Instructor: Beth Krensky
Office Hours: Mon. 2-3, Tues. 2-3, Thurs. 5-6 and by appointment
Office: School of Education, Room 433
Phone: 492-5064
e-mail: krensky@ucsu.colorado.EDU
Course Overview:
The World
The world is beautiful
please don't break
bring peace.
--Jane Santos, age 6,
A Piece of Peace
Purpose and Objectives:
Peace and Conflict Studies is an interdisciplinary field that originated in
the aftermath of World War II and gained momentum after the Vietnam War.
This class will provide an overview of peace studies, including the
theoretical foundations and practical applications of the field. We will
explore: the causes, symptoms, dynamics and costs of conflict from an
interpersonal to global level; the philosophical and theological
foundations of peace-making; the causes, symptoms and dynamics of peace
from an interpersonal to global level; nonviolence; activism; and peace
movements.
This course is intended for students who are interested in issues of peace, justice and conflict resolution in their own lives, in their communities and on a larger global level. This class is a requirement for the Peace and Conflict Studies Certificate.
Service-Learning
This course is designed as a "service-learning" course. This means you
will have the opportunity to augment the course content with experiential
learning through community service related to peace and/or conflict. We
will discuss service-learning as well as the service-learning component of
this class on September 2nd.
The service-learning requirement consists of:
You may "opt out" of the service-learning component, if you wish. The "traditional" track consists of:
Expectations:
Aside from coming prepared to class (having completed all assigned readings
and other assignments for the day), I have a number of expectations for
this class. They are as follows:
Be open-minded: We will be exploring difficult issues from a number of
different perspectives. It is essential that you grapple
with the different perspectives and work to create a space for all
views to be spoken and heard (whether you agree with them or not).
Question assumptions: Critically analyze the readings, your assumptions
and other's views in a constructive way.
Share insights, observations, experiences that pertain to what we are
grappling with: Your input is important and needed. The course will
be more powerful if we hear from everyone.
Stretch boundaries: Think about not only "what is," but "what is possible."
Course Requirements/Grades:
Service-Learning Track:
Attendance and Class Participation: You are expected to be present (both in mind and body) and prepared for this class. I expect that you will have read and thought about the assigned readings. During each class, a different and important topic will be explored through discussion of readings, activities and assignments. Your participation in all of these is essential. 15 points
"Know Your Story" Reflection Paper (1-2 pp.): This paper will be due on 8/28. The paper is about who you are: your influences, experiences, education, your background (ethnic, socio-economic, racial, religious, etc.), and how all of that has influenced your interest in peace studies. 5 points
Service: You are responsible for finding an appropriate placement in a community agency and engaging in 2-3 hours of service each week to help you explore and understand peace and/or conflict. 40 points
Journal: Keep a journal of your experiences and learning process (which I will collect and read a number of times during the semester). 20 points
Final Project or Paper: Using your journal as a starting point, compile a final project or paper that integrates the readings and class discussions, your evolving understanding of peace and conflict studies and your semester's community service work. 20 points
Traditional Track:
Attendance and Class Participation: You are expected to be present (both in mind and body) and prepared for this class. I expect that you will have read and thought about the assigned readings. During each class, a different and important topic will be explored through discussion of readings, activities and assignments. Your participation in all of these is essential. 15 points
"Know Your Story" Reflection Paper (1-2 pp.): This paper will be due on 8/28. The paper is about who you are: your influences, experiences, education, your background (ethnic, socio-economic, racial, religious, etc.), and how all of that has influenced your interest in peace studies. 5 points
Journal: Keep a journal that addresses your evolving understanding of peace and conflict studies based on readings and class discussions. In addition, you will be asked to write journal entries in response to 5 or 6 sets of reading questions (I will collect the journals regularly throughout the semester). 30 points
Mid-Semester Take-Home Essay: Complete a take-home mid-semester essay exam. 20 points
Final Project or Paper: Complete a final project or paper that responds to essay questions as well as integrates the readings and class discussions and your evolving understanding of peace and conflict studies. 30 points
Required Readings:
There are three required books for this course: Fahey, Joseph J. and Richard Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader:
Essential Readings on War, Justice, Non-Violence and World Order.
NJ: Paulist Press
Fischer, Louis (1954/1982). Gandhi: His Life and Message for the World. NY:
Penguin Books.
Fisher, Roger, William Ury and Bruce Patton (1981/1991). Getting to Yes:
Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. NY: Penguin Books.
There is one optional book:
Lynd, Staughton and Alice Lynd (Eds.) (1995). Nonviolence in America: A
Documentary History. NY: Orbis Books.
Additionally, there are photocopied readings on reserve at Norlin Library.
Weekly Schedule and Readings
Topic Readings
Course Introduction and Overview
1 8/26 Introduction to the course:
Overview and expectations
2 8/28 Overview of Peace and Conflict Studies
and "Know your story": Who are you?
How do you see the world? How does your
orientation inform your interest in peace
and conflict studies?
Due: "Know you story" reflection paper
Service-Learning
3 9/2 Service-Learning, Peace and Justice:
Overview of service-learning and service Dass and Gorman, Who's Helping (18-49)
component of this class Maybach, Investigating Urban Community
A Wingspread Special Report (hand-out) Needs (224-235)
Peace and the Individual
4 9/4 Interpersonal Conflict and Conflict Resolution: Fisher and Ury, Getting to Yes (xvii-94)
Conflict analysis, conflict styles, and
negotiation and mediation
5 9/9 Interpersonal Conflict and Conflict Res. (cont.) Fisher and Ury, Getting to Yes (95-148)
Deadline for choosing "Traditional" or
"Service-Learning" track
6 9/11 Interpersonal Conflict and Conflict Resolution
In-Class Film: The Color of Fear
7 9/16 Justice and Human Rights
United Nations General Assembly,
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(333-338) in Fahey and Armstrong
Amnesty International (159-162) In Fahey
and Armstrong
Barash, Human Rights (463-492)
8 9/18 Service Reflection
Due: Service-Learning placement and contract
Violence-Peace Continuum
9 9/23 Violence
Galtung, Violence and Peace (9-14)
Fanon, Concerning Violence (35-106)
War: Causes and Symptoms
10 9/25 War and Conflict
Fahey, Conscience and War (80-85) In
Fahey and Armstrong (F & A)
Howard, The Causes of War (20-32) F & A
Twain, The War Poem (454) InF & A
11 9/30 Human Nature, Individual
Aggression and War
Seville Statement on Violence (hand-out)
Glossop, Individual Human Aggression and
War (51-60)
12 10/2 Hiroshima
Guest Lecturer: Dr. Robin Crews Hersey, A Noiseless Flash (1-23)
13 10/7 Militarism and Nationalism
Barash, The Group Level:
Nationalism (175-196)
14 10/9 Other Causes and Symptoms:
Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, Arms Races The Defense Monitor, Militarism in
Suess, The Butter Battle Book (in-class) America (61-75) In F & A
Costs and Consequences of Violence and War 15 10/14 Costs and Consequences of Violence and War Menchu, Chap. XXIV (172-182)
16 10/16 Service Reflection
17 10/21 Children: War and Violence
In-Class Film: If the Mango Tree Could Speak Jones and Newman, excerpts from Our
America (29-36, 199-200)
Jigsaw: various youth-created works
Origins of Peace-Making
18 10/23 Philosophical Foundations
Thoreau, Civil Disobedience (21-37), In
Lynd and Lynd
Thucydides, A Debt of Generosity (457), In
Fahey and Armstrong
19 10/28 Philosophical Foundations: Feminism
Brock-Utne, Feminist Perspectives on
Peace (144-150)
Sylvester, Patriarchy, Peace and Women
Warriors (33-47) In F & A
20 10/30 Theological Foundations
Jigsaw (Choose 1 set of readings):
Buddhism:
Hanh, Ahisma: The Path of Harmlessness (65-71)
Hanh, Working for Peace (61-64)
Dhammapada, The Brahmin Buddha (461) In F & A
or Catholicism / Liberation Theology
Berryman, Birth Pangs: The Emergence of Liberation Theology
(9-28)
or Christianity
Micah 4:1-4, Swords into Plowshares (466) In F & A
Luke 1:46-53, He Has Put Down the Mighty...(469) In F & A
Luke 4:23-25, The Spirit of the Lord...(470) In F & A
Matthew 4:23-5:10, Blessed are the Poor (471) In F & A
Tolstoy, excerpt from My Religion (460) In F & A
King, On Being a Good Neighbor (26-35)
or Hinduism
Puligandla, The Hindu Quest for Peace (139-146)
or Islam
Hassan, The Islamic View of Peace (96-106)
or Judaism
Grob, Pursuing Peace: Shalom in the Jewish Tradition (30-43)
Nonviolence
21 11/4 Nonviolence:
Overview and Non-Principled Nonviolence Wehr, Commentary: Toward a History of
Nonviolence (82-91)
Sharp, The Techniques of Nonviolent
Action (223-229) In F & A
Sharp, 198 Methods of Nonviolent Action
(473-479) In F & A
22 11/6 Pacifism and Principled Nonviolence:
Mohandas K. Gandhi Fischer, Gandhi: His Life and message for
In-Class Film: Gandhi the World (7-49)
23 11/11 Pacifism and Principled Nonviolence
In-Class Film: Gandhi (cont.) Fischer, Gandhi: His Life and message for
the World (50-102)
24 11/13 Pacifism and Principled Nonviolence
Fischer, Gandhi: His Life and message for
the World (102-148)
25 11/18 Pacifism and Principled Nonviolence
Fischer, Gandhi: His Life and message for
the World (148-189)
26 11/20 Pacifism and Principled Nonviolence
King, Letter from Birmingham Jail (113-
128) In F & A
27 11/25 Pacifism and Principled Nonviolence
King, Pilgrimage Toward Nonviol. (90-107)
hooks, Love as the Practice of Freedom
(243-250)
28 11/27 No Class (Thanksgiving Holiday)
Envisioning
29 12/2 The Arts, Action and Social Justice
Morales, The Importance of Being Artist
(16-24)
Anzaldua, La conciencia de la mestiza:
Towards a New Consciousness (76-91)
30 12/4 Wrap-up:
Review of course content
31 12/9 Reflection:
Reflection and evaluation of the semester
Course evaluations (FCQs)
Final: Monday, Dec. 15 (no final exam)
All papers and final projects due by 5 p.m. in my office (Educ. 433).
Bibliography
Amnesty International. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 159-162).
Anzaldua, Gloria (1987). La conciencia de la mestiza: Towards a New Consciousness. In Borderlands / La Frontera. (Pp. 76-91). San Francisco: Aunt Lute Books.
Barash, David P. (1991). Introduction to Peace Studies. CA: Wadsworth.
Berryman, Phillip (1987). Birth Pangs: The Emergence of Liberation Theology. In Liberation Theology. (Pp. 9-28). Philadelphia; Temple University Press.
Brock-Utne, Birgit (1990). Feminist Perspectives on Peace. In Smoker, Paul, Ruth Davies and Barbara Munske (Eds.) (1990). A Reader in Peace Studies. (Pp. 144-150). NY: Pergamon Press.
Dass, Ram and Paul Gorman (1985). Who's Helping? In How Can I Help? (Pp. 18-49). NY: Alfred A. Knopf.
Defense Reader (1986). Militarism in America. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 61-75).
Fahey, Joseph J. and Richard Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader: Essential Readings on War, Justice, Non-Violence and World Order. NJ: Paulist Press.
Fahey, Joseph J. Conscience and War. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 80-85).
Fanon, Frantz (1963). Concerning Violence In The Wretched of the Earth. NY: Grove Press (Pp.35-106).
Fischer, Louis (1954/1982). Gandhi: His Life and Message for the World. NY: Penguin Books.
Fisher, Roger, William Ury and Bruce Patton (1981/1991). Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. NY: Penguin Books.
Galtung, Johan (1969). Violence and Peace. In Smoker, Paul, Ruth Davies and Barbara Munske (Eds.) (1990). A Reader in Peace Studies. (Pp. 9-14). NY: Pergamon Press.
Glossop, Ronald J. (1994). Individual Human Aggression and War. In Confronting War: An Examination of Humanity's Most Pressing Problem, Third Edition. (Pp. 51-60). North Carolina: McFarland & Company.
Grob, Leonard (1988). Pursuing Peace: Shalom in the Jewish Tradition. In Gordon, Haim and Leonard Grob (Eds.) (1988). Education for Peace: Testimonies for World Religions. (Pp. 30-43). NY: Orbis Books.
Hanh, Thich Nhat (1993). Ahisma: The Path of Harmlessness. In Love in Action: Writings on Nonviolent Social Change. (Pp. 65-71). CA: Parallax Press.
Hanh, Thich Nhat (1987). Working for Peace. In Being Peace. (Pp. 61-64). CA: Parallax Press.
Hassan, Riffat (1988). The Islamic View of Peace. In Gordon, Haim and Leonard Grob (Eds.) (1988). Education for Peace: Testimonies for World Religions. (Pp. 96-106). NY: Orbis Books.
Hersey, John (1946). A Noiseless Flash. In Hiroshima. (Pp. 1-23). NY: Bantam.
Honnet, Ellen Porter and Susan J. Paulsen (1989). A Wingspread Special Report: Principles of Good Practice for Combining Service and Learning. Wisconsin: The Johnson Foundation.
hooks, bell. (1994). Love as the Practice of Freedom. In Outlaw Culture: Resisting Representations. (Pp. 243-250). NY: Routledge.
Howard, Michael. The Causes of War. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 20-32).
Jones, LeAlan and Lloyd Newman (1997). Our America: Life on the South Side of Chicago. NY: Scribner.
King, Martin Luther, Jr. (1963/1981) On Being a Good Neighbor. In Strength to Love. (Pp. 26-35). Philadelphia: Fortress.
King, Martin Luther, Jr. (1963). Letter from Birmingham Jail. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 113-128).
King, Martin Luther, Jr. (1958/1986). Pilgrimage to Nonviolence. In Stride Toward Freedom. (Pp. 90-107). San Francisco: Harper and Row.
Lynd, Staughton and Alice Lynd (Eds.) (1995). Nonviolence in America: A Documentary History. NY: Orbis.
Maybach, Carol Wiechman (1996). Investigating Urban Community Needs: Service Learning From a Social Justice Perspective. In Education and Urban Society, Vol. 28, No. 2, Feb. 1996, 224-236.
Menchu, Rigoberta (1983). The Torture and Death of Her Little Brother, Burnt Alive in Front of Members of Their Families and the Community. In I, Rigoberta Menchu. (Pp. 172-182). NY: Verso.
Morales, Ricardo Levins (1990). The Importance of Being Artist. In O'Brien, Mark and Craig Little (Eds.) (1990). Reimaging America: The Arts of Social Change. (Pp. 16-24). Philadelphia: New Society Publishers.
Puligandla, Ramakrishna (1988). The Hindu Quest for Peace. In Gordon, Haim and Leonard Grob (Eds.) (1988). Education for Peace: Testimonies for World Religions. (Pp. 139-145). NY: Orbis Books.
Seville Statement on Violence (1986). In Smoker, Paul, Ruth Davies and Barbara Munske (Eds.) (1990). A Reader in Peace Studies. (Pp. 221-3). NY: Pergamon Press.
Sharp, Gene (1970). The Techniques of Nonviolent Action. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 223-229).
Sharp, Gene (1973). 198 Methods of Nonviolent Action. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 473-479).
Sylvester, Christine (1992). Patriarchy, Peace and Women Warriors. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 33-47).
Thoreau, Henry D. (1866). Civil Disobedience. In Lynd, Staughton and Alice Lynd (Eds.) (1995). Nonviolence in America: A Documentary History. (Pp. 21-37). NY: Orbis Books.
Thucydides, A Debt of Generosity. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (P. 457).
United Nations General Assembly (1948). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In Fahey and Armstrong (Eds.) (1992). A Peace Reader. (Pp. 333-338).
Wehr, Paul (1995). Commentary: Toward a History of Nonviolence. In Peace &
Change, Vol. 20, No. 1, January 1995, 82-93.