ANTH 2233-001 and -002 - INTRODUCTION TO CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Fall 2007
Course Description:
Cultural anthropology is the study of human societies and the underlying patterns of human culture. This course seeks to develop studentsÕ 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: 3:30-5:00 (or by appointment)
Required Texts:
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:
Aug. 21: Course Introduction
23: The Nature of Anthropology and Human Diversity
Reading:
Nanda, Chapter 1, pp. 2-25.
28: Doing Anthropological Fieldwork
Reading:
Nanda, Chapter 3, pp. 59-83.
30: Doing Anthropological Fieldwork
Film:
Margaret Mead
Sept. 4: The Concept of
Culture
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 4, pp. 85-113.
6: Culture Shock in Iraq
Reading:
Guests of the Sheik, pp.
ÒIntroductionÓ and 3-48.
11: Language and Communication
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 5, pp. 115-143.
13: Exam #1
18: Subsistence Strategies
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 6, pp. 144-173.
20: Subsistence Strategies: Case Study
Film
25: Economics
Reading:
Nanda, Chapter 7, pp. 175-203.
27: Marriage and Family
Reading:
Nanda, Chapter 8, pp. 204-233.
Oct. 2: Kinship
Reading:
Nanda, Chapter 9, pp. 234-257.
4: Exam #2
9: Gender
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 10, pp. 258-283.
11: Fieldwork from a WomanÕs Perspective
Sample
ethnography: Guests of the Sheik,
pp. 49-94.
16: Political Systems and
Conflict Resolution
Reading:
Nanda, Chapter 11, pp. 284-313.
18: NO CLASS
23: Conflict Resolution: Case
Study.
Short
Film (not for the timid!): The Axe Fight.
25: Stratification: Class, Caste,
ÒRace,Ó and Ethnicity
Reading:
Nanda, Chapters 12-13, pp. 314-371.
30: Social Stratification: Case Study.
Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 95-170
Nov. 1:Exam #3
6: Belief Systems
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 14, pp. 372-407.
8: Case Study
Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 174-248.
13: Anthropology and the Arts
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 15, pp. 408-435.
15: Culture Change
Reading: Nanda, Chapter 16, pp. 436-469.
27: Culture Change and Sample Ethnographies
Reading: Guests of the Sheik, pp. 251-333.
29: Review
Dec. 6 or 11 (see note) Final Examination: Important note: For the class meeting at 2-3:15 PM, exam time is on December 11 at 12:30 - 2:30 P.M.
For the 8 AM class, exam time is on December 6 at 8-10 AM.
Course Requirements:
NOTE: You must turn off your cell phone and put it away before entering the classroom.
Examinations: (13 September; 4 October; 1 November; 6 or 11 December, depending on when your class meets). 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.