Author: Christian Lotz

General information

Instructor

Here is more information about Prof. Lotz

Class Meetings

Days: M/W
Time: 10:20pm-12:10pm
Place: Olds Hall 111

Office

Hours: Drop-In hours for undergraduate and graduate students: M, 12:10-3pm (South Kedzie 503); W after class, and online by apt.; note that there won’t be office hours on days on which I am out of town (check syllabus)
Phone: 517.355.4490 [dept.])
Office: 503 South Kedzie Hall

Other Contact

E-mail: lotz@msu.edu
Webpage: http://christianlotz.info

Box

You will find my box in the front office of the philosophy department, SK 503

Schedule

Section I: Introduction

Aug 26, Introduction: Capitalism as a Culture

Aug 28, Introduction: Capitalism as a Culture

Section II: Classics I – Max Weber

Sep 2, Labor Day
No class

Sep 4, The Spirit of Capitalism
Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, author’s introduction & chapter 1 & 2

Sep 9, No Class
ProfLotz is out of town

Sep 11, No Class
ProfLotz is out of town

Sep 16, Protestantism
Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, chapter 3

Sep 18, Asceticism
Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, chapter 3 & 4.A

Sep 23, Asceticism
Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, chapter 4.A & 5

Section III: Classics II – Karl Marx

“Capital is the all-dominating economic power of bourgeois society. It must form the starting-point as well as the finishing point” (Marx)

Sep 25, How to Think about Society I: Social Relations
Karl Marx: Selected Writings, 83-103

Sep 30, How to Think about Society II: Alienation
Karl Marx: Selected Writings, 83-103

Oct 2, How to Think about Society III: Materialism
Karl Marx: Selected Writings, 175-195

Oct 7, no class
ProfLotz is out of town

Oct 9, no class
ProfLotz is sick

Oct 14, How to Think about Society III: Materialism
Karl Marx: Selected Writings, 175-195

Oct 16, How to Think about Society IV: Globalization
Karl Marx: Selected Writings, 245-261

Oct 21, No Class
Break Day

Oct 23, No Class
Prof. Lotz is out of town

Oct 28, How to Think about Society V: Accumulation & Violence
Karl Marx, Capital, 873-913

Oct 30, Exam
Exam I: Marx and Weber

Section IV: Contemporary Accumulation

“The bourgeoisie cannot exist without constantly revolutionizing the instruments of production, and thereby the relations of production, and with them the whole relations of society.” (Karl Marx)

Nov 4, Negative Market Externalities
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, pp. 1-12, 36-41, 127-133

Nov 6, Consumption
Robbins, Constructing the Consumer (The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 1)

Nov 11, Extractivism
Sassen, Expulsions, chapter 2 (The New Global Market for Land)

Nov 13, Exam
Exam II: Capital Accumulation

Section V: Capitalism & Globalization: A Contemporary Perspective

Nov 18, Liberal Meritocratic Capitalism
Milanovic, Capitalism Alone. The Future of the System That Rules the World, chapter 1&2

Nov 20, Political Capitalism
Milanovic, Capitalism Alone. The Future of the System That Rules the World, chapter 3

Nov 25, The Interaction of Capitalism and Globalization
Milanovic, Capitalism Alone. The Future of the System That Rules the World, chapter 4

Nov 27, no class
Thanksgiving

Dec 2, The Future of Global Capitalism
Milanovic, Capitalism Alone. The Future of the System That Rules the World, chapter 5

Dec 4, Exam
Exam III: Milanovic

Course Description

In this course we will examine our world in a global perspective by critically analyzing our current world as a specifically capitalist world. I will help you to think more clearly about what capitalism consists of. This semester I will less focus on contemporary issues, such as environmental degradation, extractivism, the cheapening of lives, etc., rather, I will focus on theory and a theoretical perspective. Be prepared for challenging reading assignments! One portion of this class will be devoted reading the two main classic authors in this area, namely, Max Weber and Karl Marx; the other portion will be devoted to two contemporary authors, Branko Milanović and Kohei Seito.

Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal-arts cliché about “teaching you how to think” is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: “Learning how to think” really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed. Think of the old cliché about “the mind being an excellent servant but a terrible master.” This, like many clichés, so lame and unexciting on the surface, actually expresses a great and terrible truth. It is not the least bit coincidental that adults who commit suicide with firearms almost always shoot themselves in the head. And the truth is that most of these suicides are actually dead long before they pull the trigger. And I submit that this is what the real, no-bull- value of your liberal-arts education is supposed to be about: How to keep from going through your comfortable, prosperous, respectable adult life dead, unconscious, a slave to your head and to your natural default-setting of being uniquely, completely, imperially alone, day in and day out. (David Foster Wallace, This is Water)

IAH Course Goals

The mission of Integrative Studies in the Arts and Humanities is to help students become more familiar with ways of knowing in the arts and humanities and to be more knowledgeable and capable in a range of intellectual and expressive abilities.  IAH courses encourage students to engage critically with their own society, history, and culture(s); they also encourage students to learn more about the history and culture of other societies.  They focus on key ideas and issues in human experience; encourage appreciation of the roles of knowledge and values in shaping and understanding human behavior; emphasize the responsibilities and opportunities of democratic citizenship; highlight the value of the creative arts of literature, theater, music, and arts; and alert us to important issues that occur among peoples in an increasingly interconnected, interdependent world. The goals of IAH courses are to assist students to

• Cultivate habits of inquiry and develop investigative strategies from arts and humanities perspectives;
• Explore social, cultural, and artistic expressions and contexts;
• Act as culturally aware and ethically responsible citizens in local and global communities.
• Critically assess, produce, and communicate knowledge in a variety of media for a range of audiences; and
• Recognize and understand the value of diversity and the significance of interconnectedness in the classroom and beyond.

IAH Course Goals Addressed in this Course

• Develop a range of intellectual abilities, including critical thinking, logical argument, appropriate uses of evidence and interpretation of varied kinds of information. (quantitative, qualitative, text, image)
• Become more knowledgeable about other times, places, and cultures as well as key ideas and issues in human experience.
• Appreciate the role of knowledge, and of values and ethics in understanding human behavior and solving social problems.

Diversity Requirement (D)

This course is designated as a Diversity (D) course and has been approved toward meeting the University Diversity Requirement. Courses designated as “D” emphasize intercultural and diversity issues, ideas, and perspectives unconnected to geography or nation. The “D” designates a connection between intercultural and diversity topics that emphasizes the intersectionality of diverse identities and critical approaches to dominant narratives, institutions, and practices. Overall, courses with “D” focus on themes and questions that transcend time, space, and location. The learning objectives and outcomes of the course will emphasize this designation and provide a guide for how this course furthers understanding of diversity at MSU and beyond.

Specific Course Goals

This lecture class should students introduce to

• become familiar with basic concepts in Weber and Marx
• become familiar with contemporary voices on capitalism and globalization
• how to think about fundamental aspects of capitalism and globalization
• think more clearly about the role of money and debt
• think more clearly about and understand negative market externalities

Note

Real learning is not properly measured by multiple-choice tests; especially since in the humanities there is no specific content of a sort that may be covered well in standardized examinations, which every student in the humanities should be expected to master. Instead, you will – hopefully – come to recognize that this class is about a general intellectual reflection on our contemporary world that requires concepts and critical reflections. The class deals with your dignity as human beings and with your intellect and reason, which is best expressed in a form of learning that is based on understanding and insight, and not mere learning by heart or letting ChatGPT do stupid work. It is hoped that the class will stimulate the view that intellectual activity (and therefore human reality) has to do with the passion of thinking, and the passion of understanding our world. Intense confrontation with texts is the center of this class. “Information” as something to be consumed is important but secondar y.

Required Texts (Bookstore or Online)

• All readings are available via D2L

Course Organization

The course will be organized such that, ideally, each class period will include [i] “interactive” lecture, [ii] discussion time or [iii] response time. Students will be asked to intensively prepare a certain text or part of a text for the next class period.

Course Requirements

• Daily reading and studying
• Unannounced graded assignments in class, including reading quizzes and group assignments
• Class response sheets (to be submitted on the day of class to which you respond)
• In-class exams
• Final take-home assignment

Note

The class and my lectures are solely based on the texts selected for class and require a thorough study and preparation of the material. I will primarily lecture on the readings, which will help you to more fully understand the texts. Therefore it is not sufficient for students to come to class without having prepared the texts. And indeed, in the exams you have to demonstrate whether you have appropriately prepared the readings selected for each lecture.

Note

Every academic misconduct, such as plagiarism or the use of AI for writing papers, will – without exception – lead to a failing grade in class. Check the Ombudsman’s page (see also note below on plagiarism): https://www.msu.edu/~ombud/

Note on Attendance

I hope and strongly encourage that students attend all lectures. However, I will not require attendance, as I think that college students should manage their own class attendance decisions. I will not call roll. Hence, it is up to you to come to class or not. However, if you do not come to class on a regular basis and participate in class, it is very difficult for you to achieve a good grade in this class, especially since you won’t be able to make up assignments in class. If you choose to attend class, please come on time, turn off cell phones and other electronic devices that interfere with your (and others’) concentration, have the reading prepared and be ready to participate. If you are not prepared, do not bother showing up. It is a sign of disrespect to your peers and the instructor to attend class unprepared. If you miss class, it is your responsibility to obtain class notes from a fellow student and to catch up on reading.

General Note

I expect that you come to class having prepared the texts carefully and thoroughly. The reading for the next session, if not clear from the course schedule (below), will be announced at the end of the previous class. “Preparing for class” implies underlining and making excerpts from the text assigned; looking up unfamiliar vocabulary and writing them into a note book (I encourage you to keep a vocabulary booklet for all of your classes). Just reading the text won’t be sufficient. You have to study the material. Some vocabulary might not be sufficiently explained in a regular dictionary (this goes especially for philosophical terms), so it is necessary to consult additional sources, and the MSU Library Website is a great resource for nearly all questions in this regard).

Exams (modified, announced in D2L on 10/3)

There will be three exams. These exams will consist of a set of questions. All questions refer to the readings and our class discussions. If you come to class and are engaged with the material, these exams will be a breeze. If you do not attend class or do not study the material, there is almost no chance that you will receive a good grade for them. The usage of the texts that we used in class and the usage of your class notes is permitted. The usage of any other sources, if detected, will be treated as a serious case of academic misconduct and will lead to a failing grade in class.

Unannounced Assignments

There will be announced and unannounced reading quizzes, homework-assignments, and group assignments. Students who do not attend class (and have no written documentation) will lose all points given for unannounced assignments. Reading quizzes, homework assignments, and group assignments cannot be made up without reasonable excuses (see above).

Class Response Sheets

Every student is asked to submit 6 class response sheets during the semester. You decide when you’d like to turn in a response sheet. Please download the form here. Response sheets must be submitted to D2L by the end of the day of the selected class. Late submissions will not be accepted.

Download response sheet (I will only accept answers that are given on this form)

Response Time

Selected response sheets will be addressed at the beginning of each class. This procedure will help you and me to clarify problems, reflect on topics, and to find answers to questions that came up during last class.

Final Assignment (modified, announced in D2L on 10/3)

There will be a final take-home essay questions assignment. It is due on the day of the final exam via D2L dropbox.

Make-Up Assignments

Students who need to miss the exam or a film day for excusable reasons (medical+MSU related business) must inform me ahead of time, and will be permitted to make up the exam or film assignment. I will only accept written documentation. Note: class response sheet cannot be made up, as you can decide on which days you want to turn one in!

Cell Phone Policy

Please completely remove your cell phones from tables when class begins. Please do not text under the table. Failure to follow this policy will lead to a lower grade (at the digression of the instructor).

Course Evaluation

Assignments

1 final take-home exam	10 points
3 in-class exams	30 points
Misc. assignments, such as unannounced reading and group assignments	22 points
6 class response sheets	48 points
	——–
	100 points

Grading

4.0 (=A)	100 – 93
3.5	92 – 87
3 (=B)	86 – 82
2.5	81 – 77
2 (=C)	76 – 72
1.5	71 – 65
1.0 (=D)	64 – 60
0.0	< 60

GENERIC SYLLABUS (might not be applicable to each class)

Laptop/Cell Phone/Tablet Policy

You are not permitted to use laptops or cell phones in class, unless needed for accommodations. Flat devices, such as tablets, are permitted  if you have purchased the literature required for class electronically. Please do not text under the table. Cell phones should be removed from tables. Failure to follow this policy will lead to unannounced assignments in class or to a lower grade (at the digression of the instructor).

Note on Cell Phones

Your cognitive capacity is significantly reduced when your smartphone is within reach — even if it’s off. That’s the takeaway finding from a new study from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. Please also read this: Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?

Class Attendance

As mentioned above, I do not employ in my classes a class attendance policy. Having said this, you should be aware that class attendance is very important. When engaging in a philosophical and humanistic dialogue it is necessary to be an active and present participant in the ongoing discussion. If you miss class please do not email me asking if you missed anything important. Every class is important. You should get a study buddy for the class; a student in class who will inform you of what you missed. If you miss a class you can come to my office hours or make an appointment to discuss the material, providing you have read the material and you simply want to see if your understanding of the material is on target. Time in office hours will not be used to repeat the class lectures.

Grading Criteria + Paper Writing Tips

Check out this page for grading criteria, example of assignments, etc.

Online Research Sources

Unfortunately, some people think that the internet as such is a reliable source of information. If you decide to use online sources for additional information or your paper then do not just use one of the common internet search engines, such as Google; rather, use reliable academic sources, such as Britannica Online, or the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. The Internet Ecyclopedia of Philosophy isn’t very good, but still acceptable. Check out MSU’s library resources! And, as with other sources, you must cite any online sources to which you refer in your essay.

Writing Center Information

MSU’s writing center offers excellent help on all matters regarding writing and learning. Check the website at http://writing.msu.edu for an overview and hours. For more information, please call 517.432.3610 or send an e-mail to writing@msu.edu.

Grief Absence Policy

I follow MSU’s general grief absence policy, which can be found here.

Integrity of Scholarship and Grades (Plagiarism)

The following statement of University policy addresses principles and procedures to be used in instances of academic dishonesty, violations of professional standards, and falsification of academic or admission records, herein after referred to as academic misconduct. [See General Student Regulation 1.00, Protection of Scholarship and Grades.]

Academic Honesty

Article 2.3.3 of the Academic Freedom Report states that “The student shares with the faculty the responsibility for maintaining the integrity of scholarship, grades, and professional standards.” In addition, the (insert name of unit offering course) adheres to the policies on academic honesty as specified in General Student Regulations 1.0, Protection of Scholarship and Grades; the all-University Policy on Integrity of Scholarship and Grades; and Ordinance 17.00, Examinations. (See Spartan Life: Student Handbook and Resource Guide and/or the MSU Web site: www.msu.edu) Therefore, unless authorized by your instructor, you are expected to complete all course assignments, including homework, lab work, quizzes, tests and exams, without assistance from any source. You are expected to develop original work for this course; therefore, you may not submit course work completed for another course to satisfy the requirements for this course. Students who violate MSU rules may receive a penalty grade, including but not limited to a failing grade on the assignment or in the course. Contact your instructor if you are unsure about the appropriateness of your course work. (See also https://www.msu.edu/~ombud/)

Plagiarism, from the Ombudsman’s page

Plagiarism (from the Latin plagiarius, an abductor, and plagiare, to steal) is defined by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy on Misconduct in Research (take that!) as “ . . . the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results or words without giving appropriate credit.”

Accidental or Unintentional
One may not even know that they are plagiarizing.  It is the student’s responsibility to make certain that they understand the difference between quoting and paraphrasing, as well as the proper way to cite material.

Blatant
Here, students are well aware that they are plagiarizing.  Purposefully using someone else’s ideas or work without proper acknowledgment is plagiarism.  This includes turning in borrowed or bought research papers as one’s own.

Self
Turning in the same term paper (or substantially the same paper) for two courses without getting permission from one’s instructor is plagiarism.

The Spartan Code of Honor

Student leaders have recognized the challenging task of discouraging plagiarism from the
academic community. The Associated Students of Michigan State University (ASMSU) is proud to be launching the Spartan Code of Honor academic pledge, focused on valuing academic integrity and honest work ethics at Michigan State University. The pledge reads as follows:

“As a Spartan, I will strive to uphold values of the highest ethical standard. I will practice honesty in my work, foster honesty in my peers, and take pride in knowing that honor is worth more than grades. I will carry these values beyond my time as a student at Michigan State University, continuing the endeavor to build personal integrity in all that I do.”

The Spartan Code of Honor academic pledge embodies the principles of integrity that every Spartan is required to uphold in their time as a student, and beyond. The academic pledge was crafted with inspiration of existing individual college honor codes, establishing an overarching statement for the entire university. It was formally adopted by ASMSU on March 3, 2016, endorsed by Academic Governance on March 22, 2016, and recognized by the Provost, President, and Board of Trustees on April 15, 2016.

TurnItIn Policy

Consistent with MSU’s efforts to enhance student learning, foster honesty, and maintain integrity in our academic processes, instructors may use a tool in D2L called Turnitin OriginalityCheck to compare a student’s work with multiple sources. The tool compares each student’s work with an extensive database of prior publications and papers, providing links to possible matches and a “similarity score.” The tool does not determine whether plagiarism has occurred or not. Instead, the instructor must make a complete assessment and judge the originality of the student’s work. All submissions to this course may be checked using this tool. Students should submit assignments to be screened by OriginalityCheck without identifying information included in the assignment (e.g., the student’s name, PID, or NetID); the system will automatically show identifying information to the course faculty when viewing the submissions, but this information will not be retained by Turnitin.

SIRS Evaluations

Michigan State University takes seriously the opinion of students in the evaluation of the effectiveness of instruction and has implemented the Student Instructional Rating System (SIRS) to gather student feedback (https://sirsonline.msu.edu). This course utilizes the online SIRS system, and you will receive an e-mail during the last two weeks of class asking you to fill out the SIRS web form at your convenience. In addition, participation in the online SIRS system involves grade sequestration, which means that the final grade for this course will not be accessible on STUINFO during the week following the submission of grades for this course unless the SIRS online form has been completed. Alternatively, you have the option on the SIRS website to decline to participate in the evaluation of the course. We hope, however, that you will be willing to give us your frank and constructive feedback so that we may instruct students even better in the future. If you access the online SIRS website and complete the online SIRS form or decline to participate, you will receive the final grade in this course as usual once final grades are submitted.

Social Media and Sharing of Course Materials

As members of a learning community, students are expected to respect the intellectual property of course instructors. All course materials presented to students are the copyrighted property of the course instructor and are subject to the following conditions of use:

1. Students may record lectures or any other classroom activities and use the recordings only for their own course-related purposes.
2. Students may share the recordings with other students enrolled in the class. Sharing is limited to using the recordings only for their own course-related purposes.
3. Students may post the recordings or other course materials online or distribute them to anyone not enrolled in the class with the advance written permission of the course instructor and, if applicable, any students whose voice or image is included in the recordings.
4. Any student violating the conditions described above may face academic disciplinary sanctions.

Student Support Program (SSP)

Michigan State University is offering all MSU students access to counseling support 24/7/365 through My SSP: Student Support Program. My SSP is free to all MSU students. My SSP is confidential, and can help with:

• Adapting to new challenges
• Being successful at school
• Relationships with friends and family
• Practical issues with studying
• Stress, sadness, loneliness, and more

The My SSP professional counselors are available to help anytime, anywhere with:

• Immediate support by phone and chat
• Ongoing support by appointment via phone and video
• In addition, culturally relevant support is available in the language of the caller’s choice.

There are multiple options for connecting with a My SSP counselor:

• Download the free My SSP app on Google Play or iTunes
• Chat online at http://us.myissp.com
• Call 1-866-743-7732
• From outside North America, call 001.416.380.657

On & Off Campus 24 Hour Emergency Services:

National Suicide Prevention (Lifeline)
Collect Calls Accepted 24 Hours
1-800- 273-TALK (8255)

MSU Police Department
Emergency: 911
Business Line: (517) 355-2221

MSU Counseling Center Sexual Assault Program
(517) 372-6666

Community Mental Health
(800) 372-8460
(517) 346-8460

MSU Safe Place (Domestic Violence Shelter)
Crisis Line: (517) 355-1100

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities should contact the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities to establish reasonable accommodations. For an appointment with a counselor, call 353-9642 (voice) or 355-1293 (TTY)

Drops and Adds

The last day to add this course is the end of the first week of classes. The last day to drop this course with a 100 percent refund and no grade reported is (see Academic Calendar). The last day to drop this course with no refund and no grade reported is (see Academic Calendar). You should immediately make a copy of your amended schedule to verify you have added or dropped this course.

Note on Attendance

Students who fail to attend the first four class sessions or class by the fifth day of the semester, whichever occurs first, may be dropped from the co

General information

Instructor

Here is more information about Prof. Lotz

Class Meetings

Days: Mondays
Time: 6-8:50pm
Place: SK 530

Office & Office Hours

Phone: 517.355.4490 [dept.])
Place: SK 503
Hours: Mondays, drop in, 3-5:45pm

Other Contact

E-mail: lotz@msu.edu
Home Phone: please ask
Webpage: http://christianlotz.info

Box

You will find my box in the front office of the philosophy department (SK 503)

Schedule

Block I: DESERTS

Jan 8, Introduction: Abstraction and Experience

Crisis of Experience:
Benjamin, Experience and Poverty
Benjamin, On some Motifs in Baudelaire, sections, I-IV, IX-X
Simmel, Metropolis and Mental Life
Adorno, Minima Moralia, section 33

Real Abstraction:
Marx, Grundrisse, excerpts, 156-168
Simmel, Philosophy of Money, pp. 78, 127-128, 186

Reification:
Adorno, lecture 17, Introduction to Sociology
Lukács, History and Class Consciousness, pp. 88-89 & 184-185
Benjamin, Arcades Project (Expose 1939), 25-26
Eslie, Walter Benjamin. Overpowering Conformism, pp. 9-10

Cybernetics
Heidegger, The Provenance of Art and the Destination of Thought (1967), section II-III, pp. 122-128

Overview: Lotz

Jan 15, No Class
Holiday

Jan 22, Lukács

Lukács, The Phenomenon of Reification (section I of “Reification and the Consciousness of the Proletariat), 83-110

Background
Lotz, “Categorial Forms as Intelligibility of Social Objects. Reification and Objectivity in Lukács,” in Confronting Reification. Revitalizing Georg Lukács’s Thought in Late Capitalism, ed. Gregory R. Smulewicz-Zucker, Leiden: Brill/Chicago: Haymarket Books 2020, 25-47

Protocol: Pincus

Jan 29, Husserl

Husserl, Crisis, sections 1-14, pp.1-68

Background
Angus, Groundwork of Phenomenological Marxism. Crisis, Body, World, chapter 1-5
Mazijk, Corijn, “Heidegger and Husserl on the Technological-Scientific Worldview,” Human Studies, 42/2019, 519-541

Presentation 1: Levkowitz
Marcuse, On Science and Phenomenology, here: http://www.autodidactproject.org/other/marcuse7.html
Aron Gurwitsch, Comment on Marcuse, here: http://www.autodidactproject.org/other/marcuse8.html

Protocol: Michaud

Feb 5, Heidegger

Heidegger, The Question Concerning the Thing. On Kant’s Doctrine of the Transcendental Principles, sections 1-20, pp.1-82

Protocol: Vlasov

Feb 12, Heidegger

Heidegger, The Age of the World Picture

Presentation 2: Krieger
Marcuse, chapter 6, One-Dimensional Man

Protocol:

Feb 19, Heidegger

Heidegger, The Question Concerning Technology

If you have time, also read the chapter “Positionality” in Bremen and Freiburg Lectures, 23-43

Background:
Diego Martínez-Zarazúa, “When Things Impoverish: An Approach to Marx’s Analysis of Capitalism in Conjunction with Heidegger’s Concern over Technology,” Rethinking Marxism, 34:1, 6-24.
Hoerl, Erich, “The Technological Condition,” Pharrhesia, 22, 2015, 1-15.

Protocol: Arellano

Feb 26, No Class
Spring Break

Mar 4, Marx

Marx, Capital, Vol 1, chapter 1&6 (Penguin edition!)

Background
Lichtenstein, Eli B., “Adorno, Marx, and abstract domination,” Philosophy and Social Criticism, 49/8, 2023, 998-1023.
O’Kane, The Critique of Real Abstraction: From the Critical Theory of Society to the Critique of Political Economy and Back Again
Engster, Frank, “Sohn-Rethel’s Unity of the Critique of Society and the Critique of Epistemology, and his Theoretical Blind Spot: Measure, Historical Materialism, 2023 (online first), 1-46

Presentation 3: Vlasov
Marx, Capital, chapter 6

Protocol: Pincus

Block II: THINKING AS DEREIFICATION

Mar 11, Husserl

Husserl, Crisis, sections 28&33-52, pp. 103-111 & 121-178

Presentation: Michaud
Husserl, Crisis (Life-World)

Protocol: Levkowitz

Mar 18, Adorno

Adorno, Negative Dialectics, Introduction (Redmond translation)

Presentation 4: Arellano
Adorno, The Essay as Form

Protocol: Krieger

Mar 22, Additional Session

3pm, Meeting with Prof. Ferguson in connection with the graduate conference.

Readings: Ferguson, S., “Exploring the Matter of Race: A Materialist Philosophical Inquiry,” in Oxford Handbook of Philosophy and Race, ed. Naomi Zack (Oxford University Press, 2017), 261-270 & Ferguson, S., “Introduction,” in Ferguson, C., The Paralysis of Analysis in African American Studies. Corporate Capitalism and Black Popular Culture (Bloomsbury, 2017), 1-10.

Mar 25, Adorno

Adorno, Notes on Philosophical Thinking (Critical Models, 127-134)
Adorno, Why Still Philosophy? (Critical Models, 5-18)
Adorno, Marginalia to Theory and Praxis (Critical Models, 259-278)

Presentation 5: Pincus
Adorno, On Subject and Object (Critical Models, 245-258)

Protocol: Arellano

Apr 1, Heidegger

Heidegger, What is Called Thinking?, part II.1-5

Block III: EXPERIENCE

RETREAT, 4/12-4/14, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Lake Higgins
https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/places/ram-center

Arrival: Fr, 4/12, by noon
Departure: Su, 4/14, after lunch

Program will be sent out via email

Session I: Intellectual (geistige) Experience (Adorno)

Adorno, Towards a theory of intellectual experience, In: Lectures on Negative Dialectics, Appendix
Adorno, Meditations on Metaphysics, In: Negative Dialectics, sections 1-4

Session II: Thing Experience (Heidegger)

Heidegger, Building, Dwelling, Thinking (In: Basic Writings)

Session III: Thing Experience (Heidegger)

Heidegger, The Country Path
Heidegger, The Thing, version I (In: Poetry, Language, Thought)
Adorno, Handle, Pitcher, and Early Experience (In: Notes on Literature II, 211-219)

Voluntary: Heidegger, The Thing, version II (In: Bremen and Freiburg Lectures)

Session IV: Memory & Historical Experience (Benjamin)

Benjamin, The Storyteller, 3:143

Voluntary: Benjamin, Unpacking my library, 2:486; Benjamin, Eduard Fuchs. Collector and Historian, 3:260

Session IV: Memory & Historical Experience (Benjamin)

Benjamin, On the Concept of History, 4:389

Voluntary for Benjamin Aficionados: section N, Arcades Project

Session V: Wrap-Up

Open discussion

April 26, Final Paper
Final paper due via email by the end of April 26.

Key Insights

“Man stares at what the explosion of the atom bomb could bring with it. He does not see that the atom bomb and its explosion are the mere final emission of what has long since taken place, has already happened. […] The terrifying is unsettling; it places everything outside its own nature. What is it that unsettles and thus terrifies? It shows itself and hides itself in the way in which everything presences, namely, in the fact that despite all conquest of distances the nearness of things remains absent.” (Heidegger, The Thing)

“The experience of the loss of experience is one of the oldest motifs of Critical Theory, which even outsiders from the circle around Max Horkheimer like Kracauer and Benjamin had already expressed in the 1920’s.” (Detlev Claussen)

“Not the least fault for the dying out of experience is due to the fact that things assume a form under the law of their purposiveness which restrict their interaction to mere application, without the surplus – were it that of freedom of behavior, were it that of the autonomy of the thing – which might survive as the kernel of experience, because it is not consumed by the moment of action.” (Adorno, Minima Moralia)

“The experience of our generation: that capitalism will not die a natural death.” (Benjamin, The Arcades Project)

“Wiener’s definition of the human being is as follows: ‘Man [is] an information [device].’ Wiener goes on regarding the human being: ‘Nevertheless, one characteristic distinguishes man from other animals in a way which leaves no doubt: Man is an animal that speaks. . . . It also will not do to say that man is an ensouled animal. For, unfortunately, the existence of the soul—whatever one may take it to be—is not accessible to scientific methods of inquiry’. As an animal who speaks, the human being must be represented in such a way that language can be explained scientifically as something computable, that is, as something that can be controlled.” (Heidegger)

“These external relations are very far from being an abolition of ‘relations of dependence’; they are rather the dissolution of these relations into a general form ; they are merely the elaboration and emergence of the general foundation of the relations of personal dependence. Here also individuals come into connection with one another only in determined ways. These objective dependency relations also appear, in antithesis to those of personal dependence (the objective dependency relation is nothing more than social relations which have become independent and now enter into opposition to the seemingly independent individuals; i.e. the reciprocal relations of production separated from and autonomous of individuals) in such a way that individuals are now ruled by abstractions, whereas earlier they depended on one another. The abstraction, or idea, however, is nothing more than the theoretical expression of those material relations which are their lord and master.” (Marx)

“The image of life without experience is finally the image of life without history, as if the meaning of life were in its eternal cessation: death. There cannot be historical life without experience; only lives articulated through experience can be fully and self-consciously historical.” (J.M. Bernstein)

“Dialectical thought opposes reification in the further sense that it refuses to affirm individual things in their isolation and separateness: it designates isolation as precisely a product of the universal. Thus it acts as a corrective both to manic fixity and to the unresisting and empty drift of the para­noid mind, which pays for its absolute judgements by loss of the experience of the matter judged.” (Adorno, Minima Moralia)

“A thinking that approaches its objects openly, rigorously, and on the basis of progressive knowledge, is also free toward its objects in the sense that it refuses to have rules prescribed to it by organized knowledge. It turns the quintessence of the experience accumulated in it to the objects, rends the veil with which society conceals them, and perceives them anew. Were philosophy to beat bad, the fear caused by the tyranny of the prevailing philosophical movements-the ontological intimidation not to think anything that is not pure, and the scientistic intimidation not to think anything that is not ‘connected’ to the corpus of findings recognized as scientifically valid-then it would be capable of recognizing what that fear prohibits, what an unmarred consciousness in fact would be intent upon. The ‘to the things themselves’ that philosophical phenomenology had dreamed of like a dreamer who dreams he’s waking up can only come true for a philosophy that stops hoping to acquire knowledge with the magical stroke of eidetic intuition, and instead thinks through the subjective and objective mediations without, however, conforming to the latent primacy of organized method, which over and over again offers phenomenological movements only a series of fetishes, homemade concepts instead of their longed-for things. Had not all positivist locutions become deeply suspect, then one could imagine that only a consciousness both free and reflected in itself would be open to what traditional philosophy has obstructed by confusing itself with what it intends to interpret. Within traditional philosophy’s exhaustion at the succession of its variations lies the potential for a philosophy that could break the magic spell.” (Adorno, Why still Philosophy?)

Seminar Description

In this seminar we will approach the topic of reification from an unusual angle. The base assumption will be that the primary experience of early critical theorists (Lukacs, Benjamin, Bloch, Adorno) and phenomenologists (Husserl, Heidegger) alike is based on the diffuse experience that the capitalist world, i.e., the modern experience of things, became abstract, impoverished, frozen, cold, and emptied out. Whereas Marx grasped the essence of capital as a process of formalization and (real) abstraction, he does not go back to experience and it remains unclear how experience would be different without the abstract domination of capital. It is the hypothesis of the instructor that we need to understand the connection between societal formalization (the end point we see now in AI, complete military destruction, and an algorithmically produced social reality), the value form, experience and reality. I thereby read Marx’s value form through Husserl (and Sohn-Rethel). Put differently, we need to think about both the concept of (real) abstraction and the concept of experience because the social reality in fact is bifurcated; the Kantian distinction between intuition and concepts is (socially) real. Interpreting Kant’s concept of “thing”, then, can be done in a societal way. We need to ask what a thing is because, on the one hand, we have the modern paradigmatic Kantian position (as the first one that tries to mediate between both), and, on the other hand, Hegelian and Marxian inspired Critical Theory as well as Husserlian/Heideggerian Phenomenology as the attempt to get the two poles – in a world of real abstractions – together again. We will not be able to reconstruct all needed concepts systematically in this seminar, but we can put together pieces of such a task to better understand the underlying motivations of 20th Century philosophy in order to keep alive the dream of, as Adorno puts it, keeping “the autonomy of the thing […] as a kernel of experience.” Decisive for this task is Benjamin’s concept of historical experience (Eingedenken). I began to think about this issue a long time ago, in very confused ways, but in recent years it became clearer to me that we are staring into the same abyss today that the philosophers we talk about stared into 100 years ago. So, put paradoxically, we can see more clearly what’s going on and we are less able to see what’s going on, since the level of reification has now reached a dimension not imaginable for Lukács. Reification 2.0. Section I: How the world became abstract; section II: How do we think philosophically in such a world, section III: Back to the thing(s themselves).

Course Goals

This course should make you familiar with one – if not the – core motivation for 20th Century developments in Critical Theory and Phenomenology. Why reification 2.0.? Because we will not approach it directly through Lukacs’ History and Class Consciousness and Marx’s concept of commodity fetishism. Keywords: thing, thinghood, thinking, experience, abstraction, value form. Please note that this seminar is not an introduction to the topics discussed.

Note I

This graduate seminar is not based on a set of fixed knowledge and, as such, is not based on a behavioral idea of education; rather, we will try to learn together and critically examine the material. The material is the absolute center of this class. Free floating discussions about things unrelated to the material are to be avoided.

Note II

For me graduate seminar are PhD seminars; i.e., I conceive of them as genuine endeavors to ask genuine questions and to philosophically struggle to come up with answers. I cannot give an introduction to the thinkers and issues discussed. We will begin in medias res. I will try to be as clear as possible, but if you have never studied the thinkers selected for this seminar, expect an intellectual challenge.

Orientation

The best way to approach a topic with complex contexts and backgrounds are handbooks, philosophical dictionaries, etc. In Germany two outstanding works are Das Historische Wörterbuch der Philosophie (HWPh) and Historisch–kritische Wörterbuch des Marxismus (HKWM, partly translated). Luckily, for our topic, many excellent works have been produced in recent years in the Anglo-American world. So, if you need orientation, it is best to begin with those. To name a few:

• The SAGE Handbook of Frankfurt School Critical Theory
• The Routledge Companion to the Frankfurt School
• The Critical Companion to Contemporary Marxism
• Heidegger and Hegel dictionaries (Inwood)
• Routledge Handbook of Marxism and Post-Marxism

Commentaries, Husserl, Crisis

• Moran, Edmund Husserl: The Crisis of the European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology: An Introduction
• Dodd, Crisis and Reflection. An Essay on Husserl’s Crisis of the European Sciences

Phenomenological Marxism

• Marcuse, Heideggerian Marxism
• Angus, Groundwork of Phenomenological Marxism. Crisis, Body, World
• Angus, Ian, “The Problem of Form. Recovery of the Concrete in Contemporary Phenomenological Marxism,” In: Westerman, R. and Smyth, B. (eds), Marxism and Phenomenology. The Dialectical Horizons of Critique (Lanham: Lexington Books 2022), 31-52.

Digitization

Jonathan Beller: https://www.boundary2.org/2018/08/beller/ & https://muse-jhu-edu.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/pub/1/article/635542

Reification

• Zucker (ed.), Confronting Reification. Revitalizing Georg Lukács’s Thought in Late Capitalism
• Oliva, ván Novara (eds), Marx and Contemporary Critical Theory. The Philosophy of Real Abstraction
• Metodo. International Studies in Phenomenology and Philosophy, issue on reification: https://metodo-rivista.eu/pub-255760

Crisis of Experience in Adorno and Benjamin

• Foster, “The Theory of Spiritual Experience,” In: Foster, Roger, Adorno. The Recovery of Experience (New York: SUNY Press, 2007), 1-30.
• Jay, Martin, “Lamenting the Crisis of Experience. Benjamin and Adorno,” in: Jay, Martin, Songs of Experience. Modern American and European Variations on a Universal Theme (Oakland: University of California Press, 2005), 312-360. Foster, Adorno. The Recovery of Experience

Lotz

• The Capitalist Schema. Time, Money, and the Culture of Abstraction, Lanham: Lexington Books 2014
• “Categorial Forms as Intelligibility of Social Objects. Reification and Objectivity in Lukács.,” in Confronting Reification. Revitalizing Georg Lukács’s Thought in Late Capitalism, ed. Gregory R. Smulewicz-Zucker, Leiden: Brill/Chicago: Haymarket Books 2020, 25-47
• Capitalist Schematization. Political Economy, Exchange, and Objecthood in Adorno, Zeitschrift für Kritische Theorie, 36/37, 2013, 110-123.
• “Fiction without Fantasy. Capital Fetishism as Objective Forgetting,” Continental Thought & Theory, 2, 2017, 364-382

Texts

• https://monoskop.org/Theodor_Adorno
• https://monoskop.org/Walter_Benjamin
• https://monoskop.org/Martin_Heidegger
• https://www.beyng.com/hb/gesamt.html
• http://think.hyperjeff.net/Heidegger/

Requirements

Course Requirements

• 1 protocol, write-up, up to 900 words, take questions in class
• 1 presentation, write-up, up to 900 words, 20-25 minutes, leading class discussion
• Final paper, conference style, 3600-4500 words
• Regular participation, you are expected to attend every week, except in cases of reasonable excuses

Protocol

The class protocol should cover our discussion in class. Protocols should have a length of 2-3 pages (no more than 900 words), and they will in and outside of the classroom force us to have an ongoing reflection on our texts that we study for class. They can also include problems or questions that the writers had either with our class discussion or with the texts itself, but above all protocols should cover what I lectured about and what we discussed afterwards. Protocols should clarify and discuss selected issues in question. They can raise questions. Protocols have to be sent out to everyone by Sundays at noon. Everyone will read the protocols before class. Please avoid late turn ins. The student who wrote the protocol will address questions during the first 15-20 minutes of the next class meeting.

Presentation & Write-Up

Each student will be responsible for working out introductory presentations, which should function as a platform for our discussions. Please focus on selected aspects of the readings; desired length of presentations: around 25 minutes. Please distribute a brief write-up/overview of what you will be talking about by Sunday at noon. Your write-up should have a length of 2-3 pages. A write-up differs from a handout (used during a presentation); i.e., the write-up should consists of a coherent text that either interprets, reflects on, or explains the primary material. Let’s call it a “miniature-paper” that everyone reads before class. Try to be as clear as possible and help everyone in class to understand the point from which you approach your topic, issue, text, or philosopher. Note: the reading material should be the absolute focus of your presentation; everyone will gain from hermeneutic virtues! Free floating discussions that are completely unrelated to the readings are to be avoided by all means.

General Remark

Given that this is a graduate seminar, I expect self-motivation, autonomy, civility, as well as self-responsibility. My seminars are completely open: you can always bring in your own positions, criticize others, or ask questions. There are no boundaries. My job is to think via clarifying thoughts of others. The attendance requires the willingness to intensively study the texts selected for class.

Final Paper

The class essay should be well researched and should present a substantial reflection on some parts of the material discussed in class. I expect excellent papers in regard to research, form, and content. The paper should be accompanied by an abstract of no more than 150 words. The paper should be “conference style,” i.e., it should have a length of around 12-15 pages and, ideally, could be presented at a conference or be used as a seed manuscript for the summer scholar fellowship competition.

DFs

I will refuse giving DFs in this class, unless you find yourself in an emergency situation (health issues, etc.)

Course Evaluation

Assignments (traditional)

1 protocol + class discussion	pass/fail, 10pts
1 oral presentation + write-up	pass/fail, 10pts
final paper	80 points
	——–
	100 points

Grading

4.0 (=A)	100 – 93
3.5	92 – 87
3 (=B)	86 – 82
2.5	81 – 77
2 (=C)	76 – 72
1.5	71 – 65
1.0 (=D)	64 – 60
0.0	< 60

GENERIC SYLLABUS (might not be applicable to each class)

Laptop/Cell Phone/Tablet Policy

You are not permitted to use laptops or cell phones in class, unless needed for medical reasons. Flat devices, such as tablets, are permitted  if you have purchased the literature required for class electronically. Please do not text under the table. Cell phones should be removed from tables. Failure to follow this policy will lead to unannounced assignments in class or loss of points (at the digression of the instructor).

Laptops in the Classroom

• So you think you can multitask? from the University of North Carolina
• How your phone reduces your ability to think even when only in glancing distance from Psychology Today
• Barak, L. (2012). Multitasking in the university classroom. International Journal for the
  Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 6
• Ellis, Y., Daniels, W. and Jauregui, A. (2010). The effect of multitasking on the grade performance of business students. Research in Higher Education Journal, 8
• Fried, C. B. (2008). In-class laptop use and its effects on student learning. Computers and
  Education, 50 (3), 906-914.
• Kraushaar, J. M. and Novak, D. C. (2010). Examining the affects of student multitasking with
  laptops during lecture. Journal of Information Systems
  Education, 21 (2), 241-251.

Class Attendance

As mentioned above, I do not employ in my classes a class attendance policy. Having said this, you should be aware that class attendance is very important. When engaging in a philosophical and humanistic dialogue it is necessary to be an active and present participant in the ongoing discussion. If you miss class please do not email me asking if you missed anything important. Every class is important. You should get a study buddy for the class; a student in class who will inform you of what you missed. If you miss a class you can come to my office hours or make an appointment to discuss the material, providing you have read the material and you simply want to see if your understanding of the material is on target. Time in office hours will not be used to repeat the class lectures.

Grading Criteria + Paper Writing Tips

Check out this page for grading criteria, example of assignments, etc.

Online Research Sources

Unfortunately, some people think that the internet as such is a reliable source of information. If you decide to use online sources for additional information or your paper then do not just use one of the common internet search engines, such as Google; rather, use reliable academic sources, such as Britannica Online, or the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. The Internet Ecyclopedia of Philosophy isn’t very good, but still acceptable. Check out MSU’s library resources! And, as with other sources, you must cite any online sources to which you refer in your essay.

Writing Center Information

MSU’s writing center offers excellent help on all matters regarding writing and learning. Check the website at http://writing.msu.edu for an overview and hours. For more information, please call 517.432.3610 or send an e-mail to writing@msu.edu.

Grief Absence Policy

I follow MSU’s general grief absence policy, which can be found here.

Integrity of Scholarship and Grades (Plagiarism)

The following statement of University policy addresses principles and procedures to be used in instances of academic dishonesty, violations of professional standards, and falsification of academic or admission records, herein after referred to as academic misconduct. [See General Student Regulation 1.00, Protection of Scholarship and Grades.]

Academic Honesty

Article 2.3.3 of the Academic Freedom Report states that “The student shares with the faculty the responsibility for maintaining the integrity of scholarship, grades, and professional standards.” In addition, the (insert name of unit offering course) adheres to the policies on academic honesty as specified in General Student Regulations 1.0, Protection of Scholarship and Grades; the all-University Policy on Integrity of Scholarship and Grades; and Ordinance 17.00, Examinations. (See Spartan Life: Student Handbook and Resource Guide and/or the MSU Web site: www.msu.edu) Therefore, unless authorized by your instructor, you are expected to complete all course assignments, including homework, lab work, quizzes, tests and exams, without assistance from any source. You are expected to develop original work for this course; therefore, you may not submit course work completed for another course to satisfy the requirements for this course. Students who violate MSU rules may receive a penalty grade, including but not limited to a failing grade on the assignment or in the course. Contact your instructor if you are unsure about the appropriateness of your course work. (See also https://www.msu.edu/~ombud/)

Plagiarism, from the Ombudsman’s page

Plagiarism (from the Latin plagiarius, an abductor, and plagiare, to steal) is defined by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy on Misconduct in Research (take that!) as “ . . . the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results or words without giving appropriate credit.”

Accidental or Unintentional
One may not even know that they are plagiarizing.  It is the student’s responsibility to make certain that they understand the difference between quoting and paraphrasing, as well as the proper way to cite material.

Blatant
Here, students are well aware that they are plagiarizing.  Purposefully using someone else’s ideas or work without proper acknowledgment is plagiarism.  This includes turning in borrowed or bought research papers as one’s own.

Self
Turning in the same term paper (or substantially the same paper) for two courses without getting permission from one’s instructor is plagiarism.

The Spartan Code of Honor

Student leaders have recognized the challenging task of discouraging plagiarism from the academic community. The Associated Students of Michigan State University (ASMSU) is proud to be launching the Spartan Code of Honor academic pledge, focused on valuing academic integrity and honest work ethics at Michigan State University. The pledge reads as follows:

“As a Spartan, I will strive to uphold values of the highest ethical standard. I will practice honesty in my work, foster honesty in my peers, and take pride in knowing that honor is worth more than grades. I will carry these values beyond my time as a student at Michigan State University, continuing the endeavor to build personal integrity in all that I do.”

The Spartan Code of Honor academic pledge embodies the principles of integrity that every Spartan is required to uphold in their time as a student, and beyond. The academic pledge was crafted with inspiration of existing individual college honor codes, establishing an overarching statement for the entire university. It was formally adopted by ASMSU on March 3, 2016, endorsed by Academic Governance on March 22, 2016, and recognized by the Provost, President, and Board of Trustees on April 15, 2016.

SIRS Evaluations

Michigan State University takes seriously the opinion of students in the evaluation of the effectiveness of instruction and has implemented the Student Instructional Rating System (SIRS) to gather student feedback (https://sirsonline.msu.edu). This course utilizes the online SIRS system, and you will receive an e-mail during the last two weeks of class asking you to fill out the SIRS web form at your convenience. In addition, participation in the online SIRS system involves grade sequestration, which means that the final grade for this course will not be accessible on STUINFO during the week following the submission of grades for this course unless the SIRS online form has been completed. Alternatively, you have the option on the SIRS website to decline to participate in the evaluation of the course. We hope, however, that you will be willing to give us your frank and constructive feedback so that we may instruct students even better in the future. If you access the online SIRS website and complete the online SIRS form or decline to participate, you will receive the final grade in this course as usual once final grades are submitted.

Social Media and Sharing of Course Materials

As members of a learning community, students are expected to respect the intellectual property of course instructors. All course materials presented to students are the copyrighted property of the course instructor and are subject to the following conditions of use:

• Students may record lectures or any other classroom activities and use the recordings only for their own course-related purposes.
• Students may share the recordings with other students enrolled in the class. Sharing is limited to using the recordings only for their own course-related purposes.
• Students may post the recordings or other course materials online or distribute them to anyone not enrolled in the class with the advance written permission of the course instructor and, if applicable, any students whose voice or image is included in the recordings.
• Any student violating the conditions described above may face academic disciplinary sanctions.

Mandatory Reporting

Michigan State University is committed to fostering a culture of caring and respect that is free of relationship violence and sexual misconduct, and to ensuring that all affected individuals have access to services.  For information on reporting options, confidential advocacy and support resources, university policies and procedures, or how to make a difference on campus, visit the Title IX website at civilrights.msu.edu.

Limits to confidentiality.  Essays, journals, and other materials submitted for this class are generally considered confidential pursuant to the University’s student record policies.  However, students should be aware that University employees, including instructors, may not be able to maintain confidentiality when it conflicts with their responsibility to report certain issues to protect the health and safety of MSU community members and others.  As the instructor, I must report the following information to other University offices (including the Department of Police and Public Safety) if you share it with me:

• Suspected child abuse/neglect, even if this maltreatment happened when you were a child;
• Allegations of sexual assault, relationship violence, stalking, or sexual harassment; and
• Credible threats of harm to oneself or to others.

These reports may trigger contact from a campus official who will want to talk with you about the incident that you have shared.  In almost all cases, it will be your decision whether you wish to speak with that individual.  If you would like to talk about these events in a more confidential setting, you are encouraged to make an appointment with the MSU Counseling and Psychiatric Services.

Student Support Program (SSP)

Michigan State University is offering all MSU students access to counseling support 24/7/365 through My SSP: Student Support Program. My SSP is free to all MSU students. My SSP is confidential, and can help with:

• Adapting to new challenges
• Being successful at school
• Relationships with friends and family
• Practical issues with studying
• Stress, sadness, loneliness, and more

The My SSP professional counselors are available to help anytime, anywhere with:

• Immediate support by phone and chat
• Ongoing support by appointment via phone and video
• In addition, culturally relevant support is available in the language of the caller’s choice.

There are multiple options for connecting with a My SSP counselor:

• Download the free My SSP app on Google Play or iTunes
• Chat online at http://us.myissp.com
• Call 1-866-743-7732
• From outside North America, call 001.416.380.657

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities should contact the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities to establish reasonable accommodations. For an appointment with a counselor, call 353-9642 (voice) or 355-1293 (TTY)

Drops and Adds

The last day to add this course is the end of the first week of classes. The last day to drop this course with a 100 percent refund and no grade reported is (see Academic Calendar). The last day to drop this course with no refund and no grade reported is (see Academic Calendar). You should immediately make a copy of your amended schedule to verify you have added or dropped this course.

Note on Attendance

Students who fail to attend the first four class sessions or class by the fifth day of the semester, whichever occurs first, may be dropped from the course.

General information

Instructor

Here is more information about Prof. Lotz

Class Meetings

Days: M/W
Time: 12:40pm-2:30pm
Place: Giltner Hall 146 & Erickson Hall 103

Office

Hours: Th, 11:30:noon online (go here and book meeting in advance: https://calendly.com/christianlotz), I will be available after class, and with appointment in my office; drop-in: W 11:30am-12:15pm; unavailable for meetings: 9/7-9/17; 10/2-10/5; 10/11-10/15; 10/25-10/29; 11/21-11/25
Phone: 517.355.4490 [dept.])
Office: 503 South Kedzie Hall

Other Contact

E-mail: lotz@msu.edu
Webpage: http://christianlotz.info

Box

You will find my box in the front office of the philosophy department, SK 503

Schedule (updated: 10/17)

Section I: Introduction

“The bourgeoisie cannot exist without constantly revolutionizing the instruments of production, and thereby the relations of production, and with them the whole relations of society.” (Karl Marx)

Aug 28, Introduction

Aug 30, Introductory Reflections: Capitalism as a Social System

Sep 4, Labor Day
No class

Sep 6, Introductory Reflections: Globalization
Marx/Engels, The Communist Manifesto, section 1&2
https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/

Sep 11, No Class
ProfLotz delivers a lecture at conference

Sep 13, No Class
ProfLotz delivers a lecture at conference

Weekend Assignment 1 due (Sep 17 at noon), please write on Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, pp. 1-12, 36-41

Section II: Capitalism as a Black Box

“Capital is the all-dominating economic power of bourgeois society. It must form the starting-point as well as the finishing point” (Marx)

Sep 18, Money, Debt, Capital
Marx/Engels, The Communist Manifesto, section 1&2
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, pp. 1-12, 36-41 [please do your weekend assignment on this reading!]

Sep 20, Money, Debt, Capital
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, pp. 1-12, 36-41

Sep 25, Film

Sep 27, Negative Market Externalities: Concept
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 1, pp. 127-133
Sassen, Expulsions, chapter 1: Shrinking Economies, Growing Expulsions
Sassen/info: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Saskia_Sassen

Weekend Assignment 2 due (Oct 1 at noon)

Oct 2, Negative Market Externalities: Example
Sassen, Expulsions, chapter 2: The New Global Market for Land

Section III: Inside the Black Box

“For half a century, we’ve been promised a new scientific-technological revolution that would liberate humanity and the planet from poverty and ecocide. We are still waiting and there are few grounds for optimism. […] climate doomism […] ideologically excludes capitalism’s non-linear dynamics. Even in the absence of a climate crisis, capitalism’s volatility would be on the rise; the acceleration of capitalogenic climate change is not only adding a new ‘environmental’ problem to a long-run set of contradictions; it’s amplifying those antagonisms, like interimperialist war and financial instability.” (Jason W. Moore)

Oct 4, no class
ProfLotz is at conference

Oct 9, Consumer
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 1: Constructing the Consumer

Oct 11, No Class
ProfLotz delivers a lecture at conference

Oct 16, Laborer
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 2: The Laborer in the Culture of Capitalism

Oct 18, No class
Medical Emergency

Oct 23, No Class
Break Day

Oct 25, No Class
Prof. Lotz is out of town for an administrative assignment

Weekend Assignment 3 due (Oct 29 at noon)

Oct 30, State
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 4: The Nation State in the Culture of Capitalism

Nov 1, Migration
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 5: Population Growth, Migration, and Urbanization

Nov 6, Hunger & Poverty
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 6: Hunger, Poverty, and Economic Development

Nov 8, Ecology
Robbins, The Culture of Capitalism, chapter 7: Environment and Consumption
Malm, On the Perils of Property: Sketches for Tracking the Storm

Section IV: Deeper Into the Black Box

“Capitalism’s frontiers always lie firmly within a far larger world of life making. For capitalism, what matters is that the figures entered into ledgers-to pay workers, to supply adequate food to workers, to purchase energy and raw materials-are as low as possible. Capitalism values only what it can count, and it can count only dollars. Every capitalist wants to invest as little and profit as much as possible. For capitalism, this means that the whole system thrives when powerful states and capitalists can reorganize global nature, invest as little as they can, and receive as much food, work, energy, and raw materials with as little disruption as possible.” (Patel/Moore)

Weekend Assignment 4 due (Nov 12 at noon)

Nov 13, Global Frontiers I
Patel/Moore, The History of the the World in Seven Cheap Things, chapter: 1: nature
Moore/info: https://jasonwmoore.com/

Nov 15, Global Frontiers II
Patel/Moore, The History of the the World in Seven Cheap Things, chapter 6&7: energy&lives

Nov 20, Capital and Law
Pistor, The Code of Capital, chapters 1+9, pp.18-39&pp.222-251
Pistor/info: https://www.law.columbia.edu/faculty/katharina-pistor

Nov 22, No Class
Thanksgiving

Weekend Assignment 5 due (Nov 26 at noon)

Nov 27, Digital Capitalism
Zuboff, Surveillance Capitalism Or Democracy?
Zuboff/info: https://shoshanazuboff.com

Nov 29, no class

Dec 4, What is Wealth?
Sen/Stiglitz, The Mismeasurement of Wealth, Executive Summary (pp.1-22) & Quality of Life (pp.61-96)

Dec 6, No Class
No class

Final Take-Home Exam Due
Monday, Dec 11, 2023, 12:40 PM via D2L

Course Description

In this course we will examine the world in a global perspective by critically analyzing our current world as a specifically capitalist world. I will help you to think more clearly about what global capitalism consists of and what its limits are, by critically thinking about the main components of global capitalism, such as money, capital, labor, state, negative market externalities, commodification, global poverty, global migration, and the destruction of our natural environments (which, if we think it through, leads to the destruction of ourselves). Although originally announced in the focus statement of this class, we most likely won’t have sufficient time for looking into recent geopolitical shifts as a consequence of the crises of globalization (and displaced resistances to it) in the Middle East, Africa, China and Russia.

Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal-arts cliché about “teaching you how to think” is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: “Learning how to think” really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed. Think of the old cliché about “the mind being an excellent servant but a terrible master.” This, like many clichés, so lame and unexciting on the surface, actually expresses a great and terrible truth. It is not the least bit coincidental that adults who commit suicide with firearms almost always shoot themselves in the head. And the truth is that most of these suicides are actually dead long before they pull the trigger. And I submit that this is what the real, no-bull- value of your liberal-arts education is supposed to be about: How to keep from going through your comfortable, prosperous, respectable adult life dead, unconscious, a slave to your head and to your natural default-setting of being uniquely, completely, imperially alone, day in and day out. (David Foster Wallace, This is Water)

IAH Course Goals

The mission of Integrative Studies in the Arts and Humanities is to help students become more familiar with ways of knowing in the arts and humanities and to be more knowledgeable and capable in a range of intellectual and expressive abilities.  IAH courses encourage students to engage critically with their own society, history, and culture(s); they also encourage students to learn more about the history and culture of other societies.  They focus on key ideas and issues in human experience; encourage appreciation of the roles of knowledge and values in shaping and understanding human behavior; emphasize the responsibilities and opportunities of democratic citizenship; highlight the value of the creative arts of literature, theater, music, and arts; and alert us to important issues that occur among peoples in an increasingly interconnected, interdependent world. The goals of IAH courses are to assist students to

• Cultivate habits of inquiry and develop investigative strategies from arts and humanities perspectives;
• Explore social, cultural, and artistic expressions and contexts;
• Act as culturally aware and ethically responsible citizens in local and global communities.
• Critically assess, produce, and communicate knowledge in a variety of media for a range of audiences; and
• Recognize and understand the value of diversity and the significance of interconnectedness in the classroom and beyond.

IAH Course Goals Addressed in this Course

• Develop a range of intellectual abilities, including critical thinking, logical argument, appropriate uses of evidence and interpretation of varied kinds of information. (quantitative, qualitative, text, image)
• Become more knowledgeable about other times, places, and cultures as well as key ideas and issues in human experience.
• Appreciate the role of knowledge, and of values and ethics in understanding human behavior and solving social problems.

Diversity Requirement (D)

This course is designated as a Diversity (D) course and has been approved toward meeting the University Diversity Requirement. Courses designated as “D” emphasize intercultural and diversity issues, ideas, and perspectives unconnected to geography or nation. The “D” designates a connection between intercultural and diversity topics that emphasizes the intersectionality of diverse identities and critical approaches to dominant narratives, institutions, and practices. Overall, courses with “D” focus on themes and questions that transcend time, space, and location. The learning objectives and outcomes of the course will emphasize this designation and provide a guide for how this course furthers understanding of diversity at MSU and beyond.

Specific Course Goals

This lecture class should students introduce to

• how to think about fundamental aspects of capitalism and globalization
• think more clearly about the role of money and debt
• think more clearly about and understand negative market externalities
• the concept of global frontiers
• the concept of extractivism

Note

Real learning is not properly measured by multiple-choice tests; especially since in the humanities there is no specific content of a sort that may be covered well in standardized examinations, which every student in the humanities should be expected to master. Instead, you will – hopefully – come to recognize that this class is about a general intellectual reflection on our contemporary world that requires concepts and critical reflections. The class deals with your dignity as human beings and with your intellect and reason, which is best expressed in a form of learning that is based on understanding and insight, and not mere learning by heart or letting ChatGPT do stupid work. It is hoped that the class will stimulate the view that intellectual activity (and therefore human reality) has to do with the passion of thinking, and the passion of understanding our world. Intense confrontation with texts is the center of this class. “Information” as something to be consumed is important but secondary.

Required Texts (Bookstore or Online)

• All readings are available via D2L

Course Organization

The course will be organized such that, ideally, each class period will include [i] “interactive” lecture, [ii] discussion time or [iii] response time. Students will be asked to intensively prepare a certain text or part of a text for the next class period.

Course Requirements

• Daily reading and studying
• Weekend assignments
• unannounced graded assignments in class, including reading quizzes and group assignments
• Class response sheets
• Final take-home assignment

Note

The class and my lectures are solely based on the texts selected for class and require a thorough study and preparation of the material. I will primarily lecture on the readings, which will help you to more fully understand the texts. Therefore it is not sufficient for students to come to class without having prepared the texts. And indeed, in the exams you have to demonstrate whether you have appropriately prepared the readings selected for each lecture.

Note

Every academic misconduct, such as plagiarism, will – without exception – lead to a failing grade in class. Check the Ombudsman’s page (see also note below on plagiarism): https://www.msu.edu/~ombud/

Note on Attendance

I hope and strongly encourage that students attend all lectures. However, I will not require attendance, as I think that college students should manage their own class attendance decisions. I will not call roll. Hence, it is up to you to come to class or not. However, if you do not come to class on a regular basis and participate in class, it is very difficult for you to achieve a good grade in this class, especially since you won’t be able to make up assignments in class. If you choose to attend class, please come on time, turn off cell phones and other electronic devices that interfere with your (and others’) concentration, have the reading prepared and be ready to participate. If you are not prepared, do not bother showing up. It is a sign of disrespect to your peers and the instructor to attend class unprepared. If you miss class, it is your responsibility to obtain class notes from a fellow student and to catch up on reading.

General Note

I expect that you come to class having prepared the texts carefully and thoroughly. The reading for the next session, if not clear from the course schedule (below), will be announced at the end of the previous class. “Preparing for class” implies underlining and making excerpts from the text assigned; looking up unfamiliar vocabulary and writing them into a note book (I encourage you to keep a vocabulary booklet for all of your classes). Just reading the text won’t be sufficient. You have to study the material. Some vocabulary might not be sufficiently explained in a regular dictionary (this goes especially for philosophical terms), so it is necessary to consult additional sources, and the MSU Library Website is a great resource for nearly all questions in this regard).

Unannounced Assignments

There will be announced and unannounced reading quizzes, homework-assignments, and group assignments. Students who do not attend class (and have no written documentation) will lose all points given for unannounced assignments. Reading quizzes, homework assignments, and group assignments cannot be made up without reasonable excuses (see above).

Weekend Response Reading Sheets (Sunday Assignment)

During this semester you should submit weekend reading response sheets, in which you present brief reflections on the readings for the upcoming class session (no more than 900 words), and formulate up to two precise questions about the material or about something that we discussed in class. These reading response sheets are due on Sundays at noon, via D2L dropbox. You can find the due dates on the class schedule above. This is a generous time frame for you, as I have to read your write-ups late on Sundays. Accordingly, late turn-ins will not be accepted. You will lose all points if you miss the dealine. I will then address brief questions at the beginning of each session. Please download and use this form:

Download Weekend Reading Response Sheet (I will only accept answers that are given on this form)

Class Response Sheets

Every student is asked to submit up to 5 class response sheets during the semester. You decide when you’d like to turn in a response sheet. Please download the form here. Response sheets must be submitted to D2L by the end of the day of the selected class. I will not accept submissions on different days.

Download response sheet (I will only accept answers that are given on this form)

Response Time

Selected response sheets will be addressed at the beginning of each class. This procedure will help you and me to clarify problems, reflect on topics, and to find answers to questions that came up during last class.

Final Assignment

There will be a final take-home essay questions assignment. It is due on the day of the final exam via D2L dropbox.

Make-Up Assignments

Students who need to miss the exam or a film day for excusable reasons (medical+MSU related business) must inform me ahead of time, and will be permitted to make up the exam or film assignment. I will only accept written documentation.

Cell Phone Policy

Please completely remove your cell phones from tables when class begins. Please do not text under the table. Failure to follow this policy will lead to a lower grade (at the digression of the instructor).

Course Evaluation

Assignments

1 final take-home exam	15 points
5 Weekend Reading Responses	30 points
Misc. Assignments, such as reading and group assignments	30 points
5 class response sheets	25 points
	——–
	100 points

Grading

4.0 (=A)	100 – 93
3.5	92 – 87
3 (=B)	86 – 82
2.5	81 – 77
2 (=C)	76 – 72
1.5	71 – 65
1.0 (=D)	64 – 60
0.0	< 60

GENERIC SYLLABUS (might not be applicable to each class)

Laptop/Cell Phone/Tablet Policy

You are not permitted to use laptops or cell phones in class, unless needed for accommodations. Flat devices, such as tablets, are permitted  if you have purchased the literature required for class electronically. Please do not text under the table. Cell phones should be removed from tables. Failure to follow this policy will lead to unannounced assignments in class or to a lower grade (at the digression of the instructor).

Note on Cell Phones

Your cognitive capacity is significantly reduced when your smartphone is within reach — even if it’s off. That’s the takeaway finding from a new study from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin. Please also read this: Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?

Class Attendance

As mentioned above, I do not employ in my classes a class attendance policy. Having said this, you should be aware that class attendance is very important. When engaging in a philosophical and humanistic dialogue it is necessary to be an active and present participant in the ongoing discussion. If you miss class please do not email me asking if you missed anything important. Every class is important. You should get a study buddy for the class; a student in class who will inform you of what you missed. If you miss a class you can come to my office hours or make an appointment to discuss the material, providing you have read the material and you simply want to see if your understanding of the material is on target. Time in office hours will not be used to repeat the class lectures.

Grading Criteria + Paper Writing Tips

Check out this page for grading criteria, example of assignments, etc.

Online Research Sources

Unfortunately, some people think that the internet as such is a reliable source of information. If you decide to use online sources for additional information or your paper then do not just use one of the common internet search engines, such as Google; rather, use reliable academic sources, such as Britannica Online, or the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. The Internet Ecyclopedia of Philosophy isn’t very good, but still acceptable. Check out MSU’s library resources! And, as with other sources, you must cite any online sources to which you refer in your essay.

Writing Center Information

MSU’s writing center offers excellent help on all matters regarding writing and learning. Check the website at http://writing.msu.edu for an overview and hours. For more information, please call 517.432.3610 or send an e-mail to writing@msu.edu.

Grief Absence Policy

I follow MSU’s general grief absence policy, which can be found here.

Integrity of Scholarship and Grades (Plagiarism)

The following statement of University policy addresses principles and procedures to be used in instances of academic dishonesty, violations of professional standards, and falsification of academic or admission records, herein after referred to as academic misconduct. [See General Student Regulation 1.00, Protection of Scholarship and Grades.]

Academic Honesty

Article 2.3.3 of the Academic Freedom Report states that “The student shares with the faculty the responsibility for maintaining the integrity of scholarship, grades, and professional standards.” In addition, the (insert name of unit offering course) adheres to the policies on academic honesty as specified in General Student Regulations 1.0, Protection of Scholarship and Grades; the all-University Policy on Integrity of Scholarship and Grades; and Ordinance 17.00, Examinations. (See Spartan Life: Student Handbook and Resource Guide and/or the MSU Web site: www.msu.edu) Therefore, unless authorized by your instructor, you are expected to complete all course assignments, including homework, lab work, quizzes, tests and exams, without assistance from any source. You are expected to develop original work for this course; therefore, you may not submit course work completed for another course to satisfy the requirements for this course. Students who violate MSU rules may receive a penalty grade, including but not limited to a failing grade on the assignment or in the course. Contact your instructor if you are unsure about the appropriateness of your course work. (See also https://www.msu.edu/~ombud/)

Plagiarism, from the Ombudsman’s page

Plagiarism (from the Latin plagiarius, an abductor, and plagiare, to steal) is defined by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy on Misconduct in Research (take that!) as “ . . . the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results or words without giving appropriate credit.”

Accidental or Unintentional
One may not even know that they are plagiarizing.  It is the student’s responsibility to make certain that they understand the difference between quoting and paraphrasing, as well as the proper way to cite material.

Blatant
Here, students are well aware that they are plagiarizing.  Purposefully using someone else’s ideas or work without proper acknowledgment is plagiarism.  This includes turning in borrowed or bought research papers as one’s own.

Self
Turning in the same term paper (or substantially the same paper) for two courses without getting permission from one’s instructor is plagiarism.

The Spartan Code of Honor

Student leaders have recognized the challenging task of discouraging plagiarism from the
academic community. The Associated Students of Michigan State University (ASMSU) is proud to be launching the Spartan Code of Honor academic pledge, focused on valuing academic integrity and honest work ethics at Michigan State University. The pledge reads as follows:

“As a Spartan, I will strive to uphold values of the highest ethical standard. I will practice honesty in my work, foster honesty in my peers, and take pride in knowing that honor is worth more than grades. I will carry these values beyond my time as a student at Michigan State University, continuing the endeavor to build personal integrity in all that I do.”

The Spartan Code of Honor academic pledge embodies the principles of integrity that every Spartan is required to uphold in their time as a student, and beyond. The academic pledge was crafted with inspiration of existing individual college honor codes, establishing an overarching statement for the entire university. It was formally adopted by ASMSU on March 3, 2016, endorsed by Academic Governance on March 22, 2016, and recognized by the Provost, President, and Board of Trustees on April 15, 2016.

TurnItIn Policy

Consistent with MSU’s efforts to enhance student learning, foster honesty, and maintain integrity in our academic processes, instructors may use a tool in D2L called Turnitin OriginalityCheck to compare a student’s work with multiple sources. The tool compares each student’s work with an extensive database of prior publications and papers, providing links to possible matches and a “similarity score.” The tool does not determine whether plagiarism has occurred or not. Instead, the instructor must make a complete assessment and judge the originality of the student’s work. All submissions to this course may be checked using this tool. Students should submit assignments to be screened by OriginalityCheck without identifying information included in the assignment (e.g., the student’s name, PID, or NetID); the system will automatically show identifying information to the course faculty when viewing the submissions, but this information will not be retained by Turnitin.

SIRS Evaluations

Michigan State University takes seriously the opinion of students in the evaluation of the effectiveness of instruction and has implemented the Student Instructional Rating System (SIRS) to gather student feedback (https://sirsonline.msu.edu). This course utilizes the online SIRS system, and you will receive an e-mail during the last two weeks of class asking you to fill out the SIRS web form at your convenience. In addition, participation in the online SIRS system involves grade sequestration, which means that the final grade for this course will not be accessible on STUINFO during the week following the submission of grades for this course unless the SIRS online form has been completed. Alternatively, you have the option on the SIRS website to decline to participate in the evaluation of the course. We hope, however, that you will be willing to give us your frank and constructive feedback so that we may instruct students even better in the future. If you access the online SIRS website and complete the online SIRS form or decline to participate, you will receive the final grade in this course as usual once final grades are submitted.

Social Media and Sharing of Course Materials

As members of a learning community, students are expected to respect the intellectual property of course instructors. All course materials presented to students are the copyrighted property of the course instructor and are subject to the following conditions of use:

1. Students may record lectures or any other classroom activities and use the recordings only for their own course-related purposes.
2. Students may share the recordings with other students enrolled in the class. Sharing is limited to using the recordings only for their own course-related purposes.
3. Students may post the recordings or other course materials online or distribute them to anyone not enrolled in the class with the advance written permission of the course instructor and, if applicable, any students whose voice or image is included in the recordings.
4. Any student violating the conditions described above may face academic disciplinary sanctions.

Student Support Program (SSP)

Michigan State University is offering all MSU students access to counseling support 24/7/365 through My SSP: Student Support Program. My SSP is free to all MSU students. My SSP is confidential, and can help with:

• Adapting to new challenges
• Being successful at school
• Relationships with friends and family
• Practical issues with studying
• Stress, sadness, loneliness, and more

The My SSP professional counselors are available to help anytime, anywhere with:

• Immediate support by phone and chat
• Ongoing support by appointment via phone and video
• In addition, culturally relevant support is available in the language of the caller’s choice.

There are multiple options for connecting with a My SSP counselor:

• Download the free My SSP app on Google Play or iTunes
• Chat online at http://us.myissp.com
• Call 1-866-743-7732
• From outside North America, call 001.416.380.657

On & Off Campus 24 Hour Emergency Services:

National Suicide Prevention (Lifeline)
Collect Calls Accepted 24 Hours
1-800- 273-TALK (8255)

MSU Police Department
Emergency: 911
Business Line: (517) 355-2221

MSU Counseling Center Sexual Assault Program
(517) 372-6666

Community Mental Health
(800) 372-8460
(517) 346-8460

MSU Safe Place (Domestic Violence Shelter)
Crisis Line: (517) 355-1100

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities should contact the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities to establish reasonable accommodations. For an appointment with a counselor, call 353-9642 (voice) or 355-1293 (TTY)

Drops and Adds

The last day to add this course is the end of the first week of classes. The last day to drop this course with a 100 percent refund and no grade reported is (see Academic Calendar). The last day to drop this course with no refund and no grade reported is (see Academic Calendar). You should immediately make a copy of your amended schedule to verify you have added or dropped this course.

Note on Attendance

Students who fail to attend the first four class sessions or class by the fifth day of the semester, whichever occurs first, may be dropped from the course.