All students are required to write a 10-page summary and critique on the book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent (Wilkerson, 2020).
In addition to the book summary you are required to (1) select any five of the eight pillars of caste and demonstrate how each can inform (.i.e., educate) our understanding and perspectives of the criminal legal system. Feel free to use practical or anecdotal experiences to illustrate your points of view. This requirement is not part of your general book summary and requires a separate space devoted to each problem you identify. Ideally, you should be able to devote two pages (with a 500-word minimum) to each problem you identify. Be sure to attach these to the end of your summary.
The purpose of the book summary is to critically evaluate the materials while offering your reflections that either support or oppose the authors views. As these are graded relative to the best summaries written, students will score higher by using additional research to support their position or viewpoints. Past papers have ranged from the minimal requirement of 10 pages to a maximum of 25 pages, based on effort and degree of scholarship.
