1 TIBETAN SHEPHERD WESTERN SICHUAN CHINA INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY ANTH101 010 Dr Donna Budani Class Time 11 OOam to 12 15pm Classroom Kirkbride 004 Office and Phone 138 Munroe Hall and Phone x1859 Email budani udel edu Web Page http www udel edu anthro budani Office Hours COURSE DESCRIPTION Most of you will enter this course with little or no prior experience with the subject matter of Anthropology This course will introduce you to the diverse subject of anthropology will inform you as to what different kinds of anthropologists do and will familiarize you with the key methods of cultural anthropology ethnography You will learn why culture is the means by which people in different societies have organized their living and the ways members of culture create meaning in their lives This learning process involves a fascinating experience in which our western assumptions are revealed to us and thwarted when we examine various facets of belief behavior and traditions of non 1 2 western societies By studying different cultures it is hoped that you will begin to think about the nature and characteristics of your own culture Course Objectives 1 To create a greater degree of cross cultural awareness by attempting to promote an understanding of and appreciation for richness and diversity of human culture 2 To correct cultural biases and ethnocentric assumptions concerning the superiority of one s own culture the alleged biological basis of race and the existence of so called primitive peoples 3 To instill a fundamental respect for peoples of other cultures their ways of living and their ways of making sense of their own experiences Course Learning Outcomes At the end of the course students will be able To compose an anthropological framework for understanding the complexities of the world today and in particular American culture To plan the ethnographic field study of a culture different from one s own culture To identify the primary universal components of culture and distinguish there particular anthropological issues To compose a framework for understanding the complexities of the world today through the concept of culture and its many manifestations To judge the applicability of anthropological knowledge as a tool for analyzing world wide problems and issues To judge the difference between cultural relativism and ethnocentrism To analyze the cultural construction of violence To be knowledgeable about the cultural construction of meaning 2 3 PART I Course Requirements Books Books are available at UDEL bookstore bookstores on Main Street and on line at Amazon com and Barnes and Noble com You should also do a Google search for used text books and used books to find Nanda and Warms Robbins and some of the other required books 1 Cultural Anthropology 9th Edition Serna Nanda and Richard Warms authors 2 Cultural Anthropology A Problem Based Approach Richard Robbins author 3 Field Projects in Anthropology A Student Handbook Julia G Crane and Michael V Angrosino authors 4 My Freshman Year Rebekah Nathan 5 Flat Broke with Children Sharon Hays 6 Bridges to Humanity Narratives on Fieldwork and Friendship Bruce T Grindal and Frank A Salamone editors 7 Dancing Skeletons Katherine Dettwyler 8 Looking for Chengdu A Woman s Adventure in China Hill Gates author Too Many Books At first glance you might say that the readings assigned for this class are excessive and I might agree with you However I have selected books with reader friendly prose and most of the assigned readings from Robbins and Nanda and Warms can be done in under an hour Some of the assigned ethnography will take longer to read but most of the assigned ethnographies are very short If you check the course syllabus you will find that readings are spread throughout the semester and are realistic reading load for the average college student More importantly I picked books that are about interesting topics For Example Bridges to Humanity Narratives on Fieldwork and Friendship contains short essays written by anthropologists who reflect on their fieldwork especially the important relationships they have maintained through time Email UD email I use email often for a variety of reasons including but not limited to sending information about changes in the weeks agenda notifying students about an exercise on the Internet maintaining contact with students I encourage students to use email if they want more information about something mentioned in lecture if they have a question about lecture material and assignments or if they have something to say about the day s lecture or film I respond quickly to your emails I will use only UD designated email If you have another email account it is your responsibility to see to it that the mail in your other mailbox is forward to your UD mailbox Instructions for forwarding email are posted on the UD Network Page www udel edu network I suggest you check your email mailbox at least three times a week 3 4 Course Format While lecture is the primary instructional tool nearly all lectures will integrate other learning strategies that support more active learning activities Such activities will include overheads quizzes on overheads power point presentations on the spot Q A written or oral and exercises designed to assess student learning Also students will be given short writing exercises before during and after lecture is completed Often students will be asked to bring to class lists of things generated by their reading assignment Class Discussion is encouraged Just raise your hand and ask a question Remember there are no stupid questions Argue with me Question what I have to say Frequent assessment of your learning will be made by assigning a one minute paper and by beginning a class by asking you to comment on something specific from the reading assigned or asking you to identify the major point of the previous lectures 4 5 Class Supplies Bring to class a package of 4x6 index cards You will also need a stapler and use a black ink printing cartridge 5 6 Reading Contained below are two guides First guide follows below and the second guide is in PART III of the syllabus for reading for quality and for speed Read the guides and try them out In general here are a few hints for reading Nanda Warms Cultural Anthropology and Robbins Cultural Anthropology A Problem Based Approach For reading Nanda Warms Cultural Anthropology First turn all headings in bold script and terms in the text into questions