Oberlin College

Oberlin College

Spring 2006

Anthropology 101

Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

Course Description:

Cultural Anthropology is the study of humankind from a cross-cultural perspective.� It is an extremely broad field that overlaps and intersects with a wide variety of disciplines in the Natural Sciences, Social Sciences and the Humanities.� Anthropology stands out for its commitment to holism, cultural relativism, humanism, and qualitative approaches to field research.� For these and other reasons Introduction to Cultural Anthropology is a particularly stimulating and exciting subject because it provides students with important tools that they can use to understand the cultural forces that unite and divide people from all over the world.� In this course students will explore the nature of both Humanity (with a capital "H) and its particular expressions around the globe.� Students will also put into practice what they have learned in class about ethnographic field research methods in the context of a placement in a local social service agency.

In this course students will be challenged to reflect upon and form opinions about the following questions that are central to contemporary Cultural Anthropology:

What is culture?� How is the term culture used and misused?� Why does it matter?� How is an understanding of the diversity of culture in our world important for an understanding of "ourselves" and human possibilities in general?� What is the value of ethnographic field research methods?� What are the ethical and professional issues involved in the use of ethnographic methods?� What is cultural relativism, moral relativism, normative relativism? What is the relevance of Cultural Anthropology in the 21st Century?� How can Anthropologists contribute to the well being of the people who they study?� Should they at the risk of losing objectivity? What is an "emic" perspective and why is it important?� What is the relationship between language and culture?� What is the "cultural construction of reality" and why is it important for the field?� Given that the field had historically focused on small scale and/or "isolated" communities, what should the focus of Anthropology be in an age of increasing global interconnectedness?�� What are the challenges and prospects for Anthropology in light of the increasing diversity of practicing Anthropologists, including researchers who come from communities who have traditionally been only studied by Anthropologists?� Is Anthropology a Science?� What are some of the practical applications of anthropological knowledge?� What is anthropological holism?� Is the human race making progress?

Course Goals:� After having taken this class students should 1) understand the major concerns and controversies in the field of Cultural Anthropology today 2) be able to apply the tools of Cultural Anthropology to their own lives and careers 3) have had significant field research experience in a social service agency 4) increase their skill in using library and computer resources for conducting research 5) acquire a rich and intimate understanding of a particular "people of the world" based on a close reading of secondary and primary sources about/from this group.

Honor Code:� At the end of each academic exercise students shall write in full the Honor Pledge: "I affirm that I have adhered to the Honor Code in this assignment."� It is assumed that all students are familiar with the Oberlin College honor code and honor system.� You can review it at:�� http://www.oberlin.edu/students/student_pages/honor_code.html

Assignments and Grading:

Students will be evaluated on the basis of: 1) class attendance/participation � 15% 2) field notes � 20% 3a) bibliographic essay 10% 3b) final paper, "peoples of the world", 20% 4) response questions on Blackboard � 15% 5) field research paper � 15% 6) final presentation - 5%

Attendance/Participation (15%):

Students are expected to come to class having read the selections for that day.� Students are expected to knowledgably participate in class discussions.� Students who have more than two unexcused absences will not be eligible for an "A" or "A-" grade in the class.� Students who have more than 4 unexcused absences will not be eligible for a "B+" or "B" grade.� This rule applies above and beyond the weight of absences in the overall attendance/participation grade.� Students are responsible for all assignments, instructions, lectures notes etc. that they miss during an absence.� Absences will only be excused when students have so requested/notified IN ADVANCE of the class session in question.� Students may communicate with the instructor about missed classes by e-mail, phone message or in person.

Paper Grading:� All papers will be evaluated on the basis of 1) clarity of argument and writing 2) effective use of sources 3) ability to make insightful connections between the subject at hand and the major themes and questions of the class.�

Research Paper and Bibliographic Essay- "PEOPLES OF THE WORLD":� Each student will choose to focus on a group of people that is represented in the anthropological literature.� Over the course of the semester students will conduct research on this group.� This research will lead to two graded assignments: I) a bibliographic essay, due on March 24th II) a research paper, due May 18th.�

I. Bibliographic essay (10%).� This is a five page essay (not including the bibliography) in which you will identify and briefly discuss the scholarly literature that has been produced about the group or issue that you have chosen for the "Peoples of the World assignment."� In preparation for this essay you will be expected to have conducted exhaustive library/database research in an attempt to track down as many sources on this group as possible, including those not written by anthropologists or social scientists (please list all of these sources in the bibliography).� In the paper you will answer questions such as:

1) What kinds of sources (i.e. books, journals, newspaper articles, etc.) are available for research on this group/issue?� Who wrote these? When?

2) How did the authors gather their information?� Within which framework or academic discipline?

3) Why have researchers chosen this group/issue (e.g. "This is the only group in the world to practice polyandry")?� If not any particular theme is present, what are the range of themes on which they focused their writings?

4) How did you acquire a copy of each source?� On the stacks in the library?� On the internet?� Which web site?�� Web-based database?� Which kind?� Ohio-link?

II Write a research paper (10 pages in length) on the group/issue that you have chosen that addresses the following questions (20%).

1) Who are they?�� Where do they live?� How do they live?� On what basis can they be viewed as a single group of people? �

2) What challenges and prospects do they face as a community?� How are they changing as a group?

3)� Have Anthropologists studied them and something about their way of life?� Why did these Anthropologists choose to study them?� What have their findings been?

4) What has been the relationship between this group and the Anthropologists that have studied them?

5) In your presentation relate what you have learned about this group to one or more of the central themes and questions (listed above) of the class.

Field Notes (20%):� Each student will be placed in a local social service agency in which they will work as a volunteer/intern over the course of the semester (approximately two hours per week).� The purpose of this activity is to practice ethnographic field research techniques such as participant-observation and the life history interview in an actual social service setting.� See the "letter to agencies" posted in the "Course Documents" section of the Blackboard for more information on the goals and expectations of this field experience.

Each student will be expected to take extensive field notes (in a notebook or computer file) in which they write about what they are experiencing in their field placement � at least five pages per week.� The writing in this field journal is not expected to be polished or formal.� Students will write not only about what they see and hear but also about their personal reactions to what they are experiencing.� We will discuss your field journal and field experience regularly in class.� Students will share their field notes on a bi-weekly basis with the course TA, Will Griscom, who will take note of your efforts.� At the end of class the instructor will assign a grade (based completely on effort) to the field notes that will constitute 20% of your course grade.

Field Research Paper, due May1st (15%):� Students will write a final paper (10 pages in length) about their fieldwork experience in which they 1) describe the field site and their work in it 2) relate their experience to the issues that they have learned about in the course about ethnographic field research methods and 3) draw conclusions and connection between what they have experienced in their fieldwork and the broader themes of the class (beyond ethnographic methods) 4) evaluate the value of this exercise in service learning.� This paper will be made available to the community partners and ethnographic informants with whom the student has worked.

Final Presentation (5%):� In the final week of class students will give oral presentations in which they will summarize what they have written in their field research paper.� Community partners will be invited to these presentations.

Response Questions on Blackboard (15%): �Once per week students will write two paragraph responses to questions based on the readings.� These questions will be posted by the instructor on Blackboard.� The answers will be graded.� Your responses should 1) respond directly to the question in an insightful manner and 2) demonstrate your understanding of the readings at hand.

Books:

A) Jeremy MacClancy (ed.). 2002. Exotic no More: Anthropology on the Front Lines. University of Chicago Press.

B) Aaron Podolefsky and Peter Brown (eds.). 2003. Applying Cultural Anthropology: An Introductory Reader (6th edition). McGraw-Hill.

C) Robert Welsch and Kirk Endicott (eds.). 2003. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Controversial Issues in Cultural Anthropology. McGraw-Hill. 2nd edition

Week 1: The Four Fields of Anthropology

Monday (2/6):�� no readings

Wednesday (2/8):�� A.�Introduction: Taking People Seriously�, Jeremy MacClancy

B. �Body Ritual Among the Nacirema�, Horace Miner; Ch. 13, �The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race�, Bruce Diamond

Friday (2/10):�� B. Ch. 2, �Slumber�s Unexplored Landscape�, Bruce Bower;

C. Issue 1 - �Should Cultural Anthropology Model Itself on the Natural Sciences?� � Clifford Geertz vs. Robert Carneiro

Week 2: Ethnographic Methods

Monday (2/13)�� B. Ch. 3, �Tricking and Tripping: Fieldwork on Prostitution in the Era of AIDS�, Claire Sterk

Wednesday (2/15)�� A. Ch. 1, �Understanding Inner-City Poverty: Resistance and Self Destruction under U.S. Apartheid�, Philippe Bourgois

Friday (2/17)�� A. Ch. 14, �The Refugee: A Discourse on Displacement�; Ch. 19, �Fieldwork at the Movies: Anthropology and Media�, Faye Ginsburg

Week 3: Why Anthropology?� Anthropology in the 21st Century

Monday (2/20)�� A. Ch. 2, �Min(d)ing the Body: On the Trail of Organ-Stealing Rumors�, Nancy Scheper-Hughes;

Wednesday (2/22) �� A. Ch. 12, �Hunger in Africa: Untangling Its Human Roots�, Ellen Messer and Parker Shipton

B. Ch. 6, �Shakespeare in the Bush�, Laura Bohannan

Friday (2/24)�� A. Ch. 15, �Our Own Way: On Anthropology and Intellectual Property�, David Napier

C. Issue 2 - �Do Native Peoples Today Invent Their Traditions?� - Roger Keesing vs. Huanani-Kay Trask

Week 4:� The Concept of Culture and Cultural Relativism

Monday (2/27)�� A. Ch. 16, �Anthropology in a World with and without Human Rights�, Ellen Messer

C. Issue 17, �Do Anthropologists Have a Moral Responsibility to Defend the Interests of �Less Advantaged� Communities� - James Weiner vs. Ron Brunton

Wednesday (3/1)�� A. Ch. 22, �Paradise Postponed: The Predicaments of Tourism�, Jeremy MacClancy; Ch. 17, �Future Generations and Global Standards: Children�s Rights at the Start of the Millenium�, Judith Ennew

B. Ch. 38, �Circumcision, Pluralism, and Dilemmas of Cultural Relativism�, Corinne Kratz

Friday (3/3)�� A. Ch. 11, �Anthropology, Culture, and Environment�, Melissa Leach and James Fairhead;

B. Ch. 15, �Two Rights Make a Wrong: Indigenous Peoples Versus Environmental Protection Agencies�, Richard Reed

Week 5: Language and Meaning

Monday (3/6)�� B. Ch. 8, �A Cultural Approach to Male-Female Miscommunication�, Daniel Maltz and Ruth Borker

Wednesday (3/8)�� B. Ch. 7 ��To Give Up on Words�: Silence in Western Apache Culture�, Keith Basso

C. Issue 17, "Should Anthropologists and Linguists Be Concerned about Losing Endangered Languages?", Ken Hale vs. Peter Ladefoged

Friday (3/10)�� B. Ch. 9, �Suite for Ebony and Phonics�, John Rickford

C. Issue 5, "Is Ebonics (Black English) a Distinct Language from Standard English", Ernie Smith vs. John McWhorter

Week 6: Gender and Sexuality

Monday (3/13)�� A. Ch. 9, �Interpreting Gender and Sexuality: Approaches from Cultural Anthropology�, Alma Gottlieb

Wednesday (3/15)�� B. Ch. 25, �Society and Sex Roles", Ernestine Friedl; Ch. 26, �Our Babies Ourselves�, Meredith Small

C. Issue 9, �Do Sexually Egalitarian Societies Exist?� - Maria Lepowsky vs. Steven Goldberg

Friday (3/17))�� B. Ch. 28, �Doing Gender, Doing Surgery: Women Surgeons in a Man�s Profession�, Joan Cassell

C. Issue 18, �Should Anthropologists Work to Eliminate the Practice of Female Circumcision�, Merrilee Salmon vs. Elliot Skinner� CUT

Week 7: Race and Ethnicity (Bibliographic Essay due, 3/24)

Monday (3/20)�� A. Ch. 8, �Unraveling �Race� for the 21st Century�, Faye Harrison

Wednesday (3/22)�� B. Ch. 16, �Race Without Color�, Jared Diamond; Ch. 17, �Official Statement on �Race��, American Anthropological Association; Ch. 18, �White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack�, Peggy McIntosh

Friday (3/24)�� A. Ch. 6, �Imagined but Not Imaginary: Ethnicity and Nationalism in the Modern World�, Richard Jenkins

��

SPRING RECESS: (3/25-4/2)

Week 8: Conflict and Violence

Monday (4/3)�� A. Ch. 5, �On Conflict and Violence�, Michael Gilsenan

C. Issue 12, �Is Ethnic Conflict Inevitable?�, Sudhir Kakar vs. Anthony Oberschall

Wednesday (4/5)�� A. Ch. 7, �Fighting the Good Fight: Fundamentalism and Religious Revival�, William Beeman

B. Ch. 35, �The Power of Islam�, Lincoln Keiser

Friday (4/7)�� C. Issue 10, �Has the Islamic Revolution in Iran Subjugated Women?�, Parvin Paidar vs. Erika Friedl

Week 9: �Anthropology, Globalization and Development

Monday (4/10)�� A. Ch. 3, �World Markets: Anthropological Perspectives�, Jane Schneider

B. Ch. 14, �The Domestication of Wood in Haiti: A Case Study in Applied Evolution�, Gerald Murray

Wednesday (4/12)�� B. Ch. 37, �AIDS as Human Suffering�, Paul Farmer and Arthur Kleinman; Ch. 41, "The Price of Progress", John Bodley

Friday (4/14)�� B. Ch. 39, "Advertising and Global Culture", Noreene Janus; Ch. 40, "How Sushi Went Global", Theodore Bestor

Week 10: Politics

Monday (4/17) B. Ch. 23, �Crossing the Minefield: Politics of Refugee Research and Service�, Jeffrey MacDonald; Ch. 33, �The Kpelle Moot�, James Gibbs

Wednesday (4/19)�� A. Ch. 4, �Political Ideologies: Socialism and its Discontents�, Chris Hann

B. Ch. 43, �Contemporary Warfare in the New Guinea Highlands�, Aaron Podolefsky

Friday (4/21)�� C. Issue 11, �Are Yanomami Violence and Warfare Natural Human Efforts to Maximize Reproductive Fitness�, Napoleon Chagnon vs. Brian Ferguson

Week 11: Economics and Inequality

Monday (4/24)�� B. Ch. 20, �Eating Christmas in the Kalahari�, Richard Lee; Ch. 21, �Strings Attached�, Lee Cronk

Wednesday (4/26)�� C. Issue 6, �Are San Hunter-Gatherers Basically Pastoralists Who Have Lost Their Herds�, James Denbow and Edwin Wilmsen vs. Richard Lee

Friday (4/28)�� A. Ch. 13, Anthropology and the Aid Encounter", Alex de Waal

B. Ch. 23, �Family Planning Outreach and Credit Programs in Rural Bangladesh�, Sidney Schuler and Syed Hashemi

Week 12: Recent Controversies in the Field (Field Research Paper, due May 1st)

Monday (5/1)�� C. Issue 4, "Was Margaret Mead's Fieldwork on Samoan Adolescents Fundamentally Flawed?", Freeman vs. Holmes and Holmes

Wednesday (5/3)�� C. Issue 14, "Did Napoleon Chagnon and Other Researchers Harm the Yanomami Indians of Venezuela?", Tierney vs. Tooby

Friday (5/5)�� C. Issue 15, "Does It Matter if Nobel Peace Prize Winner Rigoberta Mench�'s Memoir Contains Inaccuracies?", Stoll vs. Smith

WEEK 13:� In-class Presentations

Monday (5/8), Wednesday (5/10), Friday 5/12

(Final Paper, "Peoples of the World", DUE Thursday, May 18th, 9PM)