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Semester: Fall 2002
| Note: A few changes to the original syllabus have been made since it was originally posted. Note the change in "methods of grading" (there will be no quizzes, and the midterm will count for 20% of the grade) and the date of assignment 3. The syllabus was most recently updated on September 1, 2002. This course website is for students to be able to refer to the syllabus, keep track of assignments, access internet articles through the links, and possibly comment on articles assigned. Please refer to the site often to see if anything has been changed or added. ANTH 121.1 Culture, Society, and the Individual Fall 2002 Instructor: Cassandra White Email: cwhite@sbc.edu Telephone: 381-6204 (office) 946-0717 (home) Office hours: Mon. and Wed., 2:30-3:30 p.m. or by appointment Office: Benedict 311 Class meets: Tues. and Thurs., 1:15-2:30 p.m., Benedict 201 Course Description This course is an introduction to the theoretical foundations of anthropology. We will look at the origins of anthropology as a discipline and the questions that have been raised in the study of human culture as a phenomenon and in the comparison of different cultures around the world. We will explore different theories of the place of the individual in society, of the role of culture in the life of the individual, and of the roles of different institutions (religion, exchange, marriage, etc.) in society. We will look at the ways in which cultural change takes place on both local and global scales and how anthropologists have come to talk about these changes. We will investigate changes in the way anthropologists have viewed their research subjects and themselves over the years and the impact that these changes have had on theory and ethnography. These issues will be introduced in the course through texts written by or about some of the most important contributors to cultural anthropology as a discipline. Course Goals and Objectives Students should become familiar with the most significant theories and ethnographic works that have influenced and shaped modern anthropology. They should come away with a coherent picture of the steps involved in the development of theories about culture and the place of the individual within his or her particular culture. Through writing assignments and class discussions, students should improve their ability to think and write critically about theoretical topics in anthropology. Course Requirements Books Required (Available at the Sweet Briar Bookshop): Sociocultural Theory in Anthropology: A Short History Merwyn Garbarino Exotics at Home Micaela di Leonardo Coming of Age in Samoa Margaret Mead Ota Benga Phillips Verner Bradford and Harvey Blume Other Readings There are several articles, listed on the syllabus or to be assigned in class, that can be accessed as links on the course website. There may be a few articles placed on reserve at the library. These readings will be announced in class. Course Website: http://ingber.spanish.sbc.edu/sites/ANTH121/ANTH121.html This course website will be maintained throughout the semester. The website has a copy of the syllabus, links to internet articles, and assignments. Students should refer to the website frequently to make sure they are up-to-date on class activities. Assignments: Reading assignments are given on the schedule by the date of the class when those readings will be discussed. Questions for discussion, based on the reading or on the theoretical issue to be analyzed in class, will be given prior to the class in which the reading/topic will be discussed, and students are expected to come to class prepared to talk about the questions given. As a term paper, students will write a paper using Margaret Mead’s ethnography Coming of Age in Samoa as a model. Students will be ethnographers of their own culture, however, describing details of childhood and adolescence where they grew up. A detailed outline for the term paper will be due September 17. More details about this project will be given in class. There will also be 4 short writing assignments assigned during the semester. These assignments will be generally short essays (1-2 pages) on readings, films, or topics brought up in class. Exams: The mid-term and the final exam will be take home essay exams. Methods of Evaluation (Grading): Class Participation (Class discussion of readings/topics): 20% Short writing assignments: 20% Paper: 20% Mid-Term Exam: 20% Final Exam: 20 % Attendance: It is important to attend class, as lecture content cannot always be found in the reading, and you must be in attendance to participate in discussions. Missing classes will thus affect your class participation grade and possibly your exam grades. Please let me know, in advance if possible, if you are missing class for a legitimate reason, such as a university-sponsored event or an illness. Schedule August 22 (Thursday) Review of Syllabus August 27 (Tuesday) Introduction: Cultural Anthropology, History of Anthropology; Readings: Chapters 1-2 in Sociocultural Theory in Anthropology; excerpts from The History of Herodotus (online); excerpts from Marco Polo and Ibn Batutta’s works (online) August 29 (Th) The First Anthropologists; Readings: Chapters 3-4 in Sociocultural Theory in Anthropology; Readings: Excerpt from Argonauts of the Western Pacific by Bronislaw Malinowski, on reserve at the library September 3 (T) Malinowski, cont.; kula ring demonstration; Marx and Engels; Readings: online readings about the kula ring, excerpts from correspondence and works by Marx and Engels (online) September 5 (Th) Boas and his legacy; Overview of 20th Century Anthropology; Readings: Finish Sociocultural Theory in Anthropology September 10 (T) Ota Benga, Saartjie Baartman, and Ishi: Early Representations of the “Other”; Readings: Introduction and Chapters 1-2 in Ota Benga; “Abused South African Buried Centuries On” (internet article); Assignment 1 due September 12 (Th) Evolutionary Theory and Anthropology; Readings: Chapters 3-8 in Ota Benga; “Ishi’s Brain, Ishi’s Ashes” (internet article) September 17 (T) Museum Representations of non-Western peoples; Readings: Chapters 9-12 in Ota Benga; Term paper outline due September 19 (Th) Ota Benga’s Legacy; Readings: finish Ota Benga September 24 (T) Cultural Determinism and Margaret Mead; Readings: Prefaces and Chapters 1-4 of Coming of Age in Samoa Assignment 2 due; Mid-term take-home exam handed out; September 26 (Th) Reading day October 1 (T) film on Margaret Mead; October 3 (Th) film, cont. Gender, Personality, and Culture; Readings: Chapters 5-10 in Coming of Age in Samoa October 8 (T) Readings: finish Coming of Age in Samoa October 10 (Th) French Structuralism; Reading: to be announced; Mid-term take-home exam due October 15 (T) Ethnography and the Other Revisited; Readings: Prologue to Exotics at Home October 17 (Th) Readings: Development of American Anthropology; Interpretive Anthropology; Readings: “Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight” (available online), Chapter 1 in Exotics at Home October 22 (T) Feminist and Marxist Anthropology; Readings: Chapter 2 in Exotics at Home Assignment 3 due October 24 (Th) The Margaret Mead Controversy; Readings: Chapter 3 in Exotics at Home October 29 (T) Different Views of the “Other”; Readings: “The Original Affluent Society,” Marshall Sahlins (available online); Chapter 4 in Exotics at Home October 31 (Th) New Trends in Ethnography; Readings: Chapter 5 in Exotics at Home November 5 (T) Modernity and Anthropology; Readings: Finish Exotics at Home November 7 (Th) Essentials of Bourdieu and Foucault; Readings: to be announced November 12 (T) Phenomenology in Practice (example from fieldwork on leprosy); eadings: to be announced; Assignment 4 due November 14 (Th) World Systems theory; Readings: online article on Thanksgiving foods by Sidney Mintz November 19 (T) Globalization; Readings; “Jihad vs. McWorld,” Benjamin Barber (available online) November 21 (Th) no class: American Anthropological Association meetings November 23-December 1: Thanksgiving vacation December 3 (T) film: Urga December 5 (Th) Urga; part 2; Exam review; Term paper due |
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For more information about your assignment, contact Cassandra White at cwhite@sbc.edu. For any problems you experience accessing the pages or submitting assignments, contact Alix Ingber at ingber@sbc.edu
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