ANTH 2233-001 - INTRODUCTION TO CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

Fall 2006

TR 8-9:15 AM, WILSON 216

 

Course Description:

 

Cultural anthropology is the study of human societies and the underlying patterns of human culture.  This course seeks to develop students' skills in the understanding of unfamiliar cultures and in the interpretation of cultural differences.  One aim of the course is to suggest what we can learn about our own culture by studying how others do things differently.

 

Instructor:  Dr. Richard Burns                                    email: rburns@astate.edu

Website: www.clt.astate.edu/rburns

Office:  Wilson 213                                                    Office phone: 972-2164         

Office Hrs: TR: 2-3 P.M., W: 8-10 A.M., or by appointment

 

Required Texts:         

 

Napoleon A. Chagnon. Yanomamö.  5th edition. Wadsworth, 1997.

Elizabeth W. Fernea. Guests of the Sheik: An Ethnography of an Iraqi Village.  Waveland, 1990.

Serena Nanda and Richard Warms, Cultural Anthropology, 9th ed. Wadsworth, 2007. (=Nanda) 

Recommended:  Karen K, Daar and Richard L. Warms. Study guide for Nanda and WarmsÕs Cultural Anthropology, Ninth Edition. Wadsworth, 2007.

 

Course Outline (revised):

 

Aug. 22:  Course Introduction

24:    The Nature of Anthropology and Human Diversity     

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 1, pp. 2-25.

29:    Doing Anthropological Fieldwork                

            Reading: Nanda, Chapter 3, pp. 59-83.

31:    Doing Anthropological Fieldwork

            Reading: Yanomamö, pp. v-43

Sept. 5: The Concept of Culture                             

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 4, pp. 85-113.

7:      Culture Shock in Iraq

            Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. "Introduction" and 3-48.

12:    Language and Communication                      

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 5, pp. 115-143.

14:    Exam #1

19:    Subsistence Strategies                                   

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 6, pp. 144-173. 

21:    Subsistence Strategies: Case Study

            Reading: Yanomamö, pp. 45-97.

26:    Economics                                                     

            Reading: Nanda, Chapter 7, pp. 175-203.  

28:    Marriage and Family

            Reading: Nanda, Chapter 8, pp. 204-233.

Oct. 3: Kinship                                                       

            Reading: Nanda, Chapter 9, pp. 234-257.  

5:      Exam #2

10:    Gender

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 10, pp. 258-283.

12:    Fieldwork from a Woman's Perspective

         Sample ethnography: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 49-94.                          

17:    Political Systems and Conflict Resolution    

            Reading: Nanda, Chapter 11, pp. 284-313; Yanomamö, pp. 121-158.

19:    NO CLASS  

24:    Conflict Resolution: Case Study.                     

            Reading: Yanomamö, pp. 159-226; Short Film (not for the timid!): The Axe Fight.

26:    Stratification: Class, Caste, ÒRace,Ó and Ethnicity

            Reading: Nanda, Chapters 12-13, pp. 314-371.

31:    Social Stratification: Case Study.

         Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 95-170   

Nov. 2: Exam #3

7:      Belief Systems                                               

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 14, pp. 372-407; Yanomamö, pp. 99-119.

9:      Case Study                                                     

         Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 174-248.

14:    Anthropology and the Arts                            

            Reading:  Nanda, Chapter 15, pp. 408-435.

16:    Culture Change                                              

            Reading: Nanda, Chapter 16, pp. 436-469.

21-25: FALL BREAK

28:    Culture Change and Sample Ethnographies

         Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 251-333

30: Yanomamö, pp. 227-260. For the answer key to Quiz 21, click here.

Dec. 7: Final Exam (8-10 A.M. or 2:45-4:45 P.M., depending on what time your class meets. Check the syllaus specific to your class).

Course Requirements:

 

You must turn off your cell phone before entering the classroom.

 

Examinations: (14 September, 5 October, 2 November, 7 December).  These will be objective and use a variety of testing methods.  The final will have a comprehensive component and is mandatory to pass the course.  Each exam counts 20% of your final grade.

 

Reading quizzes: Expect short multiple-choice quizzes over assigned readings, which you need to read before each class meeting.  I will give several quizzes throughout the semester and will take the ten best scores to determine your quiz average, which will count 20% toward your final course grade.  To take a quiz, you must be in your seat at the time I distribute it, which is often at the beginning of class. Because I give so many (nearly every class meeting), I generally do not give make-up quizzes.

 

Make-up work: Exams may be made up only with a verifiable, justifiable excuse (illness, serious family emergency, university business, or inclement weather [commuter students only]). A make-up examination must be taken within one week of a studentÕs return to class.  If you do not take an exam, you will receive a 0 for 20% of your final course average. You must take the Final Exam to pass.

 

Attendance Policy:  Please consult the Undergraduate Bulletin regarding attendance policy.  I have modified this policy by lowering your final average by one grade if you miss four and failing after you miss six.  Leaving class immediately early or after immediately taking a quiz will be considered an absence.  Similarly, excessive tardiness will also be considered an absence.

 

Grading Scale:  The numerical ranges of letter grades for mid-term and final grades will be: A = 90-100, B = 80-89, C = 70-79, D = 60-69, F = below 60.