Being human, and humane, in a world where worlds collide. An introduction to cultural studies of globalisation, multiculturalism, tourism, media.
This paper introduces students to the study of human life on both global and local
levels from the perspective of socio-cultural anthropology. Whether you know a lot
or very little about socio-cultural anthropology, by engaging with this paper you
will come to understand the distinctive characteristics of our field with its focus
on tolerance, its celebration of human difference, its attention to the necessity
for decolonisation and defamilarisation of our taken for granted worlds in order to
appreciate the core of sameness in our species and its love of empirical fieldwork
to create contemporary theories of power, values, identities, societies and cultures.
The paper will give significant attention to a recurring question within the social
sciences and the contemporary world at large - how do/how should we live with globalisation?
What would a fully globalised world look like? How does one account for enduring cultural
diversities? What are the relationships between, on the one hand, the mental/spiritual/cultural
and, on the other, the physical/material/fiscal components of human realities?
You should expect to engage in anthropological and ethical debates - debates
that have, in fact, long informed social ethnographic inquiry and inspired the leaders
of this (sub)field.
We will explore these interrelations through a range
of topics that receive anthropological attention, including culture, cultural relativism
and ethnocentrism, kinship, inequality, migration, globalisation, traditions and modernities,
anime, memes, humour, terrorism, work, emotion, gender, funerals, medicine, health
and healing, food, eating. In short - our studies will take us through internationally
sourced and empirically based contemporary studies of the fascinating, diverse and,
at times, ethically challenging ways of being human in a globalising world.
| Paper title | Global and Local Cultures |
|---|---|
| Paper code | ANTH105 |
| Subject | Anthropology |
| EFTS | 0.15 |
| Points | 18 points |
| Teaching period | Semester 2 (On campus) |
| Domestic Tuition Fees (NZD) | $913.95 |
| International Tuition Fees (NZD) | $4,073.40 |
- Schedule C
- Arts and Music
- Contact
- More information link
Please visit the Programme of Social Anthropology
- Teaching staff
Co-ordinator: Professor Ruth Fitzgerald
Contributing lecturer: Dr Susan Wardell
- Paper Structure
Our lectures are active learning environments, and so we request all of our students to arrive in class having read their allotted required reading prior to the lecture.
- Teaching Arrangements
Two 1-hour lectures per week, plus one tutorial per week.
This course is 100% internally assessed. The assessments are - 2 research essays, an interactive daily lecture key lecture point quiz question, tutorial participation evaluation mark and a short test on how best to prepare to write a research essay which is conducted by the library staff. In this course we value your engagement, your ideas and your collegiality.
- Textbooks
There is no textbook for the paper. Students will access their required readings prior to classes through the eReserve system on Blackboard.
Your readings are carefully selected, contemporary, peer reviewed articles from popular social anthropology journals.
All key materials are available via library e-reserve and/or Blackboard.
Lecture outlines/notes are provided in advance of class and lectures are recorded and available via blackboard.- Course outline
Copies are available through blackboard via the course outline tab. Before the semester starts if you would like to see the previous year’s course outline to assess the course, you are welcome to email anthropology@otago.ac.nz to ask for a copy.
- Graduate Attributes Emphasised
- Global perspective, Interdisciplinary perspective, Lifelong learning, Scholarship,
Communication, Critical thinking, Cultural understanding, Ethics, Research, Self-motivation.
View more information about Otago's graduate attributes. - Learning Outcomes
Students who successfully complete this paper will gain
- An understanding of how cultural diversity and homogeneity, respectively, are being produced in our 'global' world
- An understanding of how human beings impact this new diversity and homogeneity and are, in turn, impacted by it
- Exposure to some of the key theoretical, ethical and philosophical debates in the human sciences in order to prepare students for higher-level specialist anthropology papers, methods papers and as a useful adjunct paper to all degrees across the Divisions (anthropology being the most scientific of the arts and the most humanistic of the sciences)
- An appreciation for the importance of self-reflection in social scientific and humanistic inquiry
