Anthropology E-20
Introduction to Social and
Cultural Anthropology
Thursdays,
Dr. Thomas M. Kiefer
Office Hours: To Be Arranged. Instructor is always available before and
after class.
Texts and
1.
Cultural Anthropology (10th ,9th or 8th ) by
William Haviland (Harcourt Brace). This is an excellent text, offering an overview
of the major topics of cultural anthropology, and a tiny bit on human evolution
and prehistoric archaeology. Course
lectures will roughly parallel each of the 16 chapters. You should try to read the assigned
chapter(s) in advance, paying attention to the study questions in the
handout. (Note: The Coop only has the latest 10th edition and
it is fairly expensive. The text has
been used before there are used copies of the 9th and 8th editions around. Amazon.com had 45 used copies as of January
28, at considerably lower prices. Any
edition published after 1990 should be perfectly satisfactory)
2.
The Trobrianders of
3.
Assorted supplemental readings,
distributed from time to time.
The following is not required – recommended only
The Tausug: Law and Violence
in a Philippine Moslem Society by Thomas M. Kiefer (Waveland Press).
A short ethnography based on the instructor's field research on
The textbook by Haviland
will serve as the basic text. The lectures and class discussions will not
primarily duplicate material in this text, but rather explore certain topics in
greater depth, and some topics not covered in the book. You may tape record class sessions if you
wish. The best way to study each chapter is to read the material once through
carefully. Then try to answer the study
questions and definitions, going back to the text as necessary. If you do this
regularly and methodically you should not have difficulty with any
examinations.
Students enrolled in this
course may use the Tozzer Anthropology Library, next to the Peabody Museum at
21 Divinity Ave. This is one of the most extensive anthropology libraries in
the world. Identify yourself at the door and show some enrollment ID (course
receipt, etc) If you are a degree
student and have regular library privileges, you can take material out. But I
cannot overestimate the value of a
curious beginning student spending half a day or so just browsing
through the stacks.
There are other more
complicated and theoretically sophisticated textbooks available in any decent
library for the curious. The best available book in my opinion is Roger Keesing
and Andrew Strathern: Cultural
Anthropology – A Contemporary Perspective (Harcourt, Brace, 1998). A much older, but still wonderful, book is Anthropology by Alfred Kroeber
(1948) as well as Man and his Works (1948)by Melville
Herskovits [ in both disregard the very outdated material on archaeology and
human evolution]. Another excellent book
is An Overture to Cultural and Social
Anthropology by Robert Murphy (Prentice-Hall, 1986). This is a brief introduction to the field
which is short on "facts" but is much more sophisticated than many
textbooks. It has a slight Freudian bent. All of these books may be available
on reserve at the Tozzer Library and/or the Grossman Library.
Written Assignment
One of the major purposes of
studying cultural anthropology is to gain insight into our own culture and way of life by comparing it with cultures
that are very different: how “weird” we must appear to others who do not share
our world view. Credit students are required to write a very short (
The assignment is due April 25. Be sure you
proofread your paper, leave at least one inch margins, use at least an 11 point
font ( no script), and if you use footnotes or endnotes, proper formatting is
expected. Unsatisfactory papers (as to
either content or writing) may have to be re-written. Please remember that
direct plagiarism, or presenting ideas of others without attribution as if they
were your own is severely sanctioned by university policy. This includes
material taken from the Internet. The instructor will also consider other
suggestions for papers with advance
approval.
Internet Resources
Go to http://www.harbrace.com/anthro/exchange/, for general anthropology resources. For
specific helps with the textbook go to http://www.harbrace.com/anthro/haviland/siteresources.html. This will lead to a good site containing
links based on chapters, sample exams based on chapters, email to the author,
and lots of other interesting material.
Breaking news articles of interest can be found at http://www.tamu.edu/anthropology/news.html.
Course materials, and some
lecture summaries and links should be available at the instructor’s website http://www.suluarchipelago.com. There will be a link on the home page to
anthropology E-20.
Examinations and Grades
There will be a short (45
minute) midterm examination on April 4. There may be occasional self-grading take
home tests as necessary.
The final examination on May 23 will consist of an
"objective" part containing true false, multiple choice and such
like, and one or two essays. The essays
will be chosen from a list of possible questions to be distributed the last day
of class. The exam will be roughly weighted equally to the lectures and
readings. You will not be expected to memorize ethnographic trivia for its own
sake. You are not expected to remember
detail from the assigned articles, but you should have a good sense of the
major points. Exams will stress general concepts and ideas, but the provenance
of an idea (“who said what, where and when”) will not be important in exams
(notwithstanding the rule that proper attribution of ideas not your own is
generally expected in written papers).
Previous examinations in
this course are available for your review in the Grossman Library ( 3rd floor Sever Hall). By university rules non-credit students may
not take any examinations. Any arrangements for a special examination at a
different time must be cleared first
through the Registrar with ample advance notice. No Exceptions! Details on make
up exams and special exams can be found at page 184 of the current Extension
catalog.
Please bring a
self-addressed stamped postcard or envelope to the final examination if you
want early confirmation of your grade, as the Registrar may take some time to
send out official notice. You should
bring a large self-addressed envelope with at least 6 oz postage ($1.49), if you wish your exam sent
back. You may request it back later, but
it probably will not have comments.
Students whose native language is not English (and are not substantially
bilingual): If
you need extra time to complete an exam or need to bring a dictionary, please
check with instructor before the
scheduled exam. Persons who have special needs for examinations should consult
with appropriate authorities at the Extension School.
Grades will roughly be
weighted as: 20% midterm examination, 20% short essay, and 60% final
examination. But,the midterm grade will be dropped if the final exam grade is
higher. Therefore, no make up midterms
will be given. If you miss the midterm,
your grade will be based on the final. Attendance will usually be kept, but your
attendance will only be a factor in your grade if you are on the margin.
Schedule of Topics and
January 31: Introduction-What
is Anthropology?
February 7: The
Concept of Culture and Ethnographic Field Research. Read Haviland 1-3,
Weiner Introduction and Chapter 10. Becker: “How I Learned What a Crock Was”
(handout). Film about Bronislaw Malinowski “Off the Verandah”.
February 14: Society
and Culture. Re-read Haviland
1-3.
February 21: Cultural
Persistence and Change. Read
Haviland 15-16, Weiner, chapter 1.
Film: “Trobriand Cricket”
February 28: Language
and Communication. Read Haviland
4, Hall “The Sounds of Silence”
(handout) Film: “A World of Gestures:
Culture and Non Verbal Communication”
March 7: Language (continued)
Whorf “Language and Experience”, Re-read Haviland 4. Weiner 2
March 14: Culture, Self and The Individual. Read Haviland 5, Weiner 3-4. Becker: “Becoming a Marijuana User”
(handout). Film: “Magical Death”.
March 21: Subsistence and Ecology.
Read Haviland 6, 16, ”, Nelson “Eskimo Science” (handout).
March 28: Spring Break – No Class (note: there is a lot of
reading the next few classes
– you
might want to work on ahead if you can)
April 4: Arts and Expressive Culture.
Read Haviland 14. The cross
cultural study of music. [Midterm
examination second hour]
April 11: Economics: The Distribution of Goods and Services. Film: “Down from
the Veranda”, Read Haviland 7. Weiner 5 ,9 . Film: ”The Trobriand Islanders of Papua New
Guinea”.
April 18: Kinship, Marriage, Family, and Descent Groups. Read
Haviland 8,9,10 (written assignment due next week)
April 25: Non-Kinship Grouping by Gender, Friendship, and Class.
Read Haviland 11, Weiner 7,8, (written assignment due)
May 2: Politics and Law. Read Haviland 12; Weiner 6,7; Malinowski: short
excerpt on “Trobriand suicide”. (handout). (Note: if you
anticipate missing the final meeting next week, please bring a self addressed
stamped envelope today to receive any written exam instructions or study
questions which may be distributed)
May 9: Religion and Magic. Film:”
Read Haviland 13, in MSR.
Gmelch “Baseball Magic”, Miner “Body Ritual among the Nacirema”
(handout).
May 16: Exam period – no class (unless it is necessary to
make up a class which had to be cancelled, or if enough students want to come
for a general discussion).
May 23: Final Examination