Every object in a store has a story behind it. When
you choose to buy a t-shirt with a logo on it, a name-brand pair of
sneakers, or even a latte from a coffee shop chain, how influenced are
you by the story the manufacturer has built around the product they are
selling? Increasingly, manufacturers of consumer goods differentiate
their products not by their quality, but by branding products with
social values, ideas, and even a personality. Concurrent with this shift
in product branding is a shift to a more global economy where many of
the goods and services we consume are not produced locally. A t-shirt
manufactured in the Philippines also has a story to tell about who
bought it and why, who made it, under what conditions they made it, and
why the manufacturer shifted production from one country to another.
Governments and corporations currently put a great
deal of faith in a consumer-oriented free global market to provide a
better standard of living worldwide. We in the developed world are
increasingly defined as consumers whose primary role is to purchase the
goods available to us. But does this world view, which privileges
consumerism, raise the quality of living in our own country, as well as
that in developing countries? Do efforts to reduce trade barriers and
subsidies help nations, particularly developing ones, enter the global
market? Is globalization’s emphasis on business and privatization, as
opposed to government and publicly-owned services and utilities, the
answer to helping all nations develop healthy economies and reduce the
poverty levels within their borders? Finally, how does this world view
address the grave environmental issues facing the entire planet?
In this course, students will explore diverging world
views of global economic development, first by understanding their
relationship to consumer culture and then applying this to readings that
discuss the origins of the global economy and the challenges facing it.
To help them understand these issues, students will participate in a
variety of investigations into their favourite (and not so favourite)
products, services and retailers and uncover the impact they have on
their lives and on the world.
Students who successfully complete this course will:
Understand the history of consumer-product branding
and identify competing views of the influence of consumer media
messages on human identity and society.
Understand the cultural, political, and economic
factors that surrounded the shift to a global economy and the
globalization world view, with an emphasis on the challenges to the
Canadian economy and shifts in Canadian domestic and foreign policy
(NAFTA, participation in WTO, G8).
Understand, explain, and compare the competing
world views surrounding globalization, including those of
individuals, local communities, governments, unions, NGOs, and the
business community.
Understand the local and global impact of competing
views of globalization and consumer culture.
Apply these different concepts to examples
presented in class and research conducted outside of class.
There will be discussions based on the readings,
documentaries viewed, and research assignments, as well as group work,
workshops, and interactive lectures. Students will be
expected to bring their own research to discussions, gathering data from
a wide range of players (consumers, workers, and business owners) to
supplement and personalize the learning experience.
Course manual, available at the bookstore, as well as
material assigned in class available from the course web page. To
supplement these readings, documentaries and other resources (newspaper
and magazine articles, independent studies, annual reports, community,
union and government documents, etc.) will be provided.
Students are expected to be in class on time with the
required material. If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to
catch up with the rest of the group and to enquire about changes in
assignments or tests’ format or schedule.
Any form of cheating or plagiarism will result in a
grade of zero on the test or assignment, and a letter from the teacher
will be placed in your file. A repeated offence may lead to even more
serious consequences. Please consult The Vanier Student Writing Guide,
the Vanier College Catalogue, the Student Handbook and
your teacher for more information.
Note that I will be following the college policies on
academic complaints (7210-8), cheating (7220-12) and religious holy days
(7210-20).
In this introductory class, students will become
familiar with the course content and requirements for the course. To
help begin to understand the kinds of issues we'll be discussing, the
example of Starbuck's will be presented to help tease out the
relationship between consumerism and globalization.
This class will introduce students to the fundamental
themes, issues, and players involved in the globalization debate.
Beginning with a discussion around the assigned readings (below),
students will then view the documentary Black Gold, which traces
the efforts of a coffee-growing farmer's cooperative to gain access to
the lucrative and profitable coffee market.
Rothenberg, Laurence E, Globalization 101: The
Three Tensions of Globalization, American Forum for Global
Education. http://www.globaled.org/issues/176.pdf
What are some of the factors that have helped to
create a more globalized economy?
What does Rothenberg identify as the three tensions
of globalization?
What do you think about Rothenberg's statement,
"[N]o one forces an individual French person to watch an
American film or television show or buy a CD by an American
recording artist. French consumers buy those products because they
choose to do so for reasons of personal preference". Does
Canada have laws and policies that protect Canadian culture from the
influx of American culture? Can preservation of local culture go too
far? Can you think of a recent event that occurred in a small town
in Quebec that some considered to be intolerant of other cultures?
Who is Adam Smith and what is meant by the
"invisible hand"? Research this question and see what
information you can find.
Making cheaper generic drugs available to Africans
suffering from AIDS/HIV is an important component of helping Africa
achieve prosperity. What are the issues surrounding making these
generic drugs widely available?
What is the Doha development round? Research this
and see what you can find out.
What do you think of Seabrook's statement:
Poverty will not be eliminated for the very
reason that the global developmental paradigm gives priority to the
market over government, and even to the market over society.
Governments everywhere have more or less voluntarily withdrawn from
responsibility for distributive justice; and since free markets
distribute their rewards according to their own promiscuous and
capricious laws, this ensures that wealth flows unevenly.
Globalization currently privileges free markets,
but not free immigration (the ability for people to move around the
world as they like). What do you think of this?
What do you think of celebrities and corporate
entrepreneurs who pledge money and time towards social justice
causes? What does that mean in terms of the "agency"
developing nations exercise in pulling themselves out of poverty.
What do we mean by agency?
What are some examples of globalization creating
greater income gaps in developing nations? What role can education
play in reducing income gaps in developing countries?
What do you think of David Suzuki's conclusion to
his article:
When consumption becomes the very reason
economies exist, we never ask "how much is enough,"
"why do we need all this stuff," and "are we any
happier?" Our personal consumer choices have ecological, social
and spiritual consequences. It is time to re-examine some of our
deeply held notions that underlie our lifestyles.
In this class, students will explore the current
advertising and sales practices and discover the changes to these
practices over the past decade. Students will also choose the
product, service or retailer they will be researching for their first short
essay. To assist students with this assignment, the teacher will present her
research on her chosen consumer object.
Write a 500-800 word essay about your chosen product,
service, or retailer. Your essay should describe the product from its
origins to its delivery to the consumer. Your essay must include the
following information:
History of the product, service, or retailer, including:
How and why the product was conceived and put to
market
Its sales history (highlights)
Its advertising and branding history (highlights)
Analysis of how it is branded and advertised today (try
to analyze the most current campaign)
How and where it is manufactured, and what issues or
controversies exist surrounding its manufacture. Make sure to research
global economic, labour, political cultural, health and environmental issues
Any other issues or controversies you come across in
your research
It is important that your essays present a balanced point
of view in your essay. In other words, you must present all sides of your
product, service, or retailer's "story". You can, of course,
conclude with your own opinion.
Make sure to cite all your sources, using the MLA style
guide. See http://www.vaniercollege.qc.ca/litc/styleguides.html
for more information. Note that any plagiarism will result in a grade of
zero. Assignments must be submitted on time.
Richer but less happy, we are now a pill-popping
people, The Guardian, February 11, 2008, http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/feb/11/health.health?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront
Prior to this
lesson, students will attend a session in Vanier's library, lead by library
staff member Nina Arabian, that will introduce them to the research
tools and references available. Students will also be able to start their
research for their first assignment (short essay).
The teacher will
also provide some guidance regarding the research topics students chose for
thier first assignment.
In this class, students will wrestle with the impact of
advertising on their lives and explore how they are and are not influenced
by consumer culture. Based on additional short readings provided in class,
students will break out into groups to debate the influence of branding in
their lives and if it's necessary--or even possible--to find their own
voice.
In this lesson, students will learn more about the impact
the manufacture of consumer goods in developing nations has on the people
of those nations. This lesson will focus closely on the example of
China, the world's fastest growing economy
Required Reading
Rivoli, Pietra, The Travels of a T-Shirt in the
Global Economy, Wiley, 2005, (Chapter 6) -- available in course
manual
This is a closed book exam, although you may bring images
to help you answer Question 2. I reserve the right to examine these images and
determine whether you can use them. If you miss the test, I will not permit
you to write a makeup test unless you get permission from me prior to the
test. I reserve the right to accept or reject as valid the reason provided for
missing the test. The makeup test will be administered on the same day as the
test scheduled for April 21.
Question 1 (250-400 words)
What do we mean by globalization? What technological innovations have
contributed to the global economy? What global government policies have
contributed to the globalized (free market) economy? What effects might
globalization have on the environment? What effects has globalization had on
wage equality in the developing world? Based on what you have learned so
far, is a free-market based in expanding consumerism the answer to
increasing the prosperity (health, education, shelter, political freedom)
and multicultural exchange in the world? Back up your answer with two or
more of your own examples, and/or examples provided in class.
Question 2 (250-400 words)
Naomi Klein asserts that major corporations no longer produce products, but
images of their brand. What does Klein mean by “branding”? How is “branding”
different from the advertising of products that began at the turn of the
1900s? Citing examples from your own research and examples presented in
class, provide three or more examples of how companies brand their products
and market them. Describe the branding message contained in each example.
How has branding come to infiltrate areas that were normally controlled by
the government (education, cultural events, for example). Why is this
occurring?
Question 3 (250-400 words)
Viral marketing, guerrilla marketing, primal research, cool hunting, and
web-based media (such as Facebook and Google) are some of the many ways
marketers attempt to understand, connect and communicate with consumers.
Choose three of these marketing tactics and describe each of them, using an
example for each. Explain why they exist and how they work. Explain the pros
and cons of each tactic and whether they may be any ethical implications in
their use.
Bonus Question (250-400 words)
Based on your viewing of Black Gold and the examples we viewed of Starbuck’s
interaction with Ethiopian farmers, do you believe that a more globalized
(free-market) economy enables the coffee growers of Ethiopia to connect with
consumers in developed nations like Canada, Great Britain, and the United
States? Does it help them develop the prosperity they need to provide basic
building blocks of success (shelter, health, education). Back up your answer
with examples from the film, class examples, and/or from your own
research.
Week 8|9: March 30 -- The Origins of the Global Economy
In this class, students explore the origins of the debate in
the current global economy, that of the relationship between government and the
free market (business). The lesson will concentrate on how theorists see those
most affected by economic uncertainty -- the average working person.
*Goldstein, Natalie, Globalization and Free Trade,
Chapter 1: Introduction, pgs. 3-11 and 16-21 (in course manual Part I)
Roberts, J. Timmons and Bellone Hite, Amy, The
Globalization Development Reader, Introduction (in course manual Part
II) -- concentrate on those sections dealing with Karl Marx. You may
ignore the sections on Weber and other theorists.
*Levine, David P., Wealth and Freedom, The place of the
economy, (in course manual Part II)
Goldstein provides a definition of "free trade".
What is it? Does she think it ever existed or exists now?
How does Goldstein define globalization?
Goldstein provides a very brief history of the historical
periods leading to the publication of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations. What
are they and how did these systems accumulate wealth for the nations of the
time?
What was Smith's opinion of mercantilism?
Summarize Goldstein's explanation of Smith's notion of
laissez-faire? How are the "invisible hand" and "enlightened
self-interest" related to the concept of laissez-faire?
What is Ricardo's "iron law of wages"?
What is meant by "comparative advantage"?
What example does Goldstein provide of Britain's first
application of laissez-faire principles?
What was "The Great Depression"?
What situation did Germany face after World War I?
What does Goldstein say is the "bedrock" of Keynesian
economics?
What does David P. Levine consider to be some of the major
questions surrounding the debate over the economy?
How does Levine describe the way ancient and modern
cultures were connected to each other economically?
According to Levine, can economic problems be fixed? What
does he mean by his car vs. body analogy?
Levine describes Smith's notion of a laissez-faire economy
(disembedded) by contrasting it to earlier household-based (embedded)
economy. Describe the risks Levine associates with a laissez faire economy.
According to Levine, why have market economies
evolved?
Are you surprised that Levine questions the notion of
wealth and our quest for it?
You may choose who you wish to work with. Your group must
consist of at least 3 people, but no more than 5.
The group presentations will expand and improve upon the
research you did for your first assignment. Since different students worked
on different topics, you will have to negotiate the product, service or
retailer that your group will work on. I recommend the one for which there
is the most information.
Once you have determined your product, service, or
retailer, you must outline the topics you want to deal with. You must submit
the outline to me for discussion and feedback by next class (April 7).
From the outline, you will divide the work up fairly.
Prepare a presentation of no more than 30 minutes, but no
less than 15 minutes.
Depending on the number of groups, presentations may start
as early as April 28. We'll negotiate the presentation order.
Week 10: April 7 -- Theories of the Global Economy Today
In this class, students explore modern interpretations of the
theorists discussed in the previous class.
*Goldstein, Natalie, Globalization and Free Trade,
Chapter 1: Introduction, pgs. 27-40, 63-65 (in course manual Part I)
Held, David and McGrew, Andrew, Globalization/Anti-Globalization,
Chapter 8: The New Politics of Globalization: Mapping Ideals and Theories
(in course manual Part II)
Hoffman, Stanley, Clash of Globalizations (in course
manual Part II)
*Sachs, Jeffrey D., The Antiglobalization Movement (2005)
(in course manual Part II)
Your essay must present all sides of the issue: the
corporation, government, and non-government agencies (such as World Bank, IMF,
UN, Unesco, Doctor's without Borders, etc.).
You must submit an outline and a bibliography by April 21.
This is worth 15% of your total assignment evaluation.
You must include non-web/internet sources.
You must cite all your sources, using the MLA style
guide. See http://www.vaniercollege.qc.ca/litc/styleguides.html
for more information. Failure to do so will be considered plagiarism and will result in a grade of
zero.
No late assignments will be accepted.
Supplementary Readings and Viewings (explored on your
own)
Week 11: April 14 -- Group Presentation Preparation
Week 12: April 21 -- Economic Development: Theories and
Players
In this class, students explore the role of the World Bank,
the International Monetary Fund, and the WTO in promoting free trade and
economic cooperation.