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ANTHRO 247

SEMESTER TWO, 2020

15 points

 

Convenor

Dr Mark Busse (m.busse@auckland.ac.nz)

Office: Room 851, Social Sciences Building

Office Hours: Thursdays, 2.30-3.30pm

 

Contributing Lecturers

Dr Heather Battles

Associate Professor Ethan Cochrane

Dr Jesse Hession Grayman

Dr Pauline Herbst

Dr Phyllis Herda

Dr Daniel Hernandez

Professor Judith Littleton

Dr Nicholas Malone

Dr Rebecca Phillipps

Dr Callie Vandewiele

 

Graduate Teaching Assistant (Tutor)

Michelle Thorp (mtho702@aucklanduni.ac.nz)

Office: Room 941, Social Sciences Building

Office Hours: Wednesdays, 12noon-1pm

 

Class Representative

Shristi Singh (ssin506@aucklanduni.ac.nz)

 

Course Delivery

2 hours of lectures and 1 hour of tutorial per week

(Timetable and room details can be viewed on Student Services Online)

 

Course Content

The course will introduce you to some of the key contemporary issues and debates with which anthropologists are engaged. In doing so, the course will contextualise the discipline of anthropology in the wider world, connecting anthropological practice to technological, political and ethical realities of contemporary life.

Through the use of case studies and anthropological theory, we will look at the role of anthropology and anthropologists in the public sphere. Because anthropology is based on field research, anthropologists are constantly in contact with the world around them. We take our experiences home and use them as data, but our relationship with the world is always more complex than objective observation. Our work extends beyond the academy into public and political life.

In 2020, this course will explore what anthropology has to offer to our understanding of the three crises that we are all currently facing—the COVID-19 pandemic, the coming economic crisis, and the ongoing environmental crisis. These are challenging, and sometimes distressing, topics, but a critical goal of university education is to help students think clearly and independently about difficult issues, and to identify possible options and causes for hope.

 

Learning Outcomes

• • Demonstrate an understanding of key anthropological concepts that are relevant to the current medical, economic, and environmental crises.
  • Demonstrate a familiarity with anthropological case studies related to medical, economic, and environmental anthropology.
  • Demonstrate reading, writing and discussion skills at an appropriate level.

 

Assessment

Tutorial Participation     5%

Short Essay     20%

Library Quiz     5%

Annotated Bibliography     10%

Research Essay     40%

Test     20%

 

Weekly Topics and Readings

See complete course outline under Modules.

 

 Workload and Deadlines for Submission of Coursework         

The University of Auckland's expectation is that students spend 10 hours per week on a 15-point course, including time in class and personal study. Students should manage their academic workload and other commitments accordingly. Deadlines for coursework can be found in the complete course outline under Modules. You should submit your work on time. In extreme circumstances, such as illness, you may seek an extension but you may be required to provide supporting information before the assignment is due. Late assignments without a pre-approved extension may be penalised by loss of marks – see the course outline for details.