ANTH 2233-001 - INTRODUCTION TO CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

Fall 2005, 8 - 10AM, Wilson 216

Instructor: Dr. Richard Burns Email: rburns@astate.edu Web-site: www.clt.astate.edu/rburns

Office: W 213 Office Hours: TR 11-12 PM., 3:30-4:30 P.M.

and by appointment (972-2164)

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 and similarities of people all over the world.

Required Texts:

Raymond Scupin, Cultural Anthropology, 6th edition (=CA)

Joan C. Barker, Danger, Duty, and Disillusion: The Worldview of Los Angeles Police Officers

Kevin Duffy, Children of the Forest: Africa’s Mbuti Pygmies (1996 reissue)

Course Outline:

Aug. 23: Course Introduction

25: The Anthropological Perspective (CA, Ch. 1)

30: Human Evolution (CA, Ch. 2)

Sept. 1: The Concept of Culture (CA, Ch. 3)

6: Learning Culture (CA, Ch. 4)

8: Language (CA, Ch. 5)

13: American Tongues

15: Globalization and Culture (CA, Ch. 6)

20: Exam #1

22: Race and Ethnicity (CA, Ch. 7).

27: Sociocultural Systems (CA, Ch. 8)

29: Band Societies (CA, Ch. 9)

Oct. 4: Case Study: A Personal Encounter with Africa’s Mbuti Pygmies (Duffy, pp. vii-36)

6: Strategies for Survival and Traditions Among the Mbuti Pygmies (Duffy, pp. 37-85)

11: Hunting Among the Mbuti Pygmies (Duffy, pp. 86-120)

13: (NO CLASS) Read the rest of Children of the Forest (Duffy, pp. 121-177)

18: Tribes (CA, Ch. 10)

20: Exam #2

25: Chiefdoms (CA, Ch. 11)

27: Agricultural States (CA, CH. 12)

Nov. 1: Industrial States (CA, Ch. 13)

3: Case Study of an Urban Subculture: The World View of the LAPD (Barker, pp. xi-41)

8: Policing and Hitting the Streets (Barker, pp. 44-85).

10: Hitting Their Stride, Hitting the Wall, and Regrouping (Barker, pp. 88-154)

15: Retirement and Reflections of a Police Officer (Barker, pp. 155-212)

(quiz 18 key, version a)( quiz 18 key, version b)

17: Exam #3

21-26: Fall Break/Thanksgiving

29: Globalization in Latin America, Africa, and the Caribbean (CA, Ch. 14)

Dec. 1: Globalization in the Middle East and Asia (CA, Ch. 15)

6: Contemporary Global Trends and Applied Anthropology (CA, Chapters 16) For key to quiz 21, click here.

8: Final Exam (8-10 AM) For study guide, click here.

Course Requirements:

Examinations: (20 September, 20 October, 17 November, 8 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 the reading assigned for each class meeting. I will give several quizzes throughout the semester but will only count the ten best scores for your quiz average, which will count 20% toward your final course grade; consequently, I generally do not give make-up quizzes. To take a quiz, you must be seated at the time I distribute it, which is often at the beginning of class.

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 student’s 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 you after you miss six. Leaving class early or immediately after 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.