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Taking Sides

Introduction to Cultural Anthropology (Ant 101)
Fall 2008 Room Kiely Hall 150
Dr. Larisa Honey
Email:larisahoney@hotmail.com
Office Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:15-3:45

Overview of the course: Cultural anthropology is the study of human beings within social and cultural context. As a discipline it examines the broad array of human behaviors, beliefs, and conditions, as well as the ideologies and power-structures that inform people’s lives across cultures and societies. This course is designed to explore several key issues that are at the heart of this vast and broad endeavor we call cultural anthropology: the cultural construction of race, poverty, gender and knowledge.

In many ways anthropology is best understood as an approach to looking at the world and studying the great diversity of people in the world. As such, this class explores both how anthropologists look at the world and frame their questions as well as the methods anthropologists use to examine and address these questions. At the core of anthropology is ethnographic fieldwork, a type of long-term qualitative research. During fieldwork anthropologists take time to look, listen and experience first-hand the subject matter they are studying, allowing them to gain a richer and more in-depth understanding. Cross-cultural comparisons of such ethnographic experiences help us to see beyond our own narrow lens of personal experience. They bring into question ethnocentric view points and commonly held misconceptions, or myths, about the human experience. We will have in-class workshops on elements of ethnographic fieldwork, including participant observation, interview techniques, and ethical issues, and you will be conducting your own ethnographic fieldwork outside of class.

Taking a cultural constructivist approach, I’ve designed this class to explore several commonly-held myths about race, poverty, gender and knowledge. Questioning the role of “nature”, our readings focus on the role...