SUM4510 – So you want to be critical? A journey through the academic tradition of critique
Schedule, syllabus and examination date
Course content
Very few of us, whether students or seasoned academics, would want to be accused of being uncritical. But what exactly does it mean to be critical?
This course takes a tour through the academic tradition of critique in the social sciences and humanities to understand some of its aims, methods, ethics and implications. We will touch upon some of the most influential approaches that have shaped this tradition. With this knowledge, we will examine how critique today has taken new forms and been directed at new objects.
We will also explore how critique has faced challenges, such as when Bruno Latour famously claimed it had ‘run out of steam’. In the wake of such challenges, some have called for abandoning critique, while others suggest retooling it. The course will consider these calls, examining various forms of critique and engagement that include notions of care, hope, compromise, impurity, and uncertainty.
Learning outcome
By taking this course, you will?
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grasp the influential, foundational approaches to critique
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be able to analyse the varied forms of contemporary critique today
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have the knowledge to assess the challenges to critique and evaluate the alternatives
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?be able to identify the aims, values, methods and implications of critique and its alternatives
Admission to the course
You may apply to be a guest student at SUM. Please follow these instructions.
Formal prerequisite knowledge
A bachelors degree.
Recommended previous knowledge
Specialization equivalent to at least 80 ECTS within subjects from the humanities or social sciences, sustainable development, or equivalent relevant subjects.
Teaching
This is a two-week intensive course with classes three days a week.
Teaching will involve a combination of lectures and class discussions, sometimes in smaller groups. The lectures and class discussions will depend not only on your active participation in class but also on your committed reading of the assigned texts outside it.
Attendance in lectures and seminars is mandatory, and active participation in class is both expected and encouraged. You must have an attendance of 80% to be eligible to take the exam. ?
Examination
4-hour school exam
Language of examination
The examination text is given in English, and you submit your response in English.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
Resit an examination
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.