100. Introduction to
Cultural Anthropology
A survey of the basic theories and methods of social and cultural anthropology.
The concept of culture and cultural difference. An introduction to the diversity
of cultures in the world, with an emphasis both upon traditional and small-scale
cultures, and on such large-scale metropolitan regions as Los Angeles and Tokyo.
(Core requirement met: Group 6) (Required to major in Anthropology)
Deborah Mindry: 9:30-10:30 MWF
102. Ancient Civilizations of the Old World
Examines the neolithic revolution and the origins and development of Bronze Age civilizations in major culture centers in the Near East (Egypt, Mesopotamia, Levant, Turkey) and Europe (Greece, Central Europe), with comparisons to analogous developments in China. Discusses women’s as well as men’s roles in ancient societies
Elizabeth Barber: 1:30-2:55 TR
200. Topics: Gender Pol/Afr So
Deborah Mindry: 2:30-3:25 MWF
WSGS 248. Jewishness/Gender/Sexuality
This course is focused on the intersection of race, gender, and sexuality in Jewish Cultural Studies. Topics include Biblical, Talmudic, and Diasporic models of masculinity and femininity; Freud’s Jewishness and its effect on psychoanalytic theories of gender and sexuality; and representations of Jewish men and women in U.S., European, and Latin American societies. Prerequisite: Anthropology 100 or WSGS 101
Jeff Tobin:7-10:00pm M
RELS 255. Women of Color
Donna Maeda: 1:30-2:55 TR
LING 301: Introduction to Linguistic Structure
Introduction to the history and relationship of languages and to the basics of modern descriptive linguistics. Consideration of how language is designed and how to analyze language data; application to English and other languages; brief introduction to language/brain issues and to typology of world languages. Not normally open to first-year students. Prerequisite: one year of a modern language or permission of instructor
Elizabeth Barber: 10:30-11:25 MWF
490. Senior Seminar
The primary purpose of the Senior Seminar is for students to prepare themselves
for the comprehensive exam. The Seminar will also be used for students'
oral defenses of their research proposals and honors theses. (Required to
major in Anthropology
Jeff Tobin: 3:30-4:55 MW
100. Introduction to
Cultural Anthropology
A survey of the basic theories and methods of social and cultural anthropology.
The concept of culture and cultural difference. An introduction to the diversity
of cultures in the world, with an emphasis both upon traditional and small-scale
cultures, and on such large-scale metropolitan regions as Los Angeles and Tokyo.
(Core requirement met: Group 6) (Required to major in Anthropology)
Elizabeth Chin: 9:30-10:25 MWF
THEA 139. Afro-Haitian Dance and
Culture.
This course focuses on the dance, song and music traditions of Haiti and
requires a short paper in addition to the dance component. This course may be
repeated for a maximum of four units and may be used as an elective toward an
Anthropology major. Graded on a Credit/No Credit basis only. (1 unit)
(Anthropology elective)
Elizabeth Chin: 6:30-7:55 TR
200. Topics: Critical Development
Deborah Mindry 7-10:00 T
210. Anthropology of Children and
Childhood.
This course looks cross-culturally at children and childhood and uses
ethnographic case studies as a basis for examining the ways in which the very
young participate in the social lives of their communities. The focus is on
those between the ages of 5-12 and the primary topics include children’s play,
socialization, learning, political action, and productive work. We will explore
the lives of children in horticultural, pastoral, rural, and urban societies in
Africa, Asia, Polynesia, and the contemporary United States.
(Prerequisite: ANTH 100)
Elizabeth Chin,1:30-4:25 T
WSGS 247. Machos/Latin American Manliness
Jeff Tobin: 7-10:00 W
300. Topics: Magic and Modernity
Deborah Mindry: 3:30-4:55 MW
RELS 355. Boundaries and Borderlands
This course will consider challenging new questions about transformations of religions and cultures that occur when physical, experiential, geographic, and intellectual borders are crossed and blurred. We will consider cultural hybridities, re-mapped borders of culture and difference, postcoloniality, transnational migrations and other post-modern conditions as sources for reconceiving identities, relationships between religions and cultures, and social transformations.
Donna Maeda: 10-11:30 TR
357. Urban Anthropology
This course looks at the distinctive importance and impact of cities on human society both across time and across cultures. The transition to urban living is examined using perspectives from both the archaeological and biological subfields. Primary focus is on the United States, with additional emphasis on Latin American, African, and European urban centers.
Elizabeth Chin: 1:30-4:25 R
RELS 359: Trafficking in Persons
This course will examine the contexts that shape conditions of work and labor in globalized economies. We will look at the commodification of workers and the conditions created by globalization that structure work according to factors of social position, including gender, race, wealth/class status, immigration status, and transnational connections of families and communities. The course will look at trafficking in persons and contemporary forms of slavery, not simply to focus on the extremities of exploitative work, but to examine the conditions that structure the relations between those who can choose meaningful work and the labor forces that make such choices possible. The problem of trafficking in persons will be situated within global economic structures that privilege flows of capital and commodify vulnerable workers. The course will look at the relationship of this vulnerability to histories of colonialism and to other forms of economic exploitation.
Donna Maeda: 1:30-2:55 TR
370. Qualitative Methods of Research.
The goal of this course is to introduce students to the methods by which
cultural anthropologists produce ethnographies. One reason to study ethnographic
methods is to learn how to conduct ethnographic research projects, including
Richters and honors theses. Another reason to study ethnographic methods
is to learn how to read ethnographies. The first half of the semester is
devoted to ethnographic research exercises conducted on or near the Occidental
campus. The second half of the semester is devoted to analyzing recent
debates about ethnographic methods. (Required to major in Anthropology)
Jeff Tobin 3-4:30 TR
RELS 386. Whiteness
This course seeks to engage the emergent body of scholarship designated to deconstruct whiteness. It will examine the construction of whiteness in the historic, legal, and economic contexts which have allowed it to function as an enabling condition for privilege and race-based prejudice. Particular attention will be paid to the role of religion and psychology in the construction of whiteness. Texts will include Race Traitor, Critical White Studies, The Invention of the White Race, The Abolition of Whiteness, White Trash, and Even the Rat was White
Elmer Griffin: 3:30-4:55 MW
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