Module ANT2005 for 2018/9
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
ANT2005: Current Debates in Anthropology: Practice
This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.
Module Aims
The primary aim of the module is to further build on your existing knowledge of anthropological theory, and introduce you to a body of concepts and approaches developed by practitioners of this dynamic subject in response to conducting fieldwork in a changing world. The module also aims to equip you with the necessary knowledge and skills to enable you to understand and evaluate the differing views expressed by established anthropologists in relation to key theoretical debates. Through constructive seminar discussions they will be also be empowered to feel confident in utilising anthropological theory as a tool for analysing your own research.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. display knowledge of specific theoretical concepts and methodological approaches in anthropology and the intellectual debates concerning them; 2. display awareness of, and sensitivity to, human diversity, and a reflexive appreciation of its scope and complexity; 3. evaluate the ethical implications of anthropological research in relation to a selection of ethnographic case studies and in relation to the Association of Social Anthropologists' Ethical Guidelines for Good Research Practice; |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 4. demonstrate a competence in using major theoretical perspectives and concepts in anthropology via the application of appropriate theoretical models in the analysis of ethnographic case studies; 5. demonstrate a recognition of the politics of language, indirect forms of communication, forms of power, theoretical statements and claims of authority, and an ability to analyse them; 6. plan, undertake and present scholarly work that shows an understanding of anthropological aims, methods and theoretical considerations; |
| Personal and Key Skills | 7. express your own ideas in writing, summarize the arguments of others, and distinguish between the two; 8. engage in constructive discussion in group situations; and 9. evaluate your strengths and weaknesses in learning and study skills and to take action to improve your capacity to learn. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
Civil Disobedience and Activism
The Animals in our Food
Desire, Consumption and Waste
New forms of Kinship
What place for Collective Emotions?
Non-binary Genders and Non-normative Sexualities
Who is / What is a person anyway / anymore?
Tourism and the Commodification of Culture
Conflict, Violence and Terrorism
Conservation and the Anthropocene
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 128 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | 11 | Lectures (including film screenings where relevant) (11 x 1 hours) |
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | 11 | Tutorials (11 x 1 hours) |
| Guided independent study | 33 | Lecture and seminar preparation: Reading of the set texts for weekly lectures and the tutorials |
| Guided independent study | 11 | Writing weekly response papers |
| Guided independent study | 33 | Additional reading with guidance from the lecturer |
| Guided independent study | 25 | Preparation and writing of essay |
| Guided independent study | 20 | Recapitulation of reading done throughout the term; preparation of essay plans; portfolio revision, etc |
| Guided independent study | 6 | Background research conducted by the student depending on need and interest |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio of ten response papers of 150 words each | Portfolio of ten response papers of 150 words each | 2, 3, 8, 9 | Oral, in the context of the tutorial as part of discussion; additional individual feedback available upon request during office hours |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio of reading response papers | 30 | 1,800 words | 1-4,7 | Written feedback |
| Essay | 70 | 2,700 words | 1-7 | Written feedback (oral feedback available upon request during office hours) |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio of reading response papers | Portfolio of reading response papers 1800 words | 1-4,7 | August/September examination period |
| One essay | One essay of 2,700 words | 1-7 | August/September examination period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Hastrup, K. 1990. Anthropological Advocacy: A contradition in terms? Current Anthropology 31 (3): 301-311. Kellett, P. 2009. 'Advocacy in Anthropology: Active Engagement or Passive Scholarship?' Durham Anthropology Journal, 16 (1): 22-31.
Scheper-Hughes, N. 1995. The primacy of the ethical: propositions for a militant anthropology. Current Anthropology, 409-440.
Ingold, T. 2002. From Trust to Domination: An Alternative History of Human-Animal Relations. In: Manning, A. and Serpell, J. (eds.) Animals and Human Society: Changing Perspectives, 1-22. Taylor and Francis.
Peace, A. 2008. Meat in the genes. Anthropology Today, 24(3): 5-10.
Evans, David (2012) “Beyond the Throwaway Society: Ordinary Domestic Practice and a Sociological Approach to Household Food Waste,” Sociology 46 (1): 1-16.
Graeber, David (2011) “Consumption,” Current Anthropology 52 (4): 489-511.
Clarke, M. 2008. New kinship, Islam, and the liberal tradition: sexual morality and new reproductive technology in Lebanon. JRAI, 14(1): 153-169.
Weston, K. 1997b. The politics of gay families. Families we choose: Lesbians, gays and kinship. Columbia University Press.
Allard, O. 2013. To cry one's distress: death, emotion, and ethics among the Warao of the Orinoco Delta. JRAI, 19(3):545–561.
Chouliaraki, Lilie (2008) Symbolic power of transnational media: managing the visibility of suffering. Global Media and Communication, 4 (3). pp. 329-351.
Astuti, R. 1998. It’s a boy! It’s a girl! Reflections on sex and gender in Madagascar and beyond. In Lambek and Strathern eds., Bodies and persons: comparative perspectives from Africa and Melanesia.
Kulick, D. 1997. The gender of Brazilian transgendered prostitutes. American Anthropologist 99(3): 574-585.
Robertson, J. 2014 “Human Rights vs. Robot Rights: Forecasts from Japan.” Critical Asian Studies 46(4): 571-598.
Shir-Vertesh, D. 2012. "Flexible Personhood": Loving Animals as Family Members in Israel. American Anthropologist, 114(3): 420-432.
Bunten, Alexis Celeste 2008. “Sharing culture or selling out? Developing the commodified persona in the heritage industry,” American Ethnologist 35 (3): 380-395.
Butt, Bilal 2012. “Commoditizing the safari and making space for conflict: Place, identity and parks in East Africa,” Political Geography 31 (2): 104–113.
Galtung, J. 1990. Cultural Violence. Journal of Peace Research, 27(3):291–305
Kuznar, Lawrence A. (2007) “Rationality Wars and the War on Terror: Explaining Terrorism and Social Unrest,” American Anthropologist 109 (2): 318–329.
Crate, Susan A. (2011) “Climate and Culture: Anthropology in the Era of Contemporary Climate Change,” Annual Review of Anthropology 40: 175-194.
Tsing, A. 2017. The Buck, the Bull, and the Dream of the Stag: Some unexpected weeds of the Anthropocene. Journal of the Finnish Anthropological Society, 42(1): 3-21.
