2007-08 - Pitzer College

48 ANTHROPOLOGY
74. The City: An Anthropological Examination. Through internships in the neighboring
city of Ontario and readings about cities historically and cross-culturally, we will examine
the connection between life in cities as experienced by different social groups and the
larger forces shaping these experiences. How are the experiences of immigrants, or
members of different classes, shaped by social forces at work in Southern California and
the United States at this time? Particularly recommended before or after participation in
the Pitzer in Ontario Program. C. Strauss. [not offered 2007-08]
75. Cognitive Anthropology. In what ways are human thought processes the same
everywhere, in what ways do they vary across and within societies? We will examine the
latest versions of classic debates about rationality, the effect of language on thought,
innate knowledge, the structure of cultural knowledge, and the relation of people’s
thoughts to their emotions, motivations, practices, and social worlds.
C. Strauss. [not offered 2007-08]
76. American Political Discourses. This course will examine individualist discourses and
alternatives to them (e.g., populist, religious, ethnic/racial identity, socialist, New Age) in
the United States. We will study how these discourses have been used in the past and
present by elites and average citizens, including their key words, metaphors, rhetorical
styles, and unspoken assumptions. The focus of the class will be original research projects
examining the ways these discourses are used in discussions of politics and public policy.
C. Strauss. [not offered 2007-08]
Anth 77/Hist 77. Great Revolutions in Human History? The Agricultural and Industrial
Revolutions Compared. This seminar examines and compares the complex changes in
human existence known, respectively, as “the agricultural revolution” and the “industrial
revolution.” Topics include: (i) the received understanding of each of these “revolutions”
in “developmental” or “social evolutionary” terms; (ii) the environmental history of each;
(iii) how these two historical complexes have been framed as similar, despite divergences
in their forms and structures, in terms of independent invention, diffusion, and sustainability.
Prerequisite: Anth 21. Spring, D. Segal.
81. Media Discourse. What is the relation between discourse in the media and in
everyday life? This course will examine language use in print media, television, and
movies as ways of portraying fantasies, stereotypes, power, and both contested and
taken-for-granted cultural assumptions. C. Strauss. [not offered 2007-08]
86. Anthropology of Public Policy. Cultural assumptions help determine debates about
public policy, as well as what is not even considered a subject for debate. This course will
focus on the way past and current cultural assumptions have shaped policies in the United
States and other nations about the environment, abortion, welfare, immigration, and other issues.
C. Strauss. [not offered 2007-08]
88. China: Gender, Cosmology, and the State. This course examines the anthropological
literature on Chinese society. It will draw on ethnographic research conducted in the People’s
Republic of China. Particular attention will be paid to the genesis of historical and kinship
relations, gender, ritual, ethnicity, popular practice and state discourse since the revolution.
Spring, E. Chao.
ANTHROPOLOGY
89. The American Sixties. This course will examine the now much mythologized period
of American history known as “the sixties.” It will inevitably deal with the sordid history
of “sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll,” as well as histories of revolting youth. But just as
importantly, the course will be driven by three theoretical questions. First, what is the
relationship between the political activism of bourgeois youth in the “the sixties” and
ritualized processes of social reproduction, experienced as the transition from
“childhood” to “adulthood”? Second, what is the relationship between the leftist politics
of “the sixties” and the historical 33333formation of professional managerial classes in
U.S. and world history? And third, how do singular events—such as the decade’s iconic
assassination of President John F. Kennedy—articulate with cultural schemas? Prereq:
Anth/Hist 21 or concurrent enrollment in Anth/Hist 21. D. Segal. [not offered 2007-08]
90. Schooling. This course examines the history of mass schooling, the undergraduate
curriculum, and professional education from the mid-19th through the end of the 20th
century. The course is primarily concerned with the relationship of schooling at all these
levels to the state, capitalism, and popular belief. The geographic focus will be on the
U.S., but comparisons will be made with schooling elsewhere, notably in Caribbean and
European societies. Prerequisite: Anth/Hist 21 or permission of instructor. Fall, D. Segal.
95. Folk Arts in Cultural Context. This course will investigate the nature of folk arts,
along with the roles of the folk artist in a variety of cultures. We will discuss various
media of folk expression such as ceramics, basketry, and textiles; many of these are made
by women, and gender issues will be central to discussion. The course will consider
traditional cultural controls over techniques and designs, as well as the impact of outside
influence such as tourist demands for “ethnic” arts. Enrollment is limited.
S. Miller. [not offered 2007-08]
99. China in the 21st Century. This class will examine China in the 21st Century.
Particular attention will be paid to the shift from communist to nationalist discourse;
labor unrest and the declining state sector economy; land seizures and rural protest;
generational differences and tensions; sex and gender; consumer culture; the rule of law;
popular ritual practice; and modernity. E. Chao. [not offered 2007-08]
101. Theory and Method in Archaeology. This course considers theoretical approaches in
archaeology and compares their assumptions, methods, and results. Problems of
interpreting archaeological data will be discussed. Students will have practical experience
with field methods of excavation and laboratory analysis of artifacts. Enrollment is limited.
Spring, S. Miller.
102. Museums and Material Culture. “Material culture consists of artifacts that represent
the behaviors of humans who create, utilize, value and discard things in culturally
significant ways. This course will investigate the cultural and individual meanings of
objects from several different groups. A major section of the course will focus on
museums: how they present cultural materials (and possibly misrepresent). In required
lab section meetings throughout the semester, students will cooperate to design and
mount an exhibition of early American material culture. S. Miller. [not offered 2007-08]
103. Museums: Behind the Glass. The focus of this course is on the museum as a cultural
institution. In the class we will consider why our society supports museums, and why we
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