MWTH 2:30-4:45 Max: 35 Lacy
Content: In this introduction to Anthropology we will survey the four fields which comprise this diverse, multi-disciplinary science. Anthropologists employ a wide-range of methods to explore what it means to be human. Biological Anthropologists study human evolution and biological adaptation; Archaeologists study prehistoric societies and sociocultural evolution; Sociocultural Anthropologists bring a comparative approach to the study of society and culture; Linguistic Anthropologists study the evolution of human language systems. Over the course of the semester, we will explore how anthropology helps us understand ourselves, our histories, and our world. This course presents students with the opportunity to learn how each of the sub-fields of anthropology contribute to our understanding of the human condition.
Texts: TBA.
Particulars: 2 mid-course exams, map assignments, response papers, course journal, final exam.
M-F Daily 10:00-11:20 Max: 20 Singer
Content: This course discusses anthropological views of culture through a cross-cultural examination of social institutions. We will address issues such as marriage, family, religion, economics, violence, politics, and gender relations in both 'complex' and ‘simple’ cultures. We will be reading several contemporary ethnographies (in-depth cultural studies) to examine how anthropologists are studying and writing about culture today. Our ethnographies will examine crack dealers in Spanish-Harlem, elderly Jews in California, kinship and gender in India, and soap-operas in Brazil. The course introduces students to research methods in cultural anthropology. Students will be doing short (4-5 page) methodology papers based on participant-observation and interview experiences. This course fulfills an Emory writing requirement. In addition to the two methodology papers, students will have several response papers to the course readings. The only exam in the class will be a take-home final.
M-F Daily 1:00-2:20 Max: 20 Singer
Content: This course will explore the process of folklore, particularly as it acts to define identities and relationships between individuals and groups. The course will examine a variety of folklore genres (folktales, music, festivals, toys, art, etc.), stressing the interrelationship of context and meaning. We will examine folklore traditions from several parts of the world, including Georgia and the American South. Folklore is a vehicle for expressing meaning which many or may not be in harmony with the dominant culture to which the 'folk' belong. Everyone, both the powerful and the powerless can and do engage in a variety of folklore activities. The class assignments will include a folklore collection and analysis assignment, several reading response papers, and a final exam. This course will be run in seminar style, and class participation will be essential.
Note: The topic of this course is "Folklore"