Introduction
to Cultural Anthropology
ANTH 2351.28223.0121
CYP 5 2227
Tuesdays 7:
Instructor: Catherine S. Farris, Ph.D.
Office: 2204.4
Phones:
Office Hours: 1 hour before class (
NOTE: I am only on campus on the day class meets. If you
cannot make my office hours, please let me know and we can arrange a telephone
conference.
Messages: I check email in the evening and more frequently on
the weekends.
E-mail: cspfarris@yahoo.com
Note: this is not the ACC email address.
Do not write to me at the ACC address, as I do not check this.
Course
Description:
CULTURAL
ANTHROPOLOGY introduces the student
to a holistic study of culture. The major elements of human social behavior,
material culture, and cultural diversity are studied as adaptations to social
and environmental change--past and present.
Course Rationale:
Introduction to Cultural
Anthropology is designed to provide students with an understanding of the
interaction of culture and biology as it bears on the evolution of hominid and
cultural diversity. This course will allow students to apply general
anthropological knowledge and skills to everyday life and their chosen careers,
to apply the course towards an associate degree at
Course Objectives/Outcomes:
Students who complete this
course will:
Required texts and other materials:
Companion website for main text:
Use of Blackboard:
The course is organized
through Blackboard and all course documents and assignments can be found there.
Log on to Blackboard using your ACCeID. You will see this course listed under
“My course.” The instructor will communicate with the class en masse using Blackboard. You are required to open an email
account if you don’t have one, and to add your email information to Blackboard.
If you do not have an email account, you can get a free one from hotmail,
yahoo, or others.
Course Materials
available on Blackboard [you may
download and make copies]:
v
copies of
lecture outlines
v
study guides/
review sheets
v
syllabus
v
writing
assignment
v
external links
to cultural anthropology related Internet sites
v
your grades will
be recorded here
Instructional Methodology:
The
course material is presented primarily via lecture, videos, and planned
discussions. The students are invited and encouraged to engage each other and
the instructor in discussion of the material presented in lecture and text. For
class discussions to be successful, students
must complete reading assignments before the classroom work on the topic.
Course
Outline/Calendar
|
Date |
Topic |
Assignment* |
|
Week 1: 1/20 |
Course
Introduction |
[Main text] Chapter
1; [reader] #1 “Ethnography & Culture” |
|
Week 2: 1/27 |
Characteristics
of Culture & Ethnographic Research |
Chapters 2
& 3; [reader] #2 “Eating Christmas in the Kalahari” & #4 “Fieldwork
on Prostitution” |
|
Week 3: 2/3 |
Becoming
Human |
Chapter 4; Video:
Bonobos |
|
Week 4: 2/10 |
Language
& Communication |
Quiz 1 (chpts.1-4); Chapter 5 |
|
Week 5: 2/17 |
Language
& Communication 2 |
Chapter 5
finish; [reader] #6 “The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis”; #8 “Body Art”, & #9
“Conversational Style” |
|
Week 6: 2/24 |
Social
Identity |
Chapter 6;
[reader] #20 “Symbolizing roles: Behind the Veil” & #21 “Society &
Sex Roles” |
|
Week 7: 3/3 |
Patterns of
Subsistence |
Chapter 7;
[reader] #10 “The Hunters”: #11 Adaptive failure; #12 |
|
Week 8: 3/10 |
Economic
Systems |
Chapter 8;
[reader] # 13 “Reciprocity and the power of giving”; #14 “Cocaine and the
economic deterioration of |
|
3/16—20/08 |
SPRING BREAK |
No classes! |
|
Week 9: 3/24 |
Sex,
Marriage, & Family |
Test 1 (chpts. 1-8); Chapter 9 |
|
Week 10:
3/31 |
Sex,
Marriage, & Family 2; Kinship & Descent |
Chapter
9-finish; Chapter 10; [reader] #16 “Mother’s love: death without weeping”
& #19 “Uterine families and the women’s community” |
|
Week 11: 4/7 |
Kinship
& Descent 2; Groupings |
Chapter
10-finish; [reader] #17 Family & Kinship in Village |
|
Week 12: 4/14 |
Politics,
Power & Violence |
Quiz 2
(chpts. 9-11); Chapter 12; [reader] #24 “Cross-cultural law”; #26 “Life
without chiefs”; last chance to turn in paper rough draft (optional) |
|
Week 13:
4/21 |
Politics,
Power & Violence 2 |
Chapter
12: finish; Video: Video: Faces of Culture #18 Social control ; paper
rough draft returned |
|
Week 14:
4/28 |
Spirituality,
Religion & the Supernatural |
Chapter 13; [reader]
#27 “Taraka’s ghost”; #28 ”Baseball magic”; #30 “Cargo beliefs and religious
experience”; Final paper due- NO
EXCEPTIONS |
|
Week 15: 5/5 |
The Arts; Process
of Change |
Chapters 14
& 15; [reader] #32 “Men’s pleasure, women’s labor: tourism for sex”; #33
Japanese hip-hop” |
|
Week 16:
5/12 |
Global
Challenges |
Chapter 16
& review; [reader] #34 “The
Kayapo resistence”; final exam (chpts. 9-16)-last 75 minutes of class |
*Assignments are for that day, not the
following one. The instructor reserves
the right to make changes to the schedule with notice.
Course
Evaluation and Grading Criteria:
Your
grade on the first day of class is an "A". Keep the "A" by
successfully completing:
Ø
class attendance AND participation (10% of grade)
Ø
2 exams (25% each for 50% of grade)
Ø
2 quizzes (10% each for 20% of grade)
Ø
1 short research paper (4-5 pages) on a guided topic of your
choice (20% of grade)
Explanation:
Tests will consist
of 25 multiple choice questions worth 2 point each, 20 true/false questions worth
1 point each, and 6 short essay questions worth 5 points each. Essay questions will be drawn from text,
reader, and videos. You will have a choice of essay questions to answer, and
can earn extra credit by answering more than the minimum. Exam 1 will be given
the first 75 minutes of class; exam 2 (final) will be given the last 75 minutes
of class. You are required to provide a
scantron sheet (available at the Campus Store) and a #2 pencil for each test
and quiz.
Quizzes will consist
of 20 multiple choice questions worth 4 points each and 10 true-false questions
worth 2 points each. Quizzes will be given the first 20 minutes of class;
please be on time. Absolutely no makeup for quizzes!
Attendance and
participation: sign class roll --
be on time. This class only meets once a week so it is very important to
attend each class. I would rather you
came in late than not at all (but please be courteous to others and come on
time if possible; don’t develop the habit of strolling in late.) As I learn your names, I will keep track of
who speaks up and participates in class discussions. Participating in class
discussions means consistently asking questions, answering questions, and
discussing the material.
Short research
paper:
see appendix
Course Policies
Scholastic dishonesty: Acts
prohibited by the college for which discipline may be administered include
scholastic dishonesty, including but not limited to cheating on an exam or
quiz, plagiarizing, and unauthorized collaboration with another in preparing
outside work. Academic work submitted by students shall be the result of their
thought, research or self-expression. Academic work is defined as, but not
limited to tests, quizzes, whether taken electronically or on paper; projects,
either individual or group; classroom presentations, and homework.
Students with disabilities: Each ACC
campus offers support services for students with documented physical or
psychological disabilities. Students with disabilities must request reasonable
accommodations through the Office for Students with Disabilities on the campus
where they expect to take the majority of their classes. Students are
encouraged to do this three weeks before the start of the semester.
Academic freedom. Each student is strongly
encouraged to participate in class discussions. In any classroom situation that
includes discussion and critical thinking, there are bound to be many differing
viewpoints. Students may not only disagree with each other at times, but the
students and instructor may also find that they have disparate views on
sensitive and volatile topics. It is my hope that these differences will
enhance class discussion and create an atmosphere where students and instructor
alike will be encouraged to think and learn. Therefore, be assured that your
grades will not be adversely affected by any beliefs or ideas expressed in
class or in assignments. Rather, we will all respect the views of others when
expressed in classroom discussions.
Final withdrawal date:
Farris’
Preferred Practices:
1.
Turn beepers and phones OFF during class.
2.
Attendance is your decision and your responsibility. However, you will lose
participation points on your grade if you do not attend and/or if you do not
sign-in. To be counted you must sign the sign-in sheet each class.
3.
Call me if you are having problems with the class material or completing the
assignments. I will arrange an appointment time in which we can have a phone
conversation if you cannot make my office hours.
4.
Finish by the end of the semester -- no incompletes will be given.
5.
If you make less than a “C” (70) on any exam, make an appointment with me and
discuss your exam. We will review study strategies to help improve your score.
6.
NO MAKEUPS FOR QUIZZES OR TESTS unless you give me an official document
related to your absence showing (for example) a doctor’s, a police’s, or
mortician’s signature. If you know you must miss an exam BEFORE it occurs, send
me an email marked “URGENT” or call and leave a message, letting me know. If
unexpected circumstances prevent you from informing me beforehand, send me an
email or voice message as soon as you can, but
no later than 24 hours after the scheduled exam. If this happens, we will
arrange for you to take the exam; you will not earn participation credit for
taking the exam when given.
Appendix
Short Research Paper
Dr. Farris
Spring 2009
Instructions: You will write an ethnological research paper, comparing ethnographies from three different cultures or subcultures, on a topic
of your choice. One culture or
subculture can be your own. However, you cannot reply only on native intuition;
you must read and cite an ethnographic account. You will read at least one
article in an academic (peer-review) journal (some relevant journals are listed
below) and may use articles from the Spradley and McCurdy
reader for one or two ethnographic examples. The textbook may be cited as one
reference. Minimum number of references is 4.
You
will write a 4-5 page critical analysis, relating it to a topic read and/or
discussed in class. A good place to get
ideas for a paper topic is the “questions for reflection” section at the end of
the chapters. You may want to glance
ahead at chapter contents to get ideas for a paper topic of interest to you.
Limit yourself to one, well defined topic; don’t try to be too broad. Papers should be typed, double spaced, font
size 12, and using a standard academic citation method, such as
In
your paper, address the following:
Due
Dates:
March
10 Paper topic, thesis statement
& bibliography
April
7-14 rough draft (optional)
April
21 rough draft returned
April
28 Final paper
NO CREDIT FOR
LATE PAPERS!
Grading
Rubric
Introduction: focused, clear
15%
Body: organized, articulate, analytical
50%
Conclusions: succinct, clear, conclusive
15%
Creativity: original, interesting, compelling reading 5%
Grammar: complete sentences, correct spellings, etc.
10%
Bibliography: consistent citations & complete references
5%
TOTAL
100%
Resources
For information on cultural
anthropology journals, go to this web address at the ACC library:http://library.austincc.edu/w3/ANT/
American Anthropological
Assn. http://www.aaanet.org/
Major journals in cultural
anthropology: