Culture & Society (211-0-1)

Instructors

Jessica Winegar
847/491-4831
1819 Hinman Ave, #204, EV Campus

Meeting Info

Harris Hall 107: Tues, Thurs 11:00AM - 12:20PM

Overview of class

Often, anthropology is talked about as the study of human culture, where it originates, how it is transmitted, how it changes. But what is "culture"? Rather than a universal, one-size-fits-all answer, anthropologists today seek to understand how ideas and actions interact within specific social contexts. Through a focus on ethnography, a fundamental method of our field, students will learn how to conduct research into the processes that shape the social world, emphasizing human agency in relation to sociohistorical, economic, political, and environmental forces. Students will learn about the history of the field of anthropology and scholarly approaches across the discipline today. A key feature will be to denaturalize social assumptions, reinterpreting what we might know from our own contexts as a starting point to understand others. Students will have the opportunity to practice anthropological research through ethnographic projects.

Learning Objectives

"- Learn about anthropological approaches to research and knowledge
- Understand the key methodologies of sociocultural anthropology
- Learn about the history of the field of anthropology
- Gain familiarity with key discussions and debates in anthropology
- Improve critical reading skills
- Be able to explain why "culture" is a complex and debated construct
- Practice conducting ethnographic research"

Evaluation Method

Attendance and Participation in discussion section, essays, ethnography project

Class Materials (Required)

Fighting to Breathe: Race, Toxicity, and the Rise of Youth Activism in Baltimore, Nicole Fabricant. 9780520379329

If Books Fail, Try Beauty: An Ethnography of Educated Womanhood in the New East Africa, Brooke Bocast. 9780190852153

Class Attributes

Social and Behavioral Science Foundational Discipl
Global Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity
Social & Behavioral Sciences Distro Area

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Reserved for Anthropology majors and minors until the end of preregistration, after which time enrollment will be open to everyone who has taken the prerequisites.

Associated Classes

DIS - ANTHRO Sem Rm B07 - 1810 Hinmn: Mon 10:00AM - 10:50AM

DIS - ANTHRO Sem Rm B07 - 1810 Hinmn: Mon 9:00AM - 9:50AM

DIS - ANTHRO Sem Rm B07 - 1810 Hinmn: Wed 9:00AM - 9:50AM

DIS - Locy Hall 303: Tues 9:30AM - 10:20AM

DIS - Locy Hall 303: Thurs 9:30AM - 10:20AM

DIS - ANTHRO Sem Rm B07 - 1810 Hinmn: Fri 10:00AM - 10:50AM