Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
Classical Marxism
Course Guide
Overview
Marx developed an understanding of how capitalism works as a guide to
political action. He analysed the relationships between economic and
political power, class and inequality, accumulation and globalisation,
exploitation and oppression, struggle and social changeissues that are still
relevant, despite changes in technologies and the details of capitalist
organisation of production (whose dynamics he considered).
Through the course we develop our understanding of key Marxist concepts
and their application to current problems. In seminars we discuss important
Marxist texts, mainly by Marx and Engels, their historical context and
contemporary relevance. Lectures provide background to these texts and
their relationship to Marxist theory and practice. Issues we cover include: the
Marxist conception of socialism as the self-emancipation of the working
class; Marxs integration of earlier radical democratic and socialist
traditions; the place of revolution in Marxs approach to the supersession of
capitalism.
Classical Marxism
Basic information
Lecturer:
Dr Rick Kuhn, room 2135 Copland Building, 6125-3851
email Rick.Kuhn@anu.edu.au
The best way to arrange a meeting time with Rick is by email. He will be available for
consultation after seminars.
School of Social Sciences Office
Lectures
Tuesday
11:00 am-1:00 pm
2-4:00 pm
Seminars
Tuesday
Learning outcomes
By the end of this course, you should be able to
demonstrate knowledge of basic Marxist concepts
describe the contexts within which Marxist concepts emerged and evolved in Marxs
and Engelss time and subsequently
distinguish amongst different approaches which call themselves Marxist and their
relationships with the ideas and practice of Marx and Engels
formulate Marxist approaches to researching historical and contemporary social
issues
analyse historical and contemporary social issues by applying Marxist concepts
assess the usefulness and validity of Marxist approaches
individually and collectively, present written and oral arguments about the above
Generic skills
This course will help develop your skills in
critical thinking
written and oral communication
research
teamwork
challenging authority
2010
How to read
Regular
attendance
and
active
participation in seminars (at least seven of
the ten seminars) is a prerequisite for
passing this course.
If you are to get anything out of the seminars it is
also essential to do the reading and to come to
seminars with your assessments and criticisms of
the texts and questions about them. An important
strategy for the course is to try to read all the
required reading early in the semester, even if
only quickly, and then to reread it in preparation
for seminars. The focus on the primary texts and
the sometimes substantial amount of reading they
involve has meant that there are only a few items
under additional reading for each seminar. The
secondary literature on Marx and Engelss work,
not to mention attempts to apply their theories
and methods, is vast. Students who are interested
in pursuing specific questions or who are
introducing a seminar should not hesitate to
explore this literature. Rick will be happy to
suggest further entry points to it.
Almost all the required seminar readings are on
the web.
See the pointers on seminar introductions on
page 14.
Lectures
The lectures will provide background
information on the material discussed in the
seminars. If you read ahead and have factual
questions about the background to them, let Rick
know so he can include a response in the relevant
lecture.
4
Self-consciousness
What assumptions/theories are you bringing to
the text? How do they influence your answers to
the above questions?
Critical assessment
The questions above may help to provide a basis
for making critical assessments of the texts
originality, strengths, weaknesses, implications,
persuasiveness, applicability, acceptability etc.
Reading
Recommended text
Callinicos, Alex The Revolutionary Ideas of Karl
Marx
Bookmarks,
London
1995,
www.istendency.net/pdf/revideas.pdf. A brief
and clear explanation of Marxs thought. It is
strongly recommended that students read this
before or early in the course.
A key source if you want to obtain your own
copies of material is the Marxists Internet
Archive at www.marxists.org
Classical Marxism
State University of New York Press, Albany
2000 Chifley JC423 .N535 2000. Brilliant!
Other useful books are:
Abendroth, Wolfgang A Short History of the
European Working Class Monthly Review Press,
New York 1972
Barbalet, Jack Marxs Construction of Social
Theory Routledge and Kegan Paul, London 1983
Bottomore Tom A Dictionary of Marxist Thought
Blackwell, Oxford 1988
Draper, Hal The Marx-Engels Cyclopedia
Schocken, New York 1986 a reference work,
rather than something to read cover-to-cover.
Geras, Norman Marx and Human Nature:
Refutation of a Legend Verso, London 1983 *
Hobsbawm, Eric The Age of Revolution: Europe
1789-1848 Weidenfeld and Nicholson, London
1962
Hobsbawm, Eric The Age of Capital, 1848-1875
Weidenfeld and Nicholson, London 1975
Hobsbawm, Eric The Age of Empire, 1875-1914
Pantheon, New York 1987
Hobsbawm, Eric The Revolutions of 1848 sound
recording, Sussex tapes, Wakefield 1975
Lapides, Kenneth (ed.) Marx and Engels on the
trade unions Praeger, New York 1987
HX544.M373 1987
Lenin, Vladimir The Three Sources and Three
Component
Parts
of
Marxism
1913
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/archive/lenin/works/1
913/mar/x01.htm
Lenin,
Vladimir
Karl
Marx
1914
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/archive/lenin/works/1
914/granat/index.htm
Lenin, Vladimir State and Revolution written
1917
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/archive/lenin/works/1
917/staterev/index.htm
Lukcs, Georg History and Class Consciousness
Merlin, London 1971 Chifley HX260.H8.L783
most
of
the
text
is
at
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/archive/lukacs/works/
history/index.htm
Meek, Ronald L. (ed.) Marx and Engels on
Malthus: selections from the writings of Marx
2010
and Engels dealing with the theories of Thomas
Robert Malthus Lawrence and Wishart, London
1953 Menzies HB863.M253
Mehring, Franz Karl Marx: The Story of His Life
University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor 1969
Molyneux, John What is the Real Marxist
Tradition?
Bookmarks,
London
1985,
www.marxisme.dk/arkiv/molyneux/realmarx/
5
Wheen, Francis Karl Marx Fourth Estate,
London, 1999
General critiques of Marxism
Conway, David A Farewell to Marx Penguin,
Harmondsworth 1987
Wesson, Robert G. Why Marxism? The
continuing success of a failed theory Temple
Smith, London 1976
Journals
Classical Marxism
Course structure
If you have any suggestions about the structure and content of the course they will be welcome. Make
them, the earlier the better, at a seminar or lecture or to Rick in his office.
Week 2 (1 March)
Lecture 2 Background to the Young Marx
Seminar 2 Marx and Engels The Communist
Manifesto
Week 3 (8 March)
Lecture 3 Dialectics, materialism and Marxs
Method
Seminar 3 Engels Socialism Utopian and Scientific
Week 9 (3 May)
Lecture 9 Marxism after Marx 1: The Second
International and Reformism
Seminar 9 Marx Value, Price and Profit and David
Smith and Phil Evans Marxs Kapital for Beginners
Pantheon, New York 1982
2010
Seminars
Seminar 1
22 February
Seminar 2
1 March
Seminar 3
8 March
Classical Marxism
Seminar 4
Seminar 5
15 March
22 March
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/18
44/manuscripts/labour.htm
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/18
67-c1/ch01.htm#S4
Additional Reading
Lukcs, Georg History and Class Consciousness
Merlin, London 1971 Chifley HX260.H8.L783
most of the text is at
http://www.marxists.org/archive/lukacs/works/hi
story/index.htm
Smith, David and Evans Phil Marxs Kapital for
Beginners Pantheon, New York 1982 on ClaMs
WebCT page
The rest of the Economic and Philosophical
Manuscripts
Ollman, Bertell Alienation Cambridge University
Press, Cambridge Second Edition 1976
HM291.O58 1976
Seminar 6
29 March
2010
Seminar 7
19 April
Additional Reading
Trotsky, Leon Results and Prospects 1906
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/archive/trotsky/1931/t
pr/rp-index.htm
Cliff, Tony Deflected Permanent Revolution
First Published in International Socialism first
series, number 16, Spring 1963
www.anu.edu.au/polsci/marx/contemp/pamsetc/p
ermrev/permrev.html
Henryk, Katz The emancipation of labor: a
history of the First International Greenwood,
New York 1992 HX11.I46K38 1992 *
A variety of historical resources on the
International at the Marxists Internet Archive
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/history/international/i
wma/index.htm
Draper, Hal Karl Marxs Theory of Revolution
Volume 2: The Politics of Social Classes
Monthly Review Press, New York 1978 Part II.
JC233.M299D7 *
Hallas, Duncan Trotskys Marxism Bookmarks,
London 1984
Cliff, Tony Trotsky: Towards October
Bookmarks, London 1989
26 April
Seminar 8
Marx The civil war in France
Whole book as PDF file
http://marxists.org/archive/marx/works/downloa
d/Marx_The_Civil_War_in_France.pdf
Read:
Engels Introduction
chapter 5 The Paris Commune
Engels Postscript
Additional Reading
Rapkin, David Ten socialist classics: The Civil
War in France Socialist worker (USA) 9 June
10
Classical Marxism
2008, http://socialistworker.org/2008/06/09/thecivil-war-in-france
Gluckstein, Donny The Paris commune : a
revolution in democracy Bookmarks, London
2006 Chifley DC316.G57 2006
Thomas, Edith The women incendiaries Secker
& Warburg, London 1967 Chifley DC317.T471
Horne, Alistair The Fall of Paris: The Siege and
the Commune 1870-71 Penguin, London 2007
[1965]
Draper, Hal Karl Marxs Theory of Revolution
Volume 1: State and Bureaucracy Monthly
Review Press, New York 1977 part 2.
JC233.M299D7 *
Kellog, Paul Engels and the Roots of
Revisionism: A Re-Evaluation Science and
Society 55(2) Summer 1991 pp. 158-174
Additional Reading
Marx, Karl Wage-labour and Capital
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/do
wnload/Marx_Wage_Labour_and_Capital.pdf
Marx, Karl Capital Volume 1: Chapter 1
sections 1 and 2, chapter 4, chapters 6-7, chapter
9 section 1, chapter 25 sections 1 and 2, chapter
32 http://marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867c1/index.htm
Mandel, Ernest An Introduction to Marxist
Economic Theory Pathfinder, New York 1979
HB97.5.M26513 1973
http://marxists.anu.edu.au/archive/mandel/1967/i
ntromet/index.htm
Sweezy, Paul The Theory of Capitalist
Development Monthly Review Press, New York
1970 HB501.M5S9
Seminar 9
3 May
Seminar 10
10 May
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/do
wnload/Engels_The_Origin_of_the_Family_Priv
ate_Property_and_the_Stat.pdf
In particular, read:
Preface
2010
chapter 2 The family, section 4 The
monogamous family, from the words We thus
have three principal forms to the end of the
seciton
chapter 9 Barbarism and civilisation
Additional Reading
Schulte, Elizabeth Ten socialist classics: Origin
of the Family, Private Property and the State
Socialist worker (USA) 12 May 2008,
http://socialistworker.org/2008/05/12/originfamily-private-property
Leacock, Eleanor Burke Introduction to
Friedrich Engels The Origins of the Family
Private Property and the State International
Publishers, New York 1975 HQ504.E6 1975
Draper, Hal Marx and Engels on Womens
Liberation in Roberta Salper (ed.) Female
Liberation Knopf, New York 1972 HQ1426.S24
also E-reserve
Leacock, Eleanor Burke, Myths of male
dominance: collected articles on women crossculturally, Monthly Review Press, New York,
1981, Menzies GN479.7.L4 1981
German, Lindsey. Sex, Class and Socialism
Bookmarks 1989 HQ1593.G47 1989 discusses
the nature of the family, women in the workforce
and strategies for womens liberation
Bloch, Maurice Marxism and Anthropology
Clarendon, Oxford 1983
Sacks, Karen Engels revisited: women, the
organization of production, and private property
in Rayna Reiter (ed.), Toward an anthropology
of women, Monthly Review Press, New York,
1975 Menzies GN479.7.T68
Smith, Sharon Engels and the origin of womens
oppression International socialist review 2, Fall
1997 pp. 38-47
Coontz, Stephanie and Peta Henderson (eds)
Womens work, mens property: the origins of
gender and class, Verso, London, 1986 Menzies
GN479.65.W65 1986
Terray, Emmanuel Marxism and Primitive
Societies Monthly Review Press, New York
1972
German, Lindsey Material girls: women, men
and work Bookmarks, London 2007
11
Seminar 11
17 May
12
Classical Marxism
Week 12
24 May
No lecture or seminar
SUBMIT COURSE DIARY BY 4.00 pm
Monday 24 May
Week 13
(31 June)
No lecture or seminar
2010
13
Course procedures
Organising your work
Effectively organising your work and
establishing a balance between course
requirements and other, perhaps more appealing,
aspects of your life is an important survival skill
at university and elsewhere. The Academic
Skills and Learning Centre (ground floor
Pauline Griffin Building No 11, 6125-2972) can
help you in developing this skill. If you have
problems organising your work then consult the
staff at the Centre who have lots of experience in
assisting students. If you have any learning
disabilities Rick and your tutor are happy to
discuss strategies for dealing with them in the
context of the course.
Help is available
The Academic Skills and Learning Centre
(ground floor Pauline Griffin Building No 11,
6125-2972) can give you assistance to improve
your ability to meet the requirements of
university study, including note taking, essay
writing and understanding what teachers want.
The Counselling Service (first floor,
Counselling Centre & Health Services Building,
next to Sports Union, 6125-2442) is there to help
you deal with personal and family problems.
The Jabal Centre (lower ground floor, Melville
Hall, 6125-3520) provides support for
Aboriginal Students.
The Health Service (ground floor, Counselling
Centre & Health Services Building, next to
Sports Union, 6125-3598) has doctors (GPs) and
nurses on staff who can help with medical
problems.
The Disability Services Unit (Student Facilities
Building,
Union
Court,
above
the
Commonwealth Bank, opposite the Union
Refectory, 6125-5036) acts as the University
contact point for students with disabilities.
Inclusive language
You are encouraged to be precise in your speech
and writing. For example, when you mean the
male sex then man may be the appropriate
term, but not if the human species as a whole is
meant. Referring to a male person as he is fine
but not if the person referred to could be female.
Assessment scheme
Assessment
The second examiner for this course is Alastair
Greig. Assessment items will not be accepted
for marking more than two weeks after their
due dates. Your final mark will be weighted
within the limits indicated to maximise the
outcome. The following is proposed as
assessment for this course:
Seminar introduction paper (1000 words)
Submit by the following seminar
Weighting Min 10% Max 20%
Course Diary
Submit by 4.00 pm Monday 24 May
Weighting Min 35% Max 45%
Research essay (3 000 words)
Clear topic by week of Thursday 1 April
Submit by 4.00 pm Monday 10 May
Weighting Min 45% Max 55%
Note
a) regular attendance and active participation
in seminars (at least seven of the ten seminars)
is a prerequisite for passing this course.
b) your Research essay and seminar
introduction should be on distinct topics.
Participation
All students should come to the seminars with
questions arising from and/or comments about
the reading. Regular attendance and active
participation in at seminars (at least seven of
the eleven seminars) is a prerequisite for
passing the course.
Course diary
Due 4.00 pm Monday 24 May
No diaries will be accepted for marking after
4.00 pm Monday 1 June
Reading and understanding what Marx and
Engels and later Marxists wrote and meant is the
key aspect of this course. The idea of the course
diary is that you keep track of your reading for
14
the course, your reactions (intellectual and/or
analytical and/or emotional) to it and other
reflections (on any kind of issue, reading or
experience) that are relevant to the course. The
diary can be in an exercise book or separate
sheets stapled together for submission. Note
down what you read and when, along with your
reaction to the work and/or a summary and/or
thoughts about its adequacy or contemporary
relevance. This is not meant to involve polished
work or mini-essays, but rather to be an aid to
your understanding. Full sentences and perfect
syntax are not essential, though legibility is
important. It is also vital that you write up the
diary week by week, rather than at the end of
the course as it is due the week after lectures and
tutes end. The diary must have a course cover
sheet (at the back of this guide), fully filled in
with the statement about acknowledgement,
collaboration and resubmission signed.
Seminar introduction
All students are required to speak for about ten
minutes introducing at least one seminar topic.
Students are encouraged to collaborate in the
preparation of seminar introductions. Seminar
introductions should
1. Outline the structure of the argument in the
text, that is the steps it goes through to reach
its main conclusions.
2. Identify issues, questions and controversies
arising from the reading which the group can
discuss. You can raise any difficulties or
criticisms you have with any of the reading
(including weaknesses in presentation,
arguments or logic), the context of its
production and its implications for the
application of Marxist concepts.
In order to get feedback, you may distribute a
draft of your paper to all participants at your
seminar.
The idea is that the seminar introduction should
be a basis for discussion in the group. As with
other reports (oral or written) your arguments
and conclusions will be valued if they are
logical, coherent and backed up with evidence.
You should time your introduction before you
deliver it, to make sure it is not too long or too
short.
Classical Marxism
Due with one week of the seminar in which it
is presented
Seminar papers will not be accepted for
marking after two weeks after the seminar in
which it was presented
Format
The paper should
be 1 000 words long (plus or minus 100)
be double spaced
be on A4 paper
have a 3 cm left margin
have numbered pages
have a course cover sheet (at the back of this
guide), fully filled in with the statement about
acknowledgement,
collaboration
and
resubmission signed
preferably be typed
be stapled in the top left corner
not be in a plastic or other folder or envelope
be submitted through the School essay box,
outside the School office (Copland Room
2147).
Keep a spare copy of your paper in case the
submitted one goes astray.
Assessment criteria
When assessing your essays, the marker will take
the above into account and ask the following
questions about your essay:
Focus: Did the paper deal with the important
issues raised by the topic and raise useful
questions that related to them?
Argument: How clearly were the issues
presented? Were your assertions backed by
sufficient evidence?
Research: What was the depth of your reading
and research? Has a range of empirical
sources and other sources been consulted
and used to back up arguments?
Critical reading: Did you read critically? Does
the paper indicate awareness of different
perspectives on and/or theories relevant to
the topic?
Expression: Is the paper written in a clear,
precise and readable style, appropriate for an
academic essay?
Referencing and format: Did you supply proper
references (no bibliography is necessary), as
outlined on page 16? Did you use follow the
guidelines for formatting your paper on page
14.
2010
Submission
Submit your paper to the essay box at the School
office (Copland Room 2147). The Schools
administrative staff keeps a record of essays etc
received. So if it goes missing you are covered.
For this reason do not submit essays direct to
Rick and certainly not under his office door.
Marks will be deducted at the rate of 2% per
working day for papers received after the due
date. No papers will be accepted for marking
after two weeks after the due date.
Research essay/project
3 000 words
Clear topic by week of Thursday 1 April
Due 4.00 pm Monday 10 May
No Research essays will be accepted for
marking after 4.00 pm Monday 1 June
Working out your own topic has advantages, in
particular that you are really interested in it.
Essay questions can be related to influences on
classical Marxist thought, specific aspects of
classical Marxism (its methodology, treatment of
specific events or issues), its application to
contemporary or historical issues.
Your Research essay should:
be on a topic distinct from that dealt with in at
least one of the seminars you introduced.
be based on research notes which must be
available for submission to the examiner if
required. Should you be unable to provide
your research notes when required, the essay
may be given a mark of zero.
make use material beyond the references in
this course guide.
have footnotes and a bibliography using the
format indicated under Referencing and
bibliographies below. Marks will be
deducted for inadequate references in notes
and the bibliography.
Topic
Select a topic and clear it with Rick, preferably
by Thursday 1 April, using the Approval Form at
the back of this Guide. The material discussed in
seminars and lectures provides considerable
scope for developing topics. You may not write
an Research essay on the same seminar topic for
which you do a presentation.
An essay is an argument, it is not a series of
facts, descriptions or quotations. The point of
15
any essay is not just to show the amount of
information you know about a particular topic,
but to develop and demonstrate your ability to
think critically, in terms of, for example,
assessing other peoples arguments, applying
theories, explaining developments, comparing
arguments or empirical material and using
empirical material to support your own
arguments. Bear these considerations in mind
both when you select your essay question and
when you answer it.
Group work
You are encouraged to work in groups on
projects, which examine a topic at greater length
than an essay would. Project work should
involve group discussions approach, conclusions
and final product. The length of projects is 3 000
words plus 2 000 words for each extra
participant e.g. 4 000 words for two people,
7 000 words for three people, 21 000 for ten
people.
Format
The Research essay should
be 3 000 words long (plus or minus 300)
be double spaced
be on A4 paper
have a 3 cm left margin
have numbered pages
have a course cover sheet (at the back of this
guide), fully filled in with the statement about
acknowledgement,
collaboration
and
resubmission signed
preferably be typed
include a bibliography
be stapled in the top left corner
not be in a plastic or other folder or envelope
be submitted through the School essay box,
outside the School office (Copland Room
2147).
Keep a spare copy of your Research essay in
case the submitted one goes astray.
Assessment criteria
When assessing your Research essays, the
marker will take the above into account and ask
the following questions about your essay:
Focus: How well did you answer the question
and address the main issues?
Argument: How well did you argue a case in
your essay; are the subarguments well
organised; is the structure logical and
16
thought out? Were your main assertions
backed by sufficient evidence?
Research: What was the depth of your reading
and research? Has a range of empirical
sources and other sources been consulted
and used to back up arguments?
Critical reading: Did you read critically? Does
the essay indicate awareness of different
perspectives on and/or theories relevant to
the topic?
Expression: Is the essay written in a clear,
precise and readable style, appropriate for an
academic essay?
Referencing and format: Did you supply proper
references and a full bibliography , as
outlined on page 16? Did you use follow the
guidelines for formatting your essay on page
15.
Submission
Submit your Research essay to the essay box at
the School office (Copland Room 2147). The
Schools administrative staff keeps a record of
essays etc received. So if it goes missing you are
covered. For this reason do not submit essays
direct to Rick and certainly not under his office
door.
Marks will be deducted at the rate of 2% per
working day for Research essays received
after 4.00 pm Monday 10 May. No Research
essays will generally be accepted for marking
after 4.00 pm Monday 1 June.
Classical Marxism
For journal articles in addition to the authors
name and the title of the article, include the
journal, volume and number of journal, and date
of publication.
Jacobs, Jack Marxism and anti-semitism:
Kautskys perspective International review
of social history 30 (3) 1985 pp. 400-430
For articles in edited collections, in addition to
the authors name and the title of the article
include the editors name, title, publisher, place
of publication and date.
Benjamin, Walter Theses on the philosophy
of history in Stephen Bronner and Douglas
Kellner Critical theory and society Routledge,
New York 1989 pp. 260-261
Material found on the web should also be
properly referenced. Where possible, your
reference should include all of the following
information: author of specific work/page, title
of work, author/owner of site, title of site, date
work published on the web, web address, date
you accessed the work, full reference to hard
copy version of the work if there was one.
Vogt, Annette Emil Julius Gumbel (18911966): the first editor of Karl Marxs
mathematical manuscripts MEGA-Studien
1995 2 pp. 26-41
www.bbaw.de/vh/mega/studien_eng.html#vo
gt, accessed 14 December 2001
The first time you cite a source in a footote, give
the full reference. If the same source is referred
to in the note immediately after you indicate this
by writing ibid. (short for ibidem, Latin for
again) and give the specific page reference.
5. Henryk Grossmann The Law of
accumulation and breakdown of the capitalist
system: being also a theory of crises, Pluto
Press, London, 1992, p. 37.
6. ibid., pp. 87-93.
If you refer to a source you have already used in
a previous note, but not the one immediately
before, write authors surname and an
abbreviated version of the title, followed by use
op. cit (short for opere citato, Latin for in the
work quoted), followed by the specific page
reference
10. Grossmann The law of accumulation, op.
cit. p. 107.
For more information about the footnotes system
see the Style manual for authors, editors and
printers Wiley, Brisbane, sixth edition 2002.
2010
Bibliographies should be in alphabetical order by
author. Entries should start with the authors
surnames.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is copying, paraphrasing or
summarising,
without
acknowl
edgement, any work of another person so that it
seems to be your own work. Acknowledgement
includes reference to the source of information or
specific words and clearly indicating which
words you are quoting by using quotation marks
or indenting a quoted paragraph. Plagiarism
occurs whether or not it is with the knowledge or
consent of the person whose work you plagiarise.
For ANU policy and procedures regarding
academic honesty, plagiarism and appeals, please
visit
http://policies.anu.edu.au/policies/code_of_practi
ce_for_student_academic_integrity/policy
If you plagiarise, the chances of being caught
are high and the penalties are severe. Even a
small amount of work which is your own is
worth more, both in terms of your learning and
marks, than any amount of plagiarism. Students
who have plagiarised in this School have been
caught and have failed as a consequence. If you
are unclear about how and when to reference
material see the instructions for referencing in
this course on page 16 and/or consult your tutor
and/or refer to the Political Science Essay
writing guide
http://arts.anu.edu.au/sss/POLSEssayGuide.pdf
Appeals procedures
If you genuinely believe you have received an
inappropriate or incorrect result in an Arts unit,
there are steps you can take to have that result
reviewed.
See
http://cass.anu.edu.au/
current-students/rules-and-policies/appeals.
17
18
Classical Marxism
Expression may need improvement in places
Solid intellectual work
Pass (50-59)
Work of fair quality showing awareness of
the main issues in the question but has
difficulty framing a relevant response
Argument may be weak
Takes a factual approach and does not
attempt to interpret the findings
Modest level of research
Written expression and scholarly conventions
need improvement
Competent intellectual work
Fail (Below 50)
Work of poor quality
A lack of understanding or misconception of
the issues and concepts raised in the question
No clear argument is presented
Insufficient grasp of the relevance and
interrelatedness of the material being
presented
Poorly researched
Expression that is difficult to understand
Careless about scholarly conventions,
spelling and other aspects of presentation
2010
19
Writing Essays
In practice it is difficult, if not impossible, to separate out the form of an essay from its content. You
may have the best, most original ideas but be unable to convey them to a reader. Essay writing is an
exercise in communication. It has some peculiarities, like references and a focus on the specified topic,
but shares features with other forms of communication.
Essays are or should be arguments which address the essay question. Telling a story may be
entertaining but it is not enough. You need to make a case for a particular position and organise
subarguments, evidence, references etc to persuade the reader of the correctness of your analysis. In
particular it is necessary to think carefully about the structure of your argument:
what is the overall argument, i.e. what do you want people to conclude from the essay (it should be
possible to summarise this in a couple of sentences at most)?
what is the structure of your argument, the logic of your case?
which points, examples, quotations should come first, in what order should they all go?
is there a need for empirical evidence to support your argument and the assertions that constitute it?
If you want to convince the person reading your essay of the correctness of the case you make, you
will need to conduct research. This will provide you with additional arguments and evidence and
enable you to refer the reader to the sources of these for more details and so they can be checked. So
you should not confine your research to just a couple of articles or books on the reading list. Your
essay will be stronger if you present well founded and supported arguments and evidence which are
the product of your independent reading.
Think about your prose style. The way you put together your phrases, sentences and paragraphs makes
a difference to how easy your argument is to understand. To get into practice, try analysing the styles
of different authors you have to read in this and other courses. Which ones are the easiest to
understand? Why? How do they do it? For particularly lucid prose read, for example, some George
Orwell (Homage to Catalonia), Lytton Strachey (Eminent Victorians). Orwells Politics and the
English Language in Inside the Whale and Other Essays Penguin Harmondsworth 1966 is an
excellent guide to clear writing. It is on the web at
http://nutsandbolts.washcoll.edu/orwell.html
and
http://eserver.org/theory/politics-and-englishlang.txt.
If you are not sure about referencing, preparing bibliographies or the spelling of a word then look it up
or check the right procedure. Dictionaries are not hard to find. The Australian bible for the correct
use of abbreviations punctuation, the two different referencing systems (notes and Harvard/author
date), bibliographies etc. is the Style manual for authors, editors and printers 6th edition Wiley,
Brisbane 2002 available at the information desk, Chifley Library.
The secret of readable essays
Try to organise your work so you can come back to your essay after a break of at least a few
days. Reread it. Unless you are perfect or incredibly unselfcritical you will quickly see
improvements you can make. It doesnt hurt to get a friend to read your essay through so s/he
can point out typos, spelling mistakes and grammatical atrocities.
The Political Science Essay Writing Guide ((http://arts.anu.edu.au/sss/POLSEssayGuide.PDF)) also
includes useful pointers on essay writing including referencing systems. If you have problems with any
aspect of essay writing, having already tried to overcome them by yourself, see Rick or your tutor
about them or talk to someone at the Academic Skills and Learning Centre (lower ground Floor
Chancelry Annex, 6125-2972).
_________________________________________
Student number
__________________________________
Phone
Signature
_____________________________
Date _________________
You should be familiar with the Universitys Code of practice on academic honesty in learning and teaching at
http://policies.anu.edu.au/policies/code_of_practice_for_student_academic_integrity/policy
Your name
____________________________________
Student number
Seminar day and time
_____________________________
Phone
Email address (if checked regularly) ______________________________________
Essay topic
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
Seminar topic
___________________________________________________
Approved __________________________
Date _________________________
Signature
________________________
Date _______________
You should be familiar with the Universitys Code of practice on academic honesty in learning and teaching at
http://policies.anu.edu.au/policies/code_of_practice_for_student_academic_integrity/policy
Your name
____________________________________
Student number
_____________________________
Phone
Signature
________________________
Date _______________
You should be familiar with the Universitys Code of practice on academic honesty in learning and teaching at
http://policies.anu.edu.au/policies/code_of_practice_for_student_academic_integrity/policy
Contents
Vital first steps
Basic Information
How to read
Course structure
Seminars
Course procedures
13
13
Help is available
13
Inclusive language
13
Assessment
13
Participation
13
Course diary
13
Seminar introduction
14
14
Research essay/project
15
16
17
Plagiarism
17
Appeals procedures
17
17
Writing essays
19
21