Anthropology

 

Professors:  Benoît, Burton; Associate Professor:  Lizarralde; Visiting Instructor:  Gould; Professor Cole, chair

 

Associated Faculty:

Professor:  Steiner (Art History); Assistant Professor:  Wilson (Music)

 

The Major in Anthropology

 

The major consists of at least ten courses:  102, 104, 410; one of the following: 308, 380, 381, or 383; and six additional courses, at least two which must be at the 200 level and two at the 300 level.  Students are strongly advised to take a course in statistics and/or computer science.

Archaeology is a focus within the anthropology major, rather than a separate major.  Students interested in archaeology may choose from among the following courses:  102, 202, 383, 406, 491, 492, 497-498.

 

Advisers:  C. Benoît, J. Burton, J. Cole, M. Lizarralde

 

The Minor in Anthropology

 

The minor consists of six courses, including Courses 102, 104, 410, one 200-level and one 300-level course and one elective exclusive of Courses 491 and 492.

 

Courses

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  102  GREAT DISCOVERIES:  INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY  The development of ancient societies from Paleolithic to historic times, including the study of human cultural origins and the emergence of complex civilizations.  Archaeological methods and current controversies also considered.

                Open to freshmen and sophomores, and to others with permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 40 students.  This course satisfies General Education Area 3.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  104  FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY  Major principles, concepts, and techniques of social and cultural anthropology; the relation of language to culture; a survey of the variation and evolution of human cultures and communities.

                Open to freshmen and sophomores, and to others with permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 40 students.  Offered both semesters.  This course satisfies General Education Area 3.  J. Burton, J. Cole

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  108  MUSIC OF THE WORLD  This is the same course as Music 108.  Refer to the Music listing for a course description.

 

Anthropology  117  introduction to Ethnobotany  This is the same course as Botany 117.  Refer to the Botany listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  202  ARCHAEOLOGY OF NORTH AMERICA  A study of the development of prehistoric Native American societies.  An examination of peopling and subsequent cultural development in North America using both a developmental and cultural area approach.  Prehistoric societies will be studied within evolutionary and ecological frameworks.  Theoretical and methodological positions and innovations will be considered, including the use of ethnographic data for archaeological interpretations.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  213  NATIVE AMERICAN RELIGIONS  This is the same course as American Studies/Religious Studies 213.  Refer to the Religious Studies listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  224  ETHNOLOGY OF PERUVIAN PEOPLE  The goal of this course is to explore the ethnological literature about the richness of Peruvian cultures, mainly indigenous peoples living in the Cusco region.  The objective is to provide students with an overview and understanding of this region.  Special focus on the Kechua, and Mastsiguenka.  This course is taught in the SATA Peru program only.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104, Hispanic Studies 251, or History 114.  Enrollment limited to 12 students.  M. Lizarralde

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  229  ETHNOMUSICOLOGY:  THE SOCIAL SCIENCE OF MUSIC  This is the same course as Music 229.  Refer to the Music listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  231  ASIAN AMERICANS AND RACIALIZATION IN THE UNITED STATES  This is the same course as American Studies/Comparative Race and Ethnicity 231.  Refer to the Comparative Race and Ethnicity listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  234  ETHNOLOGY OF SOUTH AMERICA  Description and analysis of the major culture areas, with emphasis on ecology, economy, social and religious organization; influence of Andean and Iberian civilizations on aboriginal life; and current trends in cultural development.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  M. Lizarralde

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  245  ETHNOLOGY OF SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA  An examination of Africa from several perspectives including geography, history, and anthropological studies of indigenous cultures.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Burton

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  250  ETHNOLOGY OF NORTH AMERICA  Native American societies from culture area and topical perspectives.  Historical issues and current debates will be considered.

                Prerequisite:  One course in anthropology or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  260  ETHNOLOGY OF THE CARIBBEAN  An introduction to Caribbean anthropology, to the societies and cultures of the English-, Dutch-, French- and Spanish-speaking Caribbean, and to the main theories that account for the production and reproduction of localized and globalized cultural practices in the Caribbean from the colonial era to the present.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 and 104, or permission of instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  270  ANTHROPOLOGY OF FRANCE  (IN FRENCH)  This course explores how both U.S. and French anthropologists have recently studied France and how this focus has affected the discipline as a whole.  The course is organized around topics dealing with contemporary political and cultural issues.  This course will be taught in French and is the same as French 270.  This course is taught in the SATA France program only.

                Prerequisite:  French 203 or equivalent.  Francophone students will be admitted to the course after an interview with the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  275  ANTHROPOLOGY OF NATIVE NEW ENGLAND  Consideration of the indigenous Native American peoples of New England using a number of strategies, including ethnology, archaeology, biological anthropology, linguistics, and ethnohistory.

                Prerequisite:  Courses 102 and 104, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  280  ETHNOLOGY OF EUROPE  Through ethnographic studies, this course explores European communities and institutions within the context of European integration, post-colonialism and post-communism.  Topics include the construction of identity, the negotiation of modernity and tradition, changing gender roles, marginalization, race, class, ethnicity, embodiment, and the politics of reproduction.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Cole

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  290  UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEMPORARY MIDDLE EAST  An introduction to the geography, history, politics, economy, religion, and social identities of the contemporary Middle East.  Ethnographic cases provide perspectives on key issues relating to rapid social and cultural change.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  302  NATURE, culture, and power in the African diaspora  Born out of the extermination of Amerindian people, slavery and colonialism, the societies of the Black Atlantic have developed original Creole cultures.  This course will examine the development of Creole identities as linked to the environment and the transformation of nature into culture.  Examples will be drawn from the Caribbean and the United States.

                Open to anthropology majors who have taken Course 104, and to others with permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 16 students.  This course is not open to students who have received credit for Anthropology 402.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  305  ETHNOGRAPHY THROUGH FILM  A study of the ways in which film is of value to anthropology as a means of documenting ethnographic analysis, as a means of presenting one culture to another and as a tool for research in social behavior.  A representative selection of ethnographic films will be screened as an integral part of the course.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level; or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Burton

 

Anthropology  307  Environmental Anthropology  An examination of the relationship between human beings and the environment, with emphasis on the variations between different time periods and ecoregions.  Specific focus on how adaptations relating to subsistence patterns and diversity of diet can lead to the current crises of biodiversity, global warming, and environmental sustainability.  This is the same course as Environmental Studies 307.

                Prerequisite:  One of the following:  Course 104, Environmental Studies 110, or 111.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  M. Lizarralde

 

Anthropology  308  Methods and theories of ethnobotany  This is the same course as Botany/Environmental Studies 308.  Refer to the Botany listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  310  COLONIALISM, MEMORY OF SLAVERY, AND IMMIGRATION IN FRANCE  (IN FRENCH)  This course explores how French society is currently dealing with its colonial past, including slavery, and immigration issues.  There will be a focus on both the history of French colonialism as well as on contemporary events and debates at the Parliament over colonialism and slavery.  This course will be taught in French and is the same as French 310.  This course is taught in the SATA France program only.

                Prerequisite:  French 203 or equivalent.  Francophone students will be admitted to the course after an interview with the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  311  ETHNOBOTANY OF SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND  An introduction to Native American plant uses in southern New England.  Field work in the Arboretum and elsewhere will introduce students to ethnobotanical field methods in addition to historical and other ethnographical materials.  Class projects will require collection, analysis and presentation of field and other data.  This is the same course as Botany 311 and Environmental Studies 311.

                Three hours of integrated lecture, discussion, field, and laboratory work.  Prerequisite:  Botany 225 or Course 381, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 12 students.  M. Lizarralde

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  313  ETHNOECOLOGY OF PERU  This is the same course as Botany/Environmental Studies 213.  Refer to the Botany listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  314  LANGUAGE AND SYMBOLISM  The consequences of linguistic competence for social and individual experience and the relationship between natural languages and systems of symbolic classification.

                Prerequisite:  Courses 102 and 104, and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level; or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Burton

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  315  ANTHROPOLOGY OF RELIGION  Anthropological interpretation of the role of religion in social and individual experiences.  Ethnographic readings focusing on non-western cosmologies and world views are considered.

                Prerequisite:  Courses 102 and 104, and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level; or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Burton

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  319  MEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY  Conceptions of well-being, disease, and healing in a social and historical context.  Examination of cross-cultural ethnographic research, including research on Western biomedicine.  Representations and experiences of illness and sickness will also be understood in the context of access to health care, politics, and globalization.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104 and one course at the 200 level in anthropology, human development, psychology, or sociology.  Open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  320  ANTHROPOLOGY OF SEX AND GENDER  Theories of human sexuality as well as gender stereotypes have undergone dramatic transformation in recent decades.  This course surveys concepts of sexuality and gender through the comparative study of Melanesian, Asian, African, Native American and Western definitions and usages.  This is the same course as Gender and Women′s Studies 320.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104; or Gender and Women′s Studies 103 and at least one 200-level course in Anthropology or Gender and Women's Studies; or permission of the instructor.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  325  ETHNOHISTORY OF MINORITY COMMUNITIES IN SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND  This course will examine the history and culture of people of color in this region.  A multidimensional approach incorporates archaeological research, interpreting documentary sources, oral histories, maps, and photographs.  Themes will address dispossession, adaptation, ethnogenesis, changing gender roles, and labor on land and at sea.  This is the same course as American Studies 325/History 326.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104 and one of the following:  History 105, 201, or 203.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  330  READING ETHNOGRAPHY  Instruction in how to read ethnographies from a critically informed perspective, to understand them both as attempts at objective description and as works that reflect the interests and theoretical focus of their authors.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104 or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 20 students.  J. Burton

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  340  HUMAN ORIGINS  A study of the evolution of the human species from an anthropological perspective.  The human evolutionary record from its primate beginnings to the emergence of Homo sapiens.  The development of human anatomy, bipedalism, culture, sexuality, and language.

                Prerequisite:  Courses 102, 104, and one course in anthropology at the 200 level; or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Burton

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  348  CULTURE AND THE HUMAN BODY  A cross-cultural perspective of how the human body serves as a medium and metaphor of ethnic identity, social status, power and gender.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104 and an additional anthropology course.  Open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Burton

 

AntHRopology  350  WORLDS OF FOOD  An examination of food from a holistic and comparative perspective.  Topics include the symbolism of food; culinary prohibitions and preferences; commensality; gender relations; drink and drinking places; food production, exchange, and consumption; food and status, class, and identity; and the politics and practices of fast, slow, and health food.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Cole

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  355  THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION  This course investigates the human reproductive cycle from cross-cultural, political-economic and historical perspectives.  Topics include fertility, conception, pregnancy, childbirth, parenting and menopause.  Through ethnographies, the course explores the cultural construction of the body and the way people′s embodied experiences help produce, reproduce and challenge cultural norms and meanings.  This is the same course as Gender and Women′s Studies 355.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  356  IMAGINING OTHERNESS IN VISUAL CULTURE  This is the same course as Art History 356.  Refer to the Art History listing for a course description.

 

AntHRopology  360  People on the Move:  MIGRANTS, REFUGEES, AND TOURISTS IN ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE  An examination of population movement in the contemporary world.  Topics include migration policy and practice; labor migrants, refugees, professionals, and entrepreneurs; tourism and international retirement; family life and gender; the second generation; race and ethnicity; political mobilization, rejection, and integration; and human trafficking.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  J. Cole

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  363  ANTHROPOLOGY OF HUMAN RIGHTS  This course provides an introduction to the basic principles of human rights and their application to situations of conflict in contemporary societies.  It examines the interconnections between human rights abuses, inequalities of power, and cultural difference.  The role of anthropologists in the understanding and resolution of violent conflicts will be considered.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  370  THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF SPACE AND PLACE:  (DE)LOCATING CULTURE AND ANTHROPOLOGY  This course examines the importance of place in anthropological thinking and people′s experience of space.  It will first discuss the development of anthropology as a discipline that identifies a people and a place to a culture.  It will then analyze issues of identity and politics in relation to space by focusing on the embodiment of space, transnational space and globalization, space and domination.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104 or two anthropology courses at the 200 level, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 20 students.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  380  APPLIED ANTHROPOLOGY  An introduction to applied anthropology.  Includes a survey of the history of the field, and an examination of the domains in which applied anthropologists intervene, with an emphasis on the rules of ethics that applied anthropologists have to follow.

                Prerequisite:  Course 104 and one 200-level course in anthropology, human development, psychology, or sociology.  Open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors.  Enrollment limited to 30 students.  C. Benoît

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  381  METHODS IN SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY  Project-oriented class involving selection and focusing of a research topic and the collection, analysis, and presentation of data.  Class discussions include formulation of research problems, development of interview questions, techniques for observing behavior and conducting interviews; gender and ethical considerations in research; and some problems of quantitative data.

                Prerequisite:  Courses 102 and 104 and one area course, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 15 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  383  METHODS IN ARCHAEOLOGY  An examination of the methods employed in modern archaeological research, including qualitative and quantitative analysis; consideration of techniques of recovery, description and analysis of archaeological materials.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 or 104, and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level; or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 15 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  390  HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY  A consideration of archaeological studies of the recent past, emphasizing the interplay of archaeology and history in the period after 1500 A.D.  Focus on historical archaeology of the colonial era, the 19th century, and selected non-North American case studies.

                Prerequisite:  Course 102 and one other course in anthropology, or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 20 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  403  AUTHENTICITY IN ART AND CULTURE  This is the same course as Art History 493K, 494K.  Refer to the Art History listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  404  COMPARATIVE RACIAL FORMATIONS:  ASIAN AMERICANS, AFRICAN AMERICANS, AND LATINOS  This is the same course as American Studies/Comparative Race and Ethnicity 404.  Refer to the Comparative Race and Ethnicity listing for a course description.

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  406  ARCHAEOLOGY AND SOCIETY  Applied topics in world archaeology, such as historical archaeology, cultural resource management, the antiquities market, archaeology and museums, and historic preservation.  The course will include an internship in a state agency, museum, historical society, contract archaeology firm, preservation organization or other appropriate placement.

                Prerequisite:  Courses 102 and 104, and two other courses in anthropology; or permission of the instructor.  Enrollment limited to 10 students.  Staff

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  410  THEORY IN SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY  An examination of theoretical literature in anthropology, the course will trace lines of development of selected issues represented in major schools of thought.  Perennial concerns and contemporary concepts will be interrelated, with emphasis on knowledge of primary sources.

                Open to junior and senior anthropology majors and minors.  Enrollment limited to 16 students.  J. Cole

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  291, 292  INDIVIDUAL STUDY

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  391, 392  INDIVIDUAL STUDY

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  491, 492  INDIVIDUAL STUDY

 

ANTHROPOLOGY  497-498  HONORS STUDY