|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Course Criteria
Add courses to your favorites to save, share, and find your best transfer school.
-
4.00 Credits
A general exploration of cultural anthropology, which addresses the spectrum of human cultural diversity in the attempt to understand what people do and why they do it. We consider a wide variety of human communities from topical viewpoints ranging from the ways people construct relationships to the ways they perceive the world around them. We critically discuss some of the ways anthropologists and others have attempted to account for human cultural phenomena. The object of the course is to develop a good acquaintance with aspects and examples of human cultural diversity and a grasp of some of the processes affecting human societies. Various issues will recur: What factors affect relationships between female and male? Why do some groups fight while others appear to be more peaceful? Why are some relatively egalitarian, while others emphasize rank and status? Also offered through Global Studies.
-
4.00 Credits
A general overview of the branch of anthropology that investigates ancient societies through the material remains they have left behind. Students learn that archaeologists engage in detailed, systematic detective work aimed at answering a wide range of questions about human behavior. The course introduces students to the history of archaeology, the main goals of archaeological research and the basic techniques of excavation, site survey and artifact analysis, as well as the famous discoveries and excavations that have broadened our knowledge about the human past.
-
4.00 Credits
The physical environment of Africa, with particular emphasis on distribution of water resources. Culture is approached as it relates to environment. The course examines how people of different cultures conceptualize and value water resources, how the indigenous peoples of Africa have coped with frequently variable and unreliable water supplies, and the impact of some controversial water development projects on people's lives. Also offered as African Studies 102.
-
4.00 Credits
An overview of the fascinating and often controversial study of human origins. Emphasis is on the integration of prehistoric archaeology with human evolution. Topics include early human fossils and prehistoric sites in Africa, the emergence of Neandertals and modern humans, and the origins of language and art.
-
4.00 Credits
This course introduces students to the study of language as a peculiarly human trait. We compare and contrast human vocal language with non-human primate and other forms of communication with a view toward pursuing the following questions: What is language? What separates human language from other forms of communication? What is the range of human communicative skills (e.g., verbal sounds, non-verbal and verbal gestures, body language, silence)? What is the relationship among language, society and culture? Between language and perception? How do the use, non-use and/or misuse of language communicate aspects of cultural and/or personal identity? How do anthropologists go about studying these things? In the process of pursuing these and other questions, we also explore some of the various methods and theories used in the anthropological study of language. Also offered through Global Studies.
-
4.00 Credits
In this course, students will learn how and why relatively simple, egalitarian societies made the transition to state-level civilizations, via an overview of the six "primary" civilizations of theOld and New Worlds: Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, the Indus Valley, Mesoamerica and the central Andes. In comparing and contrasting these case studies, students explore key issues from an anthropological perspective: how archaeologists investigate these early social formations, what the material remains tell us about how they functioned and flourished, the critical role of the environment and geography, and how and why the civilizations declined.
-
4.00 Credits
Lost continents, ancient astronauts, mysterious giants: In the mass media, archaeology has often been the subject of fantastic myths, frauds and endless speculation about what "really" happenedin the past. This course will critically examine various popular and pseudoscientific claims about the human past, including the search for Atlantis, the shroud of Turin, psychic archaeology and the Piltdown Man, and introduce students to the scientific goals, methodology and techniques of archaeology. Students will learn how archaeologists "know" things - how they work within logisticatheoretical frameworks, how they systematically explore the patterns and contexts of archaeological remains, and how they interpret the material and scientific evidence to draw educated conclusions about past human experiences.
-
4.00 Credits
Identity is a complex and multidimensional issue, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the study of the ancient world. A key concern for archaeologists is to understand the relationship between past identities and material culture. How do archaeologists define identity? How do they recognize it "on the ground"?How do archaeological remains from various times and places help us to interpret past identities and dynamic interactions among different social groups? We will consider whether identity - based on gender, "race," ethnicity, religious affiliation or clas- is passively reflected in the material culture or if it is imposed on ancient peoples by modern thinkers. This course also explores the issue from a contemporary perspective, by examining the intersection between archaeology, nationalist agendas and the social constructions of the past. We will examine a number of archaeological case studies, including gender roles in early Mayan and Mesopotamian societies, caste affiliations in ancient India, and the politics of archaeology in Nazi Germany.
-
4.00 Credits
Who were the Neandertals? Did they really live in caves, carry clubs, drag each other around by the hair and speak in grunts? What part did they play in the biological and cultural evolution of modern human beings? This course will investigate such questions and explore how the entertainment industry and popular culture have stereotyped the role of Neandertals in prehistory.
-
4.00 Credits
This course surveys the peoples and cultures of the Island Pacific, called Oceania: the lush semitropical islands of Hawaii through the mountains of New Guinea. The culture areas of Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia are defined according to differences in geography, human physical features, languages and systems of religion, politics, economics and social organization. We will pursue selected problems in cultural anthropological fieldwork, modernization and development as these cultures struggle with worldwide political and economic processes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Privacy Statement
|
Terms of Use
|
Institutional Membership Information
|
About AcademyOne
Copyright 2006 - 2025 AcademyOne, Inc.
|
|
|