ANTH 2233-001 and -002 - INTRODUCTION TO CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

Fall 2007

TR 8-10 AM (section 2233-001), 2:00-3:15 PM (section 2233-002), Wilson 123

 

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.