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Transcript
Introduction to Cultural Anthropology ANTH 101 M, 6:30-9:00 Andrew Flachs [email protected] Office hours Friday 10:30-12:30 What makes us similar, and what sets us apart? Cultural anthropology is the study of human beings from a cross-cultural perspective. As such, it is a very broad field drawing on economics, natural sciences, history, literature, religion, politics, and gender studies. Anthropology stands out from these disciplines in trying to present a holistic view of humanity by understanding culture – the way we understand and navigate the world around us. By looking to other societies, we can not only understand how people in other parts of the world think and live, but also begin to question some of the base assumptions of our own society. This course is designed to introduce you to cultural anthropology. It is divided into four parts and each week will have a thematic focus. We will begin with the history and foundations of the discipline, paying special attention to its close relationship with colonialism, and later cultural relativism and universalism. What significance does that legacy have for modern cross-cultural study, and what balance should we strike between the extremes of cultural relativism and universalism? Then we will move to the major theories that have guided our view of human organization. What role do religion, the environment, technology, language, and history have in society today? What is culture, and how is that term used and misused? Why does that matter? The third section of the class will introduce us to anthropological methods. How do anthropologists collect their information, what is the value of that methodology, and what are the ethical and professional concerns that we must consider when using those methods? More to the point, what is the relevance of cultural anthropology in the 21st century? We will conclude by looking at recent work by anthropologists and discussing the ethical and political ramifications of their work. Assignments and Grading: Coursework should be read before class for the week it is assigned. Grading will be based on a midterm exam (20% of final grade), a final exam (40%), a 500 word essay written in response to the theme and readings of the week (20%), and participation/attendance in class (20%). This is not a writing intensive class but it is in many ways a reading intensive class. You are expected to come to class with opinions, doubts, critiques, and indictments against the readings so that we can work through them as a class. Tests will be a mixture of true/false, fill-in-the-blank, and short answer questions, are designed to last about an hour, and will take an hour and a half of class time so you can check your answers. The 500 word (450-550 words) essay needs to reference the readings of the week and the first paragraph should be a summary of the main points made. However, the bulk of the essay is your reaction to the writing, how it fits with the rest of the class, and your well-reasoned opinion of the arguments. Readings: There will be one required textbook to help guide our class discussions, but many of our readings will be scanned articles available through the course website. Syllabus Week 1: Course overview and introduction to the basics of cultural anthropology. What is anthropology and where does it come from? Morgan: Ancient Society Herder: Selections Kottak: 1-5, 23-36 Boas: Aims of Anthropology Week 2: The Anthropological Method: What do anthropologists do and what kinds of questions does anthropology ask? Kottak: Chapter 3 Fricke: Taking Culture Seriously Bleek: Lying informants Malinowski: Introduction to Arogonauts of the Western Pacific Geertz: Deep Play Week 3: Anthropology and Colonialism: What are the legacies from European empires and how do they influence us today? Kottak: 5-12, 36-45, Chapter 10 Mintz: Time, Sugar, Sweetness Scott: Crops, Towns, Government Wolf: Introduction to Europe and the People Without History Diamond: Introduction to Guns, Germs, and Steel McIntosh: White Privilege Week 4: Gender and Kinship Kottak: Chapter 7,8 Weston: Exiles from Kinship Zihlman: Gathering Stories for Hunting Human Nature Bohannan: Shakespeare in the Bush Week 5: Environments and Material Culture Murphy: Anthropological Theories of Julian H. Steward Harris: The Cultural Ecology of India’s Sacred Cattle Stone: Theory of the Square Chicken Malthus: Chapter 1, 2 Wilmsen: The Creation of Subsistence Foraging Week 6: Symbol and Meaning Wilk: Marginal Foods Gmelch: Baseball Magic Bordieu: The Forms of Capital Brewis and Jack: Consuming Chavs McCloud: Chapter 2 from Understanding Comics Midterm Week 7: Social Institutions Kottak: Chapter 6, 9 Mauss: Introduction and Chapter 1 of The Gift Foucault: The Great Confinement Scott: Introduction to Seeing Like a State Week 9: Economics Kottak: 99-107 Marx: The Commodity Weber: Protestant Sects and the Spirit of Capitalism Schumacher: Buddhist economics Sahlins: The Original Affluent Society Week 10: Medical Anthropology Kottak: 270-275 Martin: The Egg and the Sperm Mattingly: Introduction to Paradox of Hope Biehl: Vita Farner: Structural Violence Week 11: Ethics and representation Kottak: 46-48 Miner: Body Ritual Among the Nacirema Ortner: Reflections on Studying Up Laden: Are Anthropologists a Dangerous Tribe? Oggburg: Meeting the Godfather Week 12: Public anthropology in the modern world Kottak: Chapter 12 Wood: Anthropology Inc Flachs: How and Why Our Clothing Choices Matter Heller: Six Beds. Sixty Minutes Weil: New Politics of Coca Gonzalez: Human Terrain Gershon: Email Breakup Week 13: Thinking Like an Anthropologist: Denaturalizing Conflict Kottak: Chapter 13 Blaikie: Chapter 1 and 2 from Political Economy of Soil Erosion Bourgois: Chapter 1 from In Search of Respect Shiva: Chapter 1 from Violence of the Green Revolution Robbins: The Hatchet and the Seed Deneven: The Pristine Myth Week 14: Review and Final