Comments on this syllabus.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING
Students will be responsible for attending class to view films and present critiques of films. A term paper on an issue pertinent to the course is required. 

The final grade for the course will be determined by performance on film critiques, the term paper, and class participation. 

WEEKLY CRITIQUES (40% of grade). This is a weekly writing assignment of 500 to 1000 words typewritten (750 words recommended) pertaining to the week's film and readings. The purpose of this assignment is to allow the expression of personal opinion regarding some aspect of each week's material. This opinion should be presented as a synthesis of ideas informed by the context of the material presented in the film and readings. Although considerable latitutde of expression is allowed it should be noted that this is a short "thought piece" and should be well considered and to the point. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES IS THIS TO BE A "BOOK REPORT" OF THE FILM. 

TERM PAPER (50% of grade). The topic for the term paper must fall within one of the weekly subject headings. In addition to the material in the syllabus, students must offer analysis of at least one more film and a number of additional readings in the presentation of their topic. All term paper topics must be approved by the instructors and proposals are due by July 11 (including titles of additional films and readings). Completed term papers are due by Aug 8. Papers written by undergraduates must be from 10 to 15 pages, and those by graduates from 15 to 20 pages. Appropriate social science format with respect to paraphrasing, quotation, and citation should be followed. 

CLASS PARTICIPATION (10% of grade). The nature of this course lends itself to shared experience. Viewing films on a large screen in a shared environment is central to this course. Students are encouraged to actively participate in all film critiques and discussions of readings. 

BOOKS:
Doug Aberley, with forward by David Suzuki, Futures by Design: The Practice of Ecological Planning (Gabriola, B.C.; Philadelphia, PA: New Society Publishers, 1994). 

Mike Davis, City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles (New York: Verso, 1990). 

William G. Flanagan, Contemporary Urban Sociology (Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1993). 

Joel Garreau, Edge City: Life on the New Frontier (New York: Doubleday, 1991). 

Tony Hiss, The Experience of Place (New York: Knopf, 1990). 

Jonathan Kozol, Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools (New York : Crown Pub., 1991). 

Portland's Changing Landscape (Portland: Dept. of Geography, Portland State Univ., 1987) 

Mike Savage and Alan Warde, Urban Sociology, Capitalism, and Modernity (New York: Continuum, 1993). 

William A. Schwab, The Sociology of Cities (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1992). 

Thomas R. Shannon, Nancy Kleniewski, William M. Cross, Urban Problems in Sociological Perspective (2nd Ed.) (Prospect Heights, Ill.: Waveland Press, 1991). 

Brett Williams, Upscaling Downtown: Stalled Gentrification in Washington, D.C. (Ithaca, N.Y. : Cornell University Press, 1988). 

Sharon Zukin, Landscapes of Power: From Detroit to Disney World (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991). 

THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT
Koyaanisqatisi
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Modern Times
Black Orpheus
On the Town 

THE CITY AS SOCIAL BACKDROP AND CULTURAL ICON
Manhattan
Mean Streets
After Hours
Desperately Seeking Susan
Drugstore Cowboy
Breaking In
The Warriors 

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF CITIES
Chinatown
Roger and Me
Fort Apache, The Bronx
Wolfen 

THE CITY AS "WHERE THE HEART IS"
L.A. Story
Diner
Raisin in the Sun
Hoop Dreams
I Like it Like That
Saturday Night Fever 

SOCIAL PROBLEMS IN THE CITY
Blackboard Jungle
M
A Clockwork Orange
Grand Canyon
South Central
Ghosts of the Civil Dead