ILRLR 2070

Last Updated

  • Schedule of Classes - June 15, 2016 6:14PM EDT
  • Course Catalog - June 9, 2016 6:15PM EDT

ILRLR 2070
Writing Seminar in History

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2015-2016.

Topics change depending on semester and instructor.

When Offered Fall or spring.

Permission Note Enrollment limited to: 15 ILR Sophomores or permission of the instructor.

Satisfies Requirement Satisfies the ILR Advanced Writing requirement.

View Enrollment Information

Syllabi: none

  •   Regular Academic Session. 

  • 3 Credits GradeNoAud

  • Topic: Mexican Labor and Working-Class History in the US

  • 14555 ILRLR 2070   SEM 101

  •  
    • TR Ives Hall 103

    • Martinez-Matsuda, V

  • This course explores the varied experiences of ethnic Mexican workers in the United States from the early Industrial Period to the contemporary debates concerning the transnational effects of migrant labor. We will examine the ways ethnic Mexican men and women have organized at a regional, national, and international level, and in both rural and urban settings, for fair employment and civil rights. Close attention will be given to several historical factors that have helped shape Mexican American working-class identity. Ultimately, the course will determine how ethnic Mexican workers have contested their purported role as 'cheap' and 'tractable' labor to demand better wages, working conditions, and an end to the socio-economic discrimination they encountered. As this course is a writing seminar, we will spend a lot of in-class time discussing the material we read from both an analytical and writing-structure standpoint. Students will also be required to critique and revise their own writing.

Syllabi: none

  •   Regular Academic Session. 

  • 3 Credits GradeNoAud

  • Topic: Uncovering Corporate Strategies

  • 17197 ILRLR 2070   SEM 102

  •  

  • Uncovering Corporate Strategies: Case Studies from the 20th Century In this class we will get an inside view of labor-management relations by closely examining previously little known original documents that reveal how managers and workers conceptualized and used their own and their counterpart’s sense of identity. From psychological testing of middle-managers that measured employees’ sexual identity in the 1950s, to employers’ plans to instill race prejudice among previously integrated union members, we will zero in on a number of examples from the past and enjoy the richness and depth that only primary source evidence can offer. This is a writing seminar, and as such it places emphasis on producing thoughtful, well-written papers. The final assignment consists of a research paper based on primary sources to be found at the Kheel Center, the archives unit of the Catherwood Library. Students will have the opportunity to revise their writing based on the feedback provided by the instructor and by their peers.

Syllabi: none

  •   Regular Academic Session. 

  • 3 Credits GradeNoAud

  • Topic: The Life of a Boss

  • 17198 ILRLR 2070   SEM 103

  •  

  • Ever wonder how a boss becomes a boss and stays one? Ever wonder what the impact of that position is on the person, or on the public sphere he or she operates in and on? If so, this course might just be of interest. This writing seminar will focus on one such boss, and one book, by T. J. Stiles, The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. We will read the book across the semester, supplemented by some articles on writing and related topics. The core of the course is twofold: The discussions in class and the writing assignments. Yes, the class is early, and yes, if you enroll, you commit to an active presence in the class. But you will also meet the “Commodore,” as Vanderbilt was known and, through engagement with classmates and the instructor, sharpen your analytical skills and your ability to express those ideas in essay form.