2007-08 - Pitzer College

46 ANTHROPOLOGY
of sociocultural systems using ethnographic materials from a wide range of societies. Fall,
L. Martins; Spring, E. Chao.
3. Language, Culture & Society. How speech and writing reflect and create social and
cultural differences (and universals). We will consider factors that can lead to
miscommunication between speakers with different cultural expectations-including
speakers who seem to share the same language but use it very differently, whether
language shapes thought, how social ideologies and relations of status and power are
reflected in language use, and the politics of language use (e.g., who decides that a
particular language variety is “standard”). Fall, C. Strauss.
12. Native Americans and Their Environments. This course will investigate the
traditional interrelationships of Native American ethnic groups with their various
environments. Are patterns of collecting wild resources or farming primary foods
environmentally determined? How does the physical environment affect a group’s social
system, politics, art, religion? What impact do these cultural factors have on a group’s
utilization of its environment? We will examine these and other issues through class
discussions and readings. We will consider several regions of North America in our study
of such groups as the Inuit, Kwakiutl, Cahuilla, Hopi, Navajo, Dakota and Iroquois.
[not offered 2007-08]
16. Introduction to Nepal. An introduction to the geography, history, peoples, cultures,
and contemporary circumstances of Nepal. This course is required of, but not limited to,
students planning to participate in Pitzer’s semester in Nepal. Fall, E. Chao.
Anth 21/Hist 21. The World Since 1492. This course explores the last 500 years of world
history. In examining this large expanse of time, the focus is on four closely related
themes: (1) struggles between Europeans and colonized peoples, (2) the global formation
of capitalist economies and industrialization, (3) the formation of modern states, and (4)
the formation of the tastes, disciplines, and dispositions of bourgeois society.
Spring C. Johnson/D. Segal.
23. China and Japan Through Film and Ethnography. This course will use feature films
as ethnographic sources for exploring the cultures of China and Japan. It will juxtapose
the examination of historical and anthropological material with films and recent film
criticism. Includes weekly film screenings. Enrollment is limited. [not offered 2007-08]
28. Colonial Encounters. This course will examine anthropological studies of colonialism.
It is an introductory course that will focus on how the process of colonization altered
both colonized subjects and colonizers. Particular attention will be paid to issues of
gender, sexuality, race, national identity, religion, and the interconnections between
colonial (and imperial) practices and the formation of a broader world system. Staff.
[not offered 2007-08]
33. Caribbean Histories, Cultures, and Societies. Though known to persons from the
United States primarily as sites of recreational tourism (“sun, surf, and sex”), the islands
of the Caribbean are sites of daily work and life for some 36 million persons. This course
examines the cultures, societies, and histories of the Caribbean, focusing primarily on the
English and French speaking Caribbean. Thematically, the course focuses on processes of
ANTHROPOLOGY
racialization, effects of globalization, experiences of labor, the circulation of popular/mass
culture, and the openness of the Caribbean to travel. Prerequisite: History 21 or
permission of instructor. D. Segal. [not offered 2007-08]
41. Social Movements and Other Forms of Political Struggles. The last decades have
been marked by a proliferation of social and political movements all over the world.
Indians, peasants, mothers, students, among others, have organized collective actions to
fight discrimination, poverty, violence, environment degradation, etc. This course will
examine the historical context and different forms of the so-called New Social Movements
in the context of globalization and late-capitalism. We will read ethnographic accounts of
these movements, watch movies made by and about them and analyze the theories that
attempt to explain these struggles. L. Martins. [not offered 2007-08]
50. Sex, Body, Reproduction. Is there a line between nature and culture? Drawing on
historical, ethnographic, and popular sources, this course will examine the cultural roots
of forms of knowledge about sex, the body, and reproduction and the circulation of
cultural metaphors in medical, historical, and colonial discourse. Fall, E. Chao.]
52. Indigenous Peoples, Global Development and Human Rights. The class focuses on
the processes and consequences of the encroachment of Western societies on indigenous
peoples. We will examine the main areas that marked colonial enterprises and continue to
be crucial in the current situations of indigenous societies vis-à-vis nation-states: political
power, economic development, gender relations, collective rights, health, education and
religion. We will study specific ethnographic cases (through movies and texts) from
different parts of the world that look at the past and the present. Fall, L. Martins.
58. Doing Research Abroad. Designed to prepare students to conduct independent
research projects in the Pitzer study abroad programs. This course will assist students in
conducting research in unfamiliar or less familiar cultures than their own. We will focus
on issues related to the scope of the research, methodology and ethics. The course will
also provide a general basis for the encounter and understanding of other societies. Open
and relevant to students in all areas. Fall, L. Martins.
62. Embodying the Voice of History. This course will examine various testimonials such
as the education of Little Tree, the life of Rigoberta Menchu, Burundian refugee accounts,
descriptions of satanic ritual possession, and post-revolutionary Chinese narratives
known as “speaking bitterness.” Do these testimonials unproblematically inform us about
the historical contexts they describe? Issues of veracity and authenticity will be examined
as well as processes of politicization. E. Chao. [not offered 2007-08]
70. Culture and the Self. This course examines the way emotions, cognition, and
motivations are shaped by culture. Topics will include ideas of personhood in different
societies, cultural differences in child rearing, whether there are any universal emotions
or categories of thought, and mental illness cross-culturally. C. Strauss. [not offered 2007-08]
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