ANTH 3260 - University of Virginia

COURSE OUTLINE:
AUGUST 28 (A1)
WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY? WHAT IS GLOBAL POLITICAL ECONOMY? GLOBALIZATION?
Discussion of course requirements and assignments. Introduction of basic concepts.
Reading assignments:
American Anthropological Association website information.
Ellen Meiksins Wood (1998) “The Communist Manifesto 150 Years Later,” in Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The
Communist Manifesto. Monthly Review, pp. 89-112.
AUGUST 30 (A2), SEPTEMBER 1 (A3)
ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEORIES, METHODS AND DATA GATHERING TECHNIQUES. Karl Marx‟
influence on the social sciences. Ethnographic field research and its ethical and practical hazards.
Reading assignments:
Richard Robbins, Introduction and Ch. 1 “Constructing the Consumer” pp. 1-32.
Manfred Steger, Preface and Ch. 1 “Globalization: A Contested Concept” pp. 1-16.
Jaafar Aksikas, “Prisoners of Globalization: Marginality, Community, and the New Informal Economy in Morocco.”
Mediterranean Politics, Vol. 12, #2, 249–262, July 2007.
FIELD ASSIGNMENTS (Casablanca, Morocco, September 3-6):
Students may choose one (or more) of the following assignments:
Investigate and document visible legacies of French colonial rule on Moroccan society.
Make observations about informal economic activities, wealth distribution, and poverty.
Document the place of Islam in the political economy of Morocco.
Take notes on the experience of doing field research in light of our class discussion of the topic.
Recommended in-port programs:
CAS15 CASABLANCA CITY ORIENTATION (1330-1730) Minimum 21/Maximum 86 (PRICE: $39) PRE-SALE ONLY
SEPTEMBER 7 & 9 (A4 & A5)
THE CREATION OF A GLOBAL POLITICAL ECONOMY. Modes of production and social formations: Communal mode of
production, archaic states, industrial capitalism, socialism, and Marx‟ vision of communism. The place of slavery and colonialism in
human history.
Reading assignments:
Richard Robbins, Part 1. Ch. 2 “The Laborer in the Culture of Capitalism‟” pp. 33-54, & Ch. 3 “The Rise and Fall of the
Merchant, Industrialist, and Financier” pp. 55-95. [Focus on the historical information.]
“Introduction” in James Ferguson, Global Shadows: Africa in the Neoliberal World Order.
All students must pick a main topic, which they will research throughout the journey, discuss their choice with the
instructor, and start their data collection.
SEPTEMBER 11 (A6)
GLOBALIZATION AND THEORIES OF SOCIAL CHANGE. This class focuses on various ways of understanding social change,
including modernization/neoliberal, dependency/ world systems theories, and indigenous peoples‟ perspectives. Why did (do)
some populations change their ways of making a living quite rapidly, while others have done so much more slowly? What is the
role of institutionalized power structures and human agency in promoting or preventing change?
Reading assignments:
Manfred Steger, Ch. 2 “Globalization and History: Is Globalization a New Phenomenon?” pp. 17-37.
Immanuel Wallerstein, “The Rise and Future Demise of the World Capitalist System,‟ pp. 63-69,”Joseph E. Stiglitz
“Globalism's discontents” pp. 200-207, and Amartya Sem, “How to judge globalism” pp. 16-21 in Lechner, Frank & John
Boli, eds. (2008) The Globalization Reader.
Additional recommended readings:
E. Gyimah-Boadi, “Another Step Forward for Ghana,” Journal of Democracy, Vol. 20, # 2, (2009) [Word Document, 6
pp.]
Emmanuel Akyeampong & Pashington Obeng, “Spirituality, Gender, and Power in Asante History” in Oyeronke Oyewumi,
ed. (2005) African Gender Studies. A Reader, pp. 23-48.