ANTHRO 100

Human Cultures: Introduction to Social Anthropology


Please note: this is archived course information from 2019 for ANTHRO 100.

Description

Social anthropologists describe and analyse the diversity of human social and cultural life. This course introduces students to basic perspectives and concepts which social anthropologists have developed in order to understand, interpret and explain the diverse ways of life created by people throughout the world. Fundamental anthropological perspectives include comparison, relativism, holism and contextualisation. This course will draw on ethnographic examples from many parts of the world and will cover topics such as temporal and spatial orientation, language and symbols, kinship and marriage, gender and sexuality, markets and economic exchange, political relations and power, art, religion and social personhood.

Learning Outcomes

At the completion of the course, students are expected to:

  • Demonstrate an understanding of basic perspectives, concepts and questions in social anthropology and their relevance to understanding everyday life
  • Show an understanding of the relationship between concepts and ethnographic description in social anthropology
  • Demonstrate an ability to find, evaluate and use sources of information that are relevant to social anthropology and human life
  • Demonstrate that they can write an essay that draws on sources of information that are relevant to social anthropology
  • Demonstrate general reading and writing skills at an appropriate level

View the course syllabus

Availability 2019

Semester 1

Lecturer(s)

Coordinator(s) Dr Mark Busse

Assessment

Coursework + exam

Points

ANTHRO 100: 15 points