2010-2011 - Sweet Briar College

Anthropology and ArchaeologySweet Briar Collegethe rise of nonstate global agencies; the work ofthe imagination; the apparent contrast between“the global” and local knowledge; and the placeof the intimate in world-wide change. V.7.ANTH 261 (1, 2, or 3)–Directed StudyPrerequisites: One ANTH course and permissionof the instructor. The study of introductorylevel material by an individual student or by asmall group of students under the immediatesupervision of a faculty member. This course isgraded P/CR/NC only.ANTH 268 (3)–Peoples and Cultures ofthe MediterraneanAn area survey of selected Mediterranean societies,including the comparative analysis ofselected European, Middle Eastern, and NorthAfrican cultures. An examination of the centralconcepts in the social anthropology of thisregion: honor and shame, the roles of family andkinship, and systems of stratification. Offeredalternate years. V.5.ANTH 270 (3)–Peoples and Cultures ofSouth AsiaAn examination of selected South Asian societiesfrom an anthropological perspective. Amongtopics the course may cover are kinship, class andcaste, gender and sexualities, the lifecourse, modernityand tradition, religion, and aesthetics. V.4.ANTH 272 (3)–Peoples and Cultures ofthe Middle EastAn exploration of various anthropological perspectiveson selected Middle Eastern societies.Among topics that may be covered are gender,family and society, religion and secularism,transformations of class, media and society, ageand the lifecourse, and Middle Eastern modernities.Offered every two years. V.4, V.5.ANTH 274 (3)–Sex and Gender: AnAnthropological PerspectiveAre relations of power and status between menand women always unequal? Are gender differencesalways linked to the same notions ofsexuality and sexual practice? These questionswill be explored by looking at the ways peoplein various cultures throughout the world defineand maintain gender distinctions and order, andconceptualize sexuality. V.5.ANTH 281 (3)–Visual AnthropologyPrerequisite: ANTH 112, ENGL 149, or ENGL150. This course explores images of the culturalother, as seen in ethnographic and documentaryfilms and photographs. How do photographs,art, exhibits, and museums reinforce stereotypesof “the primitive” and “the exotic?” In whatways are visual media used to create ethnographictexts and representations? The coursewill address these topics through film screenings,discussions, and readings as well as videoproduction. V.5.ANTH 282 (3)–Anthropology and the BodyPrerequisite: ANTH 112 or one 200-level ANTHcourse. A detailed exploration of the body as acultural construct and as a field of practices. Thecourse will examine how the body is imaginedthrough a variety of discourses, including disease,illness and healing; ritual; aesthetics; age and gender;modification and training; and as part of thepolitical domain. V.5.ANTH 310 (3)–The Anthropology ofIdentity and CitizenshipPrerequisites: Two ANTH courses, at leastone of which is at the 200-level or above. Thiscourse examines the processes through whichpeople come to think of themselves as part ofa group united by shared values, practices, orsubstances, and the ways in which such identitiesfigure in political contexts. The course alsolooks at how people relate to and shape politicalcontexts, including “the state,” examining suchconcepts as civil society and the public sphere.Offered alternate years. V.7.ANTH 317 (3)–Ecological AnthropologyPrerequisite: ANTH 112, one anthropologycourse at the 200-level, or ENVR 101.Ecological approaches in anthropology areintroduced in this course through topics suchas human population growth, biodiversity, sustainability,and climate change, especially ininternational contexts. A comparative study ofglobal versus regional environmental concernsin both Western and non-Western contexts willbe covered through readings and discussions.Offered alternate years. V.5.50­