AMST 371.01 

Class and Culture

Roger Williams University

M-TH 3:30 - 4:50

GHH 108

Michael R. H. Swanson, Ph. D. 

Office GHH 215

Hours:  M: 9:30-11:00 T, Th 11:00-12:00, 2:00-3:00

Phone:  (254) 3230

E-MAIL  MSWANSON@RWU.EDU

For  Monday, April 27

For  Thursday , April 30

Studs Terkel Group One will lead us in a discussion of these Characters:

I'm writing in retrospect again,  hopefully for the last time.  Today, we finished out viewing of Working Nine to Five and briefly discussed the film and its relationship to some of the ideas in Studs Terkel's Working.  We noted the evidence of office-place hierarchy, of the number of different types of workers it takes to keep a modern corporation working, different degrees of satisfaction/ dissatisfaction with one's job, and ways to treat co-workers with dignity or with lack thereof. 

Unlike real life, the film did have a happy ending...for all except the villainous boss.  We made some progress in preparing for our roundtable discussions of Working, and Thursday, we'll try this approach out for the first Time

• Almawishir, Sultan M, will help us understand Renault Robinson, Policeman  pp. 137-143
  

• Almuwayshir, Abdullah A. will help us understand Will Robinson, Bus Driver  pp. 201-206
  

• Gliniecki, Rachel, will help us understand, Rip Torn, Actor  pp. 82-85
  

• Pereira, Andrea, will help us understand, Fritz Ritter, Doorman, pp. 126-129
  

• Simmons, Kendall, will help us understand, Eddie Jaffe, Press Agent,pp. 85-88
  

• Wood, Robert,  will help us understand, George Allen, Football Coach,. pp.386-390
  

Then

Studs Terkel Group Two will lead us in a discussion of these Characters:

• Asselin, Devon, will help us understand, Aunt Katherine Hayes, Farm Woman, pp. 14-16
  

• Cianciolo, Julia, will help us understand,  Terry Mason, Airline Stewardess  pp. 41-49
  

• Gaulin, Grant, will help us understand, Maggie Holms, Domestic,  pp. 112-118
  

• Minischetti, Sarah, will help us understand, Tim McCoy, Proofreader,  pp. 451-452
  

Finally

Studs Terkel Group Three will lead us in a discussion of these Characters:

• Al Moisheer, Rakan T., will help us understand Anthony Ruggiero, Industrial Investigator pp. 143-153
  

• DeFrancesco, Jesse, will help us understand Blackie Mason, Sports Press Agent pp. 373-376
  

• Fitzpatrick, Megan G., will help us understand Vincent Maher, Policeman pp. 126-129
  

• Lomba, Krystal, will help us understand Jill Torrance, Model pp. 50-55
  

• Smith, Caitlin, will help us understand Hots Michaels, Bar Pianist  pp. 250-253.
  

Everyone will read ALL the sections above and come prepared to contribute to the discussion.

I don't want to influence your free thought by giving you too many suggestions.  This assignment is at least part an exercise in creative imagination.  How do these people feel about their lives?  How might they feel about each other's lives?  Whom would they envy?  Whom wouldn't they change places with for all the gold in the world?  Which would you like to meet, and why?  Think about things along those lines