ANTHRO 2368 - Peoples of the Pacific

Institution:

Temple University

Subject:

Description:

This is an upper level undergraduate course designed to engage students in studying the indigenous cultures of Australia, Melanesia, Polynesia, and Micronesia. There will be two primary emphases: first, the major issues in cultural anthropology that have been formed and informed by ethnographic data from Pacific societies; and second, the processes of change experienced by Pacific peoples in the last few decades. Specific topics include: (1) How the complexity of kin-based social organization among Australian aborigines influenced anthropological understanding of relationships among individuals and the formation of communities; (2) How and why the traditional sacred art of aboriginal Australia became a valued commodity in the global art market; (3) How the complex ceremonial exchange networks of Melanesia influenced theory in anthropology; (4) The dimensions and range of Melanesian ideas and behavior concerned with gender and sexuality; (5) How class stratification and political hierarchy developed in traditional Polynesian states such as Tahiti, Tonga, and Hawai’i; and (6) How colonialism and post-colonialism has been experienced across the Pacific. The course will be conducted as a seminar with some lectures by the instructor but with proportionately more discussions based on a core of shared readings and students’ shared and individual explorations of Pacific cultures.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

WWW.TEMPLE.EDU

Phone Number:

(215) 204-7000

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

The Course Profile information is provided and updated by third parties including the respective institutions. While the institutions are able to update their information at any time, the information is not independently validated, and no party associated with this website can accept responsibility for its accuracy.