ASSESSMENT
1. Literature review (20%).
This is a diagnostic piece of work, to test if you are able critically to analyse scholarly written work, and to present your analysis in a structured, logical way. The task will also help to make you familiar and confident with using an academic library and finding your own source material. Any problems at this stage can then be addressed in individual tutorial sessions before embarking on the major piece of assessed work, the essay.
Using the bibliography given below, (and other works if you wish) write a literature review of about 2,000 words on the topic of:
Why do governments invest in culture?
You should outline the main arguments offered by the authors; point out any general areas of agreement or contradiction between them, offer some assessment of which views you find the most convincing, and give your reasons for this. Devise an appropriate introduction and conclusion for your work, and provide your own bibliography. Use the Harvard referencing system throughout.
Obviously, the wider your reading, the more authoritative your review will be. It is not likely that you will pass this assignment if you refer to fewer than 4 works. You also cannot rely solely on using the internet for this assignment (or any other, I hope!)
Bibliography:
McGuigan, J. Culture and the Public Sphere, (Routledge 1996)
A compilation of almost contemporary theoretical views on many of the burning issues in the field, covering most of the topics we consider in module 1, Cultural Policy . This is the one to read if you want something approaching an introduction to the theory of the field. Don’t be discouraged if you find some of it difficult reading, the approach we will take is less complicated and more practical!
Ray,L. and Sayer, A.(eds); Culture and the Economy after the Cultural Turn (Sage, 1999)
A collection of essays by sociologists on the way that culture has moved up the political hierarchy in recent years. International approach.
Tusa, John. Art Matters: Reflecting on Culture (Methuen 2000)
A controversial critique of current policy on culture in the UK. You may not agree with him but he raises some key questions. Journalistic in approach, an easy read, so a good introduction if you are new to the subject.
Minihan, J. The Nationalisation of Culture (1977)
(a thorough historical account: does not cover the post-war period)
Bennett, O. Collapsing Rationales and the End of a Tradition, in International Journal of Cultural Policy (1995) 1,2. 196-216.
(out of date but the central arguments are valid).
Hewison, R. The Heritage Industry: Britain in a climate of decline. (1987)
(argument that “heritage” is largely artificial, and damaging to genuine understanding of the past.)
You may find it useful to trawl through the International Journal of Cultural Policy to find more on this topic. You can also make use of any newspaper articles you come across about it, but make sure they are really relevant, not just vaguely about culture!
