Environmental Sociology - American Sociological Association

We All Live Downstream
Wilderness: The Last Stand
Witness to the Future: A Call for Environmental Action
This list of films includes those that are scheduled to be shown as a part of the Soc/ES 221 film series and
those that are merely recommended. See the course schedule below for specifics.
Course Schedule:
Week 1
Day 1, Jan. 21 – Introductions
Day 2, Jan. 23 – Environmental Sociology
Merchant, Carolyn. 1992. “The Global Ecological Crisis.” Ch. 1 in Radical Ecology. The Search
for a Livable World. New York: Routledge. Pp. 17-40.
Dunlap, Riley E. 1997. “The Evolution of Environmental Sociology: A Brief History and
Assessment of the American Experience.” Ch. 1 in The International handbook of
Environmental Sociology. Eds. M. Redclift and G. Woodgate. Cheltenham: Edward
Elgar. Pp. 21-39.
Discussion: Contacting a Community Partner
Due: A one paragraph statement on the environmental problem or issue you would like to
make the basis of your service learning project.
Week 2
Day 3, Jan. 28 – Environmental Realism vs. Social Constructionism
Demeritt, David. 2001. “Being Constructive about Nature.” Ch. 2 in Social Nature: Theory,
Practice, and Politics. Eds. N. Castree and B. Braun. Malden: Blackwell. Pp. 22-40.
Redclift, Michael and Graham Woodgate. 1997. “Sustainability and Social Construction.” Ch. 3
In The International handbook of Environmental Sociology. Eds. M. Redclift and G.
Woodgate. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Pp. 55-70.
Proctor, James D. 2001. “Solid Rock and Shifting Sands: The Moral Paradox of Saving a Socially
Constructed Nature.” Ch. 12 in Social Nature: Theory, Practice, and Politics. Eds. N.
Castree and B. Braun. Malden: Blackwell. Pp. 225-40.
Due: Brief covering Readings for Days 3 and 4
Day 4, Jan 30 – Environmental Sociology and Critical Theory
Dickens, Peter. 1997. “Beyond Sociology: Marxism and the Environment.” Ch. 12 in The
International handbook of Environmental Sociology. Eds. M. Redclift and G. Woodgate.
Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Pp. 179-94.
Horkheimer, Max and Theodor Adorno. 1999. “The Concept of the Enlightenment.” Ch. 2
Ecology: Key Concepts in Critical Theory. Ed. C. Merchant. New York: Humanity
Books. Pp. 44-50.
Leiss, William. 1999. “The Domination of Nature.” Ch. 4 in Ecology: Key Concepts in Critical
Theory. Ed. C. Merchant. New York: Humanity Books. Pp. 55-64.
Eckersley, Robyn. 1999. “The Failed Promise of Critical Theory.” Ch. 5 in Ecology: Key
Concepts in Critical Theory. Ed. C. Merchant. New York: Humanity Books. Pp 65-77.
Due: Oral progress report on locating a community partner, defining a common problem
Week 3
Day 5 & 6, Feb. 4 & 6 – Political Ecology
Foster, John Bellamy. 1994. The Vulnerable Planet. A Short Economic History of the
Environment. New York: Monthly Review Press. Pp. 11-142.
Films: Wilderness: The Last Stand
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