Anthropology

Professors: Benoît, Burton, Steiner; Associate Professor: Lizarralde; Assistant Professor: Graesch; Professor Cole, chair

Associated Faculty: Associate Professor: Wilson (Music)

The Major in Anthropology

The major consists of ten courses: 102, 104, 201;and seven additional courses, at least two which must be at the 200 level, two at the 300 level, and one at the 400 level. The remaining two courses may be at the 200, 300, or 400 level. At least one 300- or 400-level course must be one of the following methods-intensive offerings: 308, 380, 383, 396, 406, 450 or 482. A maximum of two anthropology courses taken abroad can be applied to the major upon approval by the chair of the department.

Concentration in Archaeology

Students majoring in anthropology with a concentration in archaeology must satisfy the following requirements: 202, 307; any three of the following 383, 390, 396, 406, 482; any two of the following Environmental Studies/Geophysics 115, Environmental Studies 312, Mathematics 107 or 206. Two anthropology courses taken abroad can be applied to the concentration in archaeology upon approval by the chair of the department.

The Minor in Anthropology

The minor consists of six courses: 102, 104, 201; and three additional courses, one at the 200 level, one at the 300 level, and one at the 400 level. A maximum of two anthropology courses taken abroad can be applied to the minor upon approval by the chair of the department.

Learning Goals in the Anthropology Major

The What: Human Diversity

Anthropology students can articulate, orally and in writing, significant trends in the history of anthropological thought, the cultural contours of several world areas, and significant topics and issues in contemporary anthropological research.
- With the introductory courses, 102 and 104, students will learn to express key concepts and findings in the fields of archaeology and socio-cultural anthropology. From 201 students will gain an appreciation of the history of anthropology, enabling them to grasp the significance of contemporary anthropological study.
- After other 200-level courses, students will be able to describe and analyze the cultures and societies of specific world areas, such as South America (234), sub-Saharan Africa (245), Native North America (250), the Caribbean (260), and Europe (280).
- When students enroll in 300- and 400- level courses they will explore key issues and themes in the study of human society and culture, such as our relationship to the environment (307), language and symbolism (314), health and illness (319), food and drink (350), and the relationship of material culture to race, gender, class, and ethnic identity (390).

The How: Methods

Anthropology students can describe and employ appropriate methods of data collection and analysis.
- Anthropology students learn the basics of archaeological and socio-cultural methods in the introductory courses.
- Through one of seven designated courses students will gain experience with the tools, techniques, and methods of at least one of the following areas of anthropological concern: ethnobotany (308), applied anthropology (380), social-cultural anthropology (450), urban ethnoarchaeology (482), and archaeology (383, 396, 406).

Making a Difference: Applying Anthropology

Anthropology majors can apply relevant concepts and methods to issues and topics of contemporary and/or historical importance.
- Using a holistic and comparative perspective, students can provide fresh perspectives to such timely issues as development, human rights, migration, ownership of cultural property, gender and sexuality, and the cultural context of health, illness, and medical care.
- Through internships and courses with an internship component (such as 406) students gain hands-on experience with anthropological perspectives and methods.
- The options of individual study and honors thesis enable students to explore a topic of interest under the direction of a professor.
- Students can gain experience in anthropological research by participation in project-intensive courses (such as 396, 450, and 482) and ongoing faculty-led research.
- Anthropological perspectives will enhance student experience in study away and certificate programs.

Tool for the Future: Skills, Perspectives, and Scholarship

Through anthropology coursework students will develop skills and perspectives that will serve them well in the future. While grounded in the discipline, these skills will serve students in other fields, in graduate school, and in employed work.
- Students can communicate effectively in a variety of written and oral formats as well as digital media.
- Students are able to describe and analyze human societies and cultures, using appropriate methods and concepts.
- Students can bring an informed and critical perspective to a range of timely issues in an increasingly interconnected world.
- With the training provided by an anthropology major or minor, students will be well equipped to pursue graduate school or professional training.

Courses

ANTHROPOLOGY 102 MATERIAL LEGACIES: AN INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY Introduces students to foundational concepts, methods, and general theory defining the archaeological study of the human past. Emphasis is placed on ananthropological approach to cultural evolutionary process. Diverse case studies highlight archaeological research on human origins, the emergence of inequality, the rise of the state, and more. Laboratory and research projects.

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. A.P. Graesch

ANTHROPOLOGY 104 FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY An introduction to the principles, concepts, and methods of social and cultural anthropology. General theory and case studies offer a comparative and holistic understanding of the human condition across the globe.

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. C. Benoît, 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 201 HISTORY OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEORY An examination of the discipline of anthropology from its origins in the late nineteenth century to the present. Schools of thought, trends and issues, and the relationship of the field to the wider world are addressed through original texts and contemporary interpretations.

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

ANTHROPOLOGY 202 ARCHAEOLOGY OF NORTH AMERICA A survey of diverse pre-contact aboriginal cultures in North America. Emphasis is placed on non-western foodways, political economy, social organization, and cosmology as inferred from the archaeological study of technology, built space, subsistence strategies, and production practices. Laboratory and field methods training in the Arboretum.

Prerequisite: Course 102 or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 30 students. A.P. Graesch

ANTHROPOLOGY 205 HINDU TRADITIONS This is the same course as Religious Studies 205. Refer to the Religious Studies listing for a course description.

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 219 VAMPIRES, MIRACLES, GHOSTS, AND GOD(S): THE SUPERNATURAL IN AMERICAN POPULAR CULTURE This is the same course as American Studies/Religious Studies 219. Refer to the Religious Studies listing for a course description.

ANTHROPOLOGY 226 LANGUAGE IN CULTURE This is the same course as Slavic Studies 226. Refer to the Slavic Studies listing for a course description.

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 234 ANTHROPOLOGY 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. This course may include an optional section that will meet for an additional hour each week to discuss supplemental readings in Spanish. Students participating in the foreign language section will receive one additional credit hour, pass/not passed marking.

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

ANTHROPOLOGY 234f ANTHROPOLOGY OF SOUTH AMERICA (In Spanish) This optional section will meet for an additional hour each week to discuss supplemental readings in Spanish. Students participating in the foreign language section will receive one additional credit hour, pass/not passed marking. Students electing Course 234f must concurrently enroll in Anthropology 234. M. Lizarralde

ANTHROPOLOGY 235 ″CHUTNEY-POPCORN″: BOLLYWOOD, GLOBALIZATION, AND IDENTITY This is the same course as Gender and Women′s Studies 235. Refer to the Gender and Women′s Studies listing for a course description.

ANTHROPOLOGY 240 BLACK PARIS/BLACK NEW YORK A comparison between Paris and New York regarding the historical and contemporary presence of the African diaspora in these two cities. We will discuss the Harlem Renaissance, Négritude movement, and migrations from the South, the Caribbean, and Africa from a literary, artistic, and anthropological perspective. This is the same course as French 240. This course may include an optional section that will meet for an additional hour each week to discuss supplemental readings in French. Students participating in the foreign language section will receive one additional credit hour, pass/not passed marking.

Prerequisite: Course 104 or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 30 students. C. Benoit

ANTHROPOLOGY 240f BLACK PARIS/BLACK NEW YORK (In French) This optional section will meet for an additional hour each week to discuss supplemental readings in French. Students participating in the foreign language section will receive one additional credit hour, pass/not passed marking. Students electing Anthropology 240f must concurrently enroll in Anthropology/French 240. C. Benoit

ANTHROPOLOGY 245 ANTHROPOLOGY 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 260 ANTHROPOLOGY 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 280 ANTHROPOLOGY OF EUROPE An ethnographic examination of contemporary Europe. Topics include food and agriculture; gender relations, marriage, family, and the household; religion and ritual; migration, ethnicity, and race; work and class relations; politics and ideology; war, conflict, and reconciliation; and socialism and post-socialism.

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

ANTHROPOLOGY 299 SECRECY: POWER, PRIVILEGE, AND THE INVISIBLE This is the same course as Art History 299/Sophomore Research Seminar 299D. Refer to the Sophomore Research Seminar for a course description.

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 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 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.

Prerequisite: Course 102 or 104. 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 340 TOPICS IN HUMAN EVOLUTION 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 342 SHAMANS DISCOVERED, IMAGINED, AND REINVENTED Shamans stand at the beginning of anthropological study in the 18th century and have remained relevant to theorizing about religions, culture, and human nature. This course will examine the shaman as a comparative type across cultures, as a model for human behavior, and as a culturally specific class of ritual expert. This is the same course as Religious Studies 342.

Enrollment limited to 30 students. This is a designated Writing course. T. Wellman

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 356 IMAGINING OTHERNESS IN VISUAL CULTURE This is the same course as Art History/Comparative Race and Ethnicity 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 LOCATING CULTURE: THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF SPACE AND PLACE An examination of the importance of place in anthropological thinking and people′s experience of space. The course will first discuss the development of anthropology as a discipline that identifies a people and a place in relation to a culture. It will then analyze issues of identity and politics in relation to space by focusing on the embodiment, transnational space and globalization, and domination.

Prerequisite: Course 104 or two anthropology courses at the 200 level; or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 30 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. Research projects will include work with the Haitian community in Norwich, CT. Course 380 may include an optional section that will meet for an additional hour each week to discuss supplemental readings in French or Creole. Students participating in the foreign language section will receive one additional credit hour, pass/not passed marking.

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 380f APPLIED ANTHROPOLOGY (In French or Creole) This optional section of Anthropology 380 will meet for an additional hour each week to discuss supplemental readings in French or Creole. Students participating in the foreign language section will receive one additional credit hour, pass/not passed marking. Students electing Anthropology 380f must concurrently enroll in Anthropology 380. C. Benoît

ANTHROPOLOGY 382 URBAN ETHNOARCHAEOLOGY: AN ANTHROPOLOGICAL EXPLORATION OF OBJECTS AND CULTURE IN URBAN AMERICA Urban Ethnoarchaeology highlights an archaeology of ″us,″ focusing on the relationship of objects to everyday decisions and interactions. Blending ethnographic and archaeological methods, this project-oriented course explores the social, economic, political, and ideological behavior that accounts for the material landscape that is urban America. Methods training and intensive fieldwork. This is the same course as American Studies 382.

Seminar and three to four hours of fieldwork. Prerequisite: Courses 102 and 104. Open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Enrollment limited to 12 students. A.P. Graesch

ANTHROPOLOGY 383 LABORATORY METHODS IN ARCHAEOLOGY Introduction to archaeological laboratory protocol and intensive training in materials identification, classification, analysis, and database design. Materials training includes analyses of lithic artifacts, vertebrate and invertebrate fauna, plant remains, and ceramics.

Two lectures; four hours of laboratory work. Prerequisite: Course 102 and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level. Open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Enrollment limited to 12 students. A.P. Graesch

ANTHROPOLOGY 390 ARCHAEOLOGY OF RECENT AND CONTEMPORARY SOCIETIES A consideration of the following archaeological topics: artifactual, oral historical, and documentary sources; how archaeological theory and method illuminate the relationship of material culture to race, gender, class, and ethnic identity; and how archaeology provides a voice for those not represented in the historical documentary record. Field methods training.

Prerequisite: Course 102 and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level, or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 20 students. A.P. Graesch

ANTHROPOLOGY 396 EXPERIMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY The design and execution of controlled experiments for the purpose of advancing archaeological studies of premodern technologies, production practices, materiality, and site formation processes. Emphasis is placed on experimental design, the generation and testing of hypotheses, selection of experimental procedures, analysis, and the application of findings to extant archaeological research.

This is a project-intensive course that includes a laboratory section. Prerequisite: Course 102 and at least one anthropology course at the 200 level. Enrollment limited to 12 students. A.P. Graesch and M. Lizarralde

ANTHROPOLOGY 402 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 juniors and seniors who have taken Course 104, and to others with permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 16 students. C. Benoît

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

ANTHROPOLOGY 406 RUINS IN THE FOREST: APPLYING FIELD METHODS IN AN ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE ARBORETUM This methods-intensive and field-immersive course explores the corpus of archaeological resources distributed across the more than 700 acres of land encompassed by the Connecticut College Arboretum. Students will apply basic and advanced surface and subsurface investigative techniques in the documentation, analysis, and interpretation of archaeological features spanning the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries.

This is a project-intensive course that includes a seminar and fieldwork. Prerequisite: Courses 102 and 104, and two other courses in anthropology; or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 12 students. A.P. Graesch

ANTHROPOLOGY 420 CONFLICT AND IDENTITY IN A MODERN STATE: THE SUDAN A study of the history of nationalism and ethnicity in Sudan from the 18th Century to the present.

Prerequisite: Course 104 and two other courses in anthropology or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 16 students. J. Burton

ANTHROPOLOGY 425 FOOD AND MIGRATION An exploration of many and varied ways in which migration affects food production and consumption, with special attention to agriculture, restaurants, ethnic food, culinary trends, and food security. A field research project requires short trips off campus. This is the same course as American Studies 425.

Prerequisite: Two courses in anthropology or permission of the instructor. J. Cole

ANTHROPOLOGY 430 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 16 students. J. Burton

ANTHROPOLOGY 448 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: One anthropology course or permission of instructor; open to juniors and seniors. Enrollment limited to 16 students. This is a designated Writing course. J. Burton

ANTHROPOLOGY 450 CULTIVATING CHANGE An investigation of the cultural, political, environmental, and nutritional contours and consequences of conventional and alternative food production and distribution systems. A field research project requires short trips off campus. This is the same course as Environmental Studies 450.

Prerequisite: Two courses in anthropology or permission of the instructor. Open to juniors and seniors. Enrollment limited to 16 students. This is a designated Writing course. J. Cole

ANTHROPOLOGY 291, 292 INDIVIDUAL STUDY Independent research work with a selected faculty member. Course may be taken for either two or four credits. The two-credit option requires the student to commit to four to five hours of independent research and/or fieldwork per week. The four-credit option requires the student to commit to eight to ten hours of independent research and/or field work per week.

ANTHROPOLOGY 391, 392 INDIVIDUAL STUDY Independent research work with a selected faculty member. Course may be taken for either two or four credits. The two-credit option requires the student to commit to four to five hours of independent research and/or field work per week. The four-credit option requires the student to commit to eight to ten hours of independent research and/or fieldwork per week.

ANTHROPOLOGY 491, 492 INDIVIDUAL STUDY Independent research work with a selected faculty member. Course may be taken for either two or four credits. The two-credit option requires the student to commit to four to five hours of independent research and/or field work per week. The four-credit option requires the student to commit to eight to ten hours of independent research and/or fieldwork per week.

ANTHROPOLOGY 497-498 HONORS STUDY