Unit information: Environment and Society in 2010/11

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Unit name Environment and Society
Unit code SOCI30049
Credit points 20
Level of study H/6
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director Dr. Maggie Studholme
Open unit status Not open
Pre-requisites

None
Co-requisites

None
School/department School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies
Faculty Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Description including Unit Aims

The unit explores the interaction between individuals/collectivities and environments, as these are mediated by culture/ideology. Via an historical consideration of social beliefs and attitudes to nature and people's place in it, the unit examines the way the way that environment has been conceptualised by social theorists, as a basis from which to explore some key aspects of the interconnection between society and nature, including issues of environmental justice, transport, gender, animals, food and bodies.

Aims:

1. to critically examine societal attitudes to issues such as: the natural world; wild and domestic animals; environmental resources; and the cultivation of nature, including the human body

2. to articulate the complex interaction between people and nature, and the extent to which modes of social production and consumption are implicated in contemporary environmental crises

3. to outline the various ways in which historical and contemporary social theory has conceptualised environment

4. to explore the development of environmentalism as political ideology

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the unit, students will be able to:

A. critically evaluate societal attitudes and activities in relation to a variety of natural resources

B. respond critically to a variety of uses of the concept of environment in both general and specific contexts

C. demonstrate an understanding of the extent to which social attitudes to nature and human nature are fundamentally political

D. show familiarity with the different ways in which social theories have conceptualised the concept of environment(s)

  • This unit is available both to level I and level H students. The Learning Outcomes are appropriate for both levels of study but, in line with the description of different levels in the programme specifications, a higher level of subject-specific and critical-analytical skills are expected of level H students. Students at different levels are assessed through different means (see C11).

Teaching Information

1 lecture and 1 seminar per week.

Assessment Information

Formative:

  • 1500 word essay or equivalent (for both level I and level H)

Summative:

  • Level I: 3000 word essay
  • Level H: 2 hour unseen examination or 3000 word essay (level H)

The essay and exam articulate to Aims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5., and to Outcomes A., B, C, D, E Please see the syllabus for a more detailed exposition.

Reading and References

  • Dickens, P. (2004) Changing our environment: changing ourselves Cambridge: Polity press
  • Franklin, A. (2002) Nature and Social Theory London: Sage
  • Franklin, A. (1999) Animals and Modern Cultures London: Sage
  • Hannigan, J. ( 1995) Environmental Sociology: a social constructionist perspective
  • Milton, K. (1996) Environmentalism and cultural theory: exploring the role of anthropology in environmental discourse. London: Routledge.
  • Oakley, A. (2002) Gender on Planet Earth Cambridge: Polity

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