowestpossiblepassinggradeinagraduatecourse;indicatesamajor

problembutnotafailureC+orlower: Officiallyconsidereda“fail”bytheGraduateStudiesOffice.Inrarecases,ifyourperformanceonanyassignmentisnotsatisfactory,Imayaskyoutodoitagain.Youmustcompleteallthemajorassignmentstopassthecourse.Lateassignmentsmaynotreceivewrittencommentsandwillearnareducedgrade(oneincrementoflettergradeforthefirsttwodays,thenanincrementperday,includingweekends).Lateweeklypaperswillnotbeusefulforclassandwillreceiveadiminishedgradeimmediately.ItisyourresponsibilitytomakesureIreceiveanyassignmentyouturnin.Activitiesforwhichyoumustbepresentcannotbemadeup.Itisalsoyourresponsibilitytoproperlybackupyourwork:keepmorethanonedigitalcopyofyourwork.Inthecaseofwriting,keepapapercopyaswell.Irecommendsyncingyourimportantdocumentstoacloudstorageservice.TheKcontract:AtMcGill,gradesofincompletearecalled“K”gradesandtheyareonlysupposedtobeassignedafterthestudentandprofessorhaveagreeduponacontract.Idonotgiveincompletes(“K”grades)exceptintrulyextraordinarypersonalcircumstances

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thatcanbedocumented.Kgradesrevertto“F”gradesattheendofthenexttermunlessacontractextensionissignedbybothprofessorandstudent.Extensionsalsowillnotbegrantedexceptintrulyextraordinarycircumstances.ThePassive-AggressiveK:Shouldastudentfailtoturninafinalpaperandfailtocontactmewellbeforemydeadlineforsubmissionofgrades,IwillissueaKgradewithoutacontract.Graduatestudies,however,stillexpectsacontracttobefiledanditwillbethestudent’sresponsibilitytomakesureoneissubmitted.Inthesecircumstances,shouldthepaperbecompletedatalaterdate,itwillreceiveamark.However,studentswhoreceivea“K”inthisfashionwillnotbeeligibletoreceivean“A”or“A-”forthecourse.IwillnotsignanextensionforaKgradethatwasgrantedwithoutacontract,andnolatepaperwillbegradedwithoutaKcontractbeinginplacebeforehand.Ialsocannotpromisecommentsonapapersubmittedafterapassive-aggressiveK.RequiredAcademicIntegrityStatement:McGillUniversityvaluesacademicintegrity.Therefore,allstudentsmustunderstandthemeaningandconsequencesofcheating,plagiarismandotheracademicoffencesundertheCodeofStudentConductandDisciplinaryProcedures(seewww.mcgill.ca/integrityformoreinformation).SpecialRequiredEmergencySyllabus-EraserClause:IntheeventofextraordinarycircumstancesbeyondtheUniversity’scontrol,thecontentand/orevaluationschemeinthiscourseissubjecttochange.Meta: