BUSINESS LEADERSHIP 484

Management by Subjectives: Leadership in Literature

Spring, 2002

R.H. Passon 

 

Course Description (rev. 4/5/01) 

                This final course in the business leadership sequence approaches the question of leadership from a humanistic perspective.  It considers as case studies models of leadership presented in works of literature, including poems, plays, and prose fiction, as well as in film.  The emphasis will be on the personal relationships between leaders and those they would lead, and on fundamental ethical questions which leaders must answer. 

Objectives 

  1. The student should be able to give an extended definition of the term leadership.
  1. The student should be able to explain human qualities which are characteristic of good (and bad) leaders.
  1. The student should be able to recognize and apply literary terms and concepts sufficient to develop fundamental critical conclusions about plays, poems, novels, stories and films.
  1. The student should be able to analyze works of literature and film as case studies of leadership.
  1. The student should be able to argue, both orally and in written form, the validity of her/his analyses of leadership models from literature and film.
  1. The student should be able to apply lessons learned from literature to practical business situations.
  1. The student should be able to make general conclusions about appropriate leadership behavior from the examples of literature and film.

SCHEDULE OF CLASS MEETINGS

 

Week 1                            Introduction to the course; first film: The Contender. 

Week 2                                  Second film. Citizen Kane. 

Week 3                                  Beowulf 

Week 4                                  (cont.) 

Week 5                                  Third Film. 

Week 6                                  Malory, Morte D/Arthur 

Week 7                                  (cont.) 

Week 8                           Biography and film. Queen Elizabeth I. 

Week 9                                  (cont.) 

Week 10                               Shakespeare,  Henry V. (with film version). 

Week 11                               (cont.) 

Week 12                               Sinclair Lewis, Babbitt 

Week 13                               (cont.) 

Week 14                               Robert Penn Warren, All the King’s Men (with film version). 

Week 15                               (cont. and course windup)

 

WORK OF THE COURSE

1.0                Summary 

1.1               Read and discuss works of literature; view and discuss films. – 15%

1.2               Draft and revise six four-page essays on scheduled works. – 60%  (10% each)

1.3               Develop and present background research report. – 10%

1.4               Draft and revise final paper. – 15% 

 

2.0                Reading and Viewing 

The minimum required reading includes all of the material listed on the schedule of class meetings, and other material which may be identified as the course progresses.  Films on the schedule must also be viewed at least once.  I will conduct classes with the expectation that the pieces of literature listed have been read and the films viewed prior to the dates listed on the schedule.  Arrangements for the showing of films will be announced during the first week of classes.   I will expect students to take an active part in class discussions of these works.

 

3.0                Essays 

Each student will write six four-page essays on works identified in the schedule of class meetings.  Drafts should be completed by the day on which the work is to be discussed.  Students will use these drafts for class discussions.  Students will be expected to revise each essay after the first week of class consideration of the piece.

 

4.0                Research Report 

Each student will develop (with a colleague) a research report on the background of one of the scheduled works and present the report to the class, fielding questions and elaborating as appropriate.  Assignments for these research reports will be made early in the semester. 

 

5.0                Final Paper 

Each student will write a final paper for the course in the following stages. 

5.1               Draft a thesis statement and submit it for review.  Due date 

5.2               Revise the thesis statement and write a first draft of the paper.  Due date 

5.3               Write a revised final draft of the paper.  Due date – last class of the semester. 

More information about the subject of these papers will be provided early in the semester.

 

6.0                Some Ground Rules

 

6.1               All students will be expected to attend and participate actively in all classes. 

6.2               All assignments are to be completed and turned in by the date assigned.   

6.3               Instructions for electronic submission of assignments via Blackboard will be provided during the first week of classes. 

6.4               I will expect student to raise questions and make comments in class without fear of intimidation.  Ridicule in any form will not be tolerated.  Courtesy to one’s colleagues is a necessary condition for successful participation in classes.   

6.5               I reserve the right to postpone answering a question to some time after class, if I judge that the use of class time is not appropriate.  I also reserve the right not to know the answer to a question, though I will try to discover it. 

6.6               I will be available in my office (402 Brennan Hall) 15 minutes before and after each class.  I will also be available during certain posted hours (to be announced).  If these hours are for some reason not possible, please call for an appointment (x4327).  I may also be reached by email (passonr1@scranton.edu). 

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