Seminar: Monday and Wednesday 2:30 Pm 5:30Pm

YORK UNIVERSITY

SOCIOLOGY OF LAW

AP/PPAS 4070 6.0 A

Summer 2017

Seminar: Monday and Wednesday 2:30 pm – 5:30pm

Location: ACE008

Course Director: Kirk Atkinson

Office Hours: Wednesday 5:45- 7:00 pm or by appointment

Course Description:

This seminar examines social institutions and ideologies of law. The foundations and practices of law are studied in reference to the influences of capitalism, liberalism and modernity. Informed by classical and contemporary perspectives, this course examines the relationship between law and society. Course credit exclusions: None. Prior TO FALL 2009: Course credit exclusion: AK/PPAS 4070 6.00.

This seminar examines social institutions and ideologies of law. The foundations and practices of law are studied in reference to the influences of capitalism, liberalism and modernity. Informed by classical and contemporary perspectives, this course examines the relationships between law and society, as well as the historical and social context that shape the manner in which law is framed implemented and consume. .

Selected important figures and topics will be explored in the course, e.g. the works of Weber, Marx, Durkheim, Rawls, Nozick and Dworkin and their contributions to the understanding about the nature of the law itself;and about legal responsibility and legal punishment, and about standards of fairness in settling legal disputes. The course aims at a critical understanding of the world around us by considering legal institutions as a product of actions and interactions of both specialists and ordinary citizens. Additionally, it examines the role of the law as a potential vehicle and an agent of change. The course will also explore the relationship between law and justice.The course will give a practical sociological introduction to the professional study of law.

Learning Outcomes for the Course:

Students will learn how to distinguish between law as a command of legitimate governmental authority and law as a social process filtered through the prism of sociological analysis
Students will learn how to read statutes from the constitutional perspective, as well as the critical sociological perspective
Students will learn how to recognize and apply various theoretical perspectives to the analysis of law
Students will learn how to critically evaluate with the tension between law and justice
Students will learn how to distinguish and evaluate the role of the judiciary as interpreter of the law and defender of the constitutions versus using the law to advance public policy
Students will learn general analytical presentation and debating skills

Reading List:

Burtch, Brian. The Sociology of Law: critical approaches to social control. Second

Edition. Thomson Nelson. 2003. (SOL)

Trevino, Javier. The Sociology of Law: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives. First

Edition. Transaction Publishers. (SOLCCP)

**Text will be complemented by Lecture material drawing on additional readings, historical and contemporary sources in order to further develop the readings assigned.

Note: students are also responsible for any in-class video/DVD material.

Grading Breakdown:

1)Test # 1 – written in class – 20%

2)Group Presentation – 20%

3)Final Test – written in class – 20%

4)Major Essay –25% Due date July 17 in Class.

5)Attendance and Participation 15%

NOTE: Late essay will be penalized 1.5% per day.

**It is important that students complete the required readings for each class in order to fully engage in the seminar experience. Note that it is the responsibility of each student to arrive prepared and ready for group discussions.

**Students can miss two classes without losing attendance and participation points. Point will be deducted starting with the third absence. The 15 % for attendance and participation will be divided equally between attendance and participation.

READING & WRITING SCHEDULE:

May

01: Course Introduction

03: Chapter 1, Introduction to Law and the Sociology of Law (SOL)

08: Chapter 1 The Sociology of Law; Chapter 3, pp.55-58 and 63-73 (SOLCCP)

The ideas of Dworkin and Nozick in legal Theory

10: Chapter 2,The Classical Theorists: Durkheim, Weber, and Marx (SOL)

15: Chapter 4. The Marxian Perspective (SOLCCP)

17: Chapter 5, The Weberian Perspective

24: Chapter 6, The Durkheimian Perspective (SOLCCP)

29: Chapter 3, Historical Foundations of Law (SOL)

31: Chapter 2 Foundational Works on Law and Society pp. 13-20 (SOLCCP)

June

05: Chapter 4, Feminist Theory and Law (SOL)

07: Chapter 4, continued

12: Midterm Exam

14: Chapter 5, First Nations and Law(SOL)

19: Chapter 5, continued

21:Chapter 6, Racial discrimination, Multiculturalism and Law (SOL)

26 Chapter 8, Conflict theory (SOLCCP)

28: Chapter 7,Studies in the Judiciary and the Legal Profession

July

5: Chapter 7 continued

10: Chapter 8, The Criminal Sanction in Canada (SOL)

12: Chapter 8, continued

17: Chapter 9, Reproduction and Law: Family, Abortion, and Midwifery (SOL)

19: Chapter 9, continue

24: Chapter 10, New Direction in Law and Society (SOL)

Chapter 9, Critical Legal Studies (SOLCCP)

31: Final Exam

GROUP PRESENTATION

The oral presentation is an essential part of the course. Students will select a topic from the assigned chapter reading for that date. Students will conduct the presentations in groups made up of 3 or 4 students each.

Students are expected to research the topic and to access several sources for the presentation.

Students are strongly encouraged –but not obliged to- follow this format and structure. First, there should be a brief (15 minutes or less) introduction to the topic. Students will be encouraged to choose a focus topic and an angle (theoretical school) through which they can deal with the selected topic, i.e., they will be expected to select an aspect of the problem, preferably a debatable, or topical one, and analyze it through their own perspective and supported through academic work. Second, students should plan an activity or thoughtful question(s) (30 minutes or less) so that those not presenting can actively participate. Activities should be original, entertaining, and formative. They should principally let students apply the topic presented to different situations. There should be a conclusion and time for questions or comments in that time frame. Additionally, students will have to select an article –preferably one available electronically- a web site, create notes or find another source of information for the rest of the students to read about the topic. The selected source of information must treat the topic comprehensively.

The oral presentation requires extensive preparation as a group. One of the most common mistakes presenters make is dividing the work up and attempting to come together as a group once they present. This does not work and hurts your overall delivery and of course, your overall grade.

Please note that your grade is a ‘Group Grade’. Do not approach me after the presentation has been delivered with narratives on “who did what and who did not”. If you are having difficulties with a group member, this must be resolved before you all present. If possible, I will find that person another group. If this is not possible you risk getting 0% if you do not present with your assigned group. NOTE: there are NO individual presentations or written work assigned to make up for not presenting with your group. I will provide the presenters feedback and a group grade in writing in the following class.

Passing requirements and scale of evaluation:

1.Does the presentation deal with the assigned topic/chapter? Does the presentation show an understanding of topic dealt with? Does the presentation show a clear, coherent, and comprehensive treatment of the selected topic? Has the presentation followed the required formalities?

2.Does the presentation integrate knowledge acquired throughout the course? Is there an effective and original integration of knowledge acquired throughout the course?

3.Is there a critical and original personal assessment of the topic presented?

4.Does the presentation include an activity/questions for the audience? Is the activity original, entertaining, and formative? Has the activity engaged the active participation of the audience or have the students engaged the audience throughout the presentation? Does the activity permit students to apply the concepts, theories or other issues dealt with in the presentation?

5.Have the students selected an adequate article, a web site or another source of information that comprehensively deals with the topic of the presentation for the other students?

Essay Evaluation Criteria

Writing at the University Level:

These are things that you should be able to do competently in order to feel confident with writing university essays.

Introduction: a clearly expressed answer to the question(s) implied by the assignment, set within an opening paragraph that gives your reader an overview of your argument(s).

Paragraphing: clear topic sentences linked to your overall argument; show of development and readability; no one-sentence or one-page paragraphs.

Grammar and Style: clarity and correctness; no colloquial language; no clichés; no incomplete sentences.

Separating the Competent (C+) from the Good (B) from the Very Good (B+):

Analytical content: comprehension and interpretation of course material (text and lectures); thinking beyond mere summary or description.

Development of argument: main and subordinate points supported by apt illustration.

Rare Achievement: Excellent (A) and Outstanding (A+):

Particular persuasiveness and depth of argument.

Originality and inventiveness: exploring passages of the text not taken up in tutorials, fresh ideas or synthesis; creative use of essay form and language.

Special Requirements:

What will distinguish a really good paper from a merely adequate one will be the imaginative use of all the required readings and the lecture materials, and their skillful integration into the design of your project. The readings and the points made in lecture have been chosen both for the broad relevance of the substantive issues they deal with – AND for the hints they provide about the challenges of doing social scientific research, be they practical, methodological, epistemological or ethical ones. These things are not always explicit, and those of you who read between the lines, who extrapolate from the particular case being discussed and apply those insights to your own research problem, will do well. Those who write their papers with no attention to the course readings and lectures will do poorly. Yes, this paper may require additional readings, but the most important ones are those you have been addressing every week during the course.

ARGUMENT AND EVIDENCE

A crucial distinction for you to bear in mind when writing essays at the university level is the distinction between description and argument. While your work will probably always contain some description, a successful essay in Sociological Theory (as well as in other courses) will require that you make and defend an argument.

What is an argument? According to one useful definition, it is "a process whereby we connect evidence in a reasoned, logical way in order to arrive at a conclusion." Its purpose is to persuade. Even when an argument is essentially explanatory, it is also your task to persuade the reader that what you are offering is a sound explanation.

Your first term essay must present just such a persuasive argument; it must not merely describe the materials you have read. Your argument will be presented in its most concise form in your thesis statement, and will be supported in the body of the essay by a selection of the best evidence you can draw from course readings and lectures. Remember: PERSUADE WITH EXAMPLES, NOT WITH OPINIONS.

The points you make in support of your argument are sometimes referred to as its premises. These are the reasons you offer the reader for accepting your conclusion (thesis). Premises are often set up with "cue words" such as since, because, given that, as illustrated by, and so on. Conclusions, on the other hand, are often set up with words such as therefore, consequently, thus, implies that, points to, and so on. While you need not use such cue words, they let the reader know just which ideas you are connecting with which, and what claims you are making with respect to logical connection. They also should remind you to be cautious: when you say "therefore", you better be prepared to back it up!

In fact, you should be careful with all of your "logical connector" words: they are not just 'filler' with which you link sentences to keep your work from sounding too choppy. For example, these connectors are useful when you want to amplify (enlarge) a point you have already made: furthermore, in addition, moreover, indeed. Some connectors, on the other hand, serve to qualify (restrict) a point: admittedly, granted, on the' other hand. Yet others reassert your point after you have registered this qualification: nevertheless, even so, still. Finally, while it is technically acceptable to use such connectors as obviously and of course, they may imply greater assurance than is warranted by your beginner's knowledge of your subject; while self-confidence is a good quality in the presentation of argument, arrogance is not. Remember that what may be obvious to you may not be obvious to the reader (whom you are, remember, trying to persuade).

One final consideration in these early stages of learning to mount an argument is the anticipation of counter-arguments. If you spend some time thinking about just what points an opponent might raise in response to your claims, you can build a defense against them into the presentation of your premises. Don't overuse this defensive strategy, but be aware that it can sharpen your thinking, can save you from seemingly naive arguments, and can sometimes ensure that you don't offer arguments you don't really believe in, since you might talk yourself out of your first position in thus playing "devil's advocate".

Plagiarism:

Please refer to our course syllabus for the Senate Guidelines on Academic Honesty.

Papers must be your own work; borrowed, purchased or ghostwritten works are all considered plagiarism. Moreover, all references to the exact words (direct quotation) or the ideas (indirect quotation) of others must be fully acknowledged. The rule of thumb for direct quotation is that if you use more than four words from any sources, you must put them in quotation marks. (Be careful, by the way, to use the correct page references in your footnotes. I often check them, and having to track down incorrect ones – however innocently presented, will end up hurting your final grade).

NOTE:

For further details of York’s policy on plagiarism, see the Senate Policy on Academic Honesty in York University’s Undergraduate Programmes calendar or on the Website.

When All is Said and Done…

Hand in your work on time and in person to your tutorial leader. As I have mentioned, there are no extensions given as assignments are handed out with ample time.

Always save your work in multiple formats for your own protection (photocopy, memory key, hard drive, website etc…).

If, for whatever reason, you feel that you “need” a certain grade – to maintain your self-respect, to impress friends, to keep your scholarship, or whatever – then by all means do enough work ahead of time to earn that grade. You must “write your way” to a good mark before you hand in your essay, not try to “talk your way” to a good mark after we give you back your paper.

And don’t make excuses. We know that “the readings can be difficult”; we know that you do not have unlimited time to do this paper; we know that for some of you English is not your first language; all of this will be taken into account when we assess your work. We are looking for the best possible result within those constraints – and those constraints are not nearly so constraining as you may think they are.

Don’t’ panic. This is your attempt to write at the university level, and the assignment is meant to help you acquire new skills and higher levels of confidence. You might bear in mind Nietzsche’s words; “What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.”

NOTE: ILLNESS ON DAY OF TESTS – GUIDELINES.

Sometimes students assume that if they are sick, they can miss the test/exam and a make-up will be scheduled for them. THIS IS NOT TRUE. Students have no automatic rights to make-up exam/tests. A make-up may be scheduled but only in quite exceptional circumstances;otherwise students can appeal through the university appeals procedures.

If you are too sick to make the test, you will need a detailed doctor’s note (go on line to the Registrar’s Office page to download). This note must state why you were unable to write the test on that day. A headache, stomachache or cold will not be sufficient excuse.

If you miss a test/exam, please email me and also call The Public Policy and Administration office in McLaughlin College and leave a message for me with the name of your tutorial leader (if applicable). You should do this on the day of the exam/test. If you are too sick to phone, have a friend phone.