Anthropology 1000D
Introduction to Anthropology
Fall Semester 2001
Instructor: Hülya Demirdirek
Class Times: Tu Th 1:40 – 2:55
Office: TH 216
Room: TH 280
Phone: 329 - 25 99
Mailing list: anth1000d@uleth.ca
E-mail: hulya.demirdirek@uleth.ca
class web: http://classes.uleth.ca/
Office hours: Tu Th 3:30 – 4:45 or by appointment
Course description: This course will introduce anthropology as a discipline with the basic
concepts and methods employed in anthropological practice. The course will cover the major areas of
human experience examined within social/cultural anthropology with an emphasis on the comparative
study of contemporary cultures. Through a review of various regions of the world, social and cultural
diversity will be explored in order to arrive at a conceptualization and understanding of differences and
similarities between our own and other cultures and societies. The course will be a combination of
lectures, video presentations and examinations. As we move across different societies and cultures we
will try – with the help of abstractions and concepts – to make connections between our own lives and
others whose realities may seem very remote from our own. For example, we will ask questions such
as what makes it possible to consider Pamela Anderson with her silicone enlargement and a teenage
girl in northern Sudan who undergoes an operation on her genitals as comparable examples. Just like
any other social science introductory course, this course aims to equip you with the necessary starting
tools to read, think and develop arguments at a more advanced level.
Learning objectives: The lectures and the course activities are aimed at providing an overview of
social and cultural anthropology. You will be expected to:
 learn basic concepts and methods employed in anthropological studies,
 define technical terms used to describe certain institutions and processes,
 learn and recognize main theoretical schools of thought and their adherents,
 apply anthropological concepts and theories to specific examples/case studies,
 develop a knowledge and appreciation of the complexities of social and cultural phenomena,
 pursue more advanced and specialized courses in anthropology.
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Required texts: 1. Being Human: An Introduction to Cultural Anthropology, Mari Womack, 2nd
Edition, 2001 (1998)
2. The Trobrianders of Papua New Guinea, Annette B. Weiner, 1988
Suggested text: Study Guide, Being Human, James G. Duval. III., 2nd Edition, 2001(1998)
Course requirements and expectations: It is your responsibility to attend the classes. If you
read the assigned chapters before coming to class you will be able to follow the course more actively.
In order to prepare for the exams, you are encouraged to participate in the discussions in the course
mailing list (this is a closed list accessible only to students who are enrolled in this course). I will start a
discussion and expect you to continue with it and generate new ones. I will also send sample questions
to help you to practice before the exams.
Evaluation will be based on written in-class tests and quizzes. They will cover the material from the
lectures, films and your readings. In-class tests 1, 2, and 4 are closed book exams. These will be a
combination of short answers and key terms/concepts definition, as well as multiple choice, true-false,
fill in the blanks and fill in the map questions. Only in-class test 3 will be an open book exam, which will
test your reading of the monograph. For this test you will be allowed to have the Weiner book open to
assist you in writing the exam. There will also be three UNANNOUNCED quizzes. They will all be
comprised of multiple choice questions. Only your two best marks will be included in your final grade.
Please see page 69 in the U of L calendar 2001-2002 for the rules about missed exams.
Test 1:

20 % - October 4 Th
Test 2:

30 % - November 6 Tu – Room TH 280
Test 3:
  20 %
Test 4:

– Room TH 280
- November 29 Th – Room TH 280 (Weiner, open book)
20 % - December 6 Th – Room TH 280
Unannounced quiz 1, quiz 2, quiz 3: 2 x 5 % = 10 % (lowest mark does not count)
Grading:
A+ = 100 - 95 %
B+ = 79 - 77 %
C+ = 69 - 67 %
D+ = 59 - 57 %
A = 94 - 86 %
B = 76 - 73 %
C = 66 - 63 %
D = 56 - 53 %
A- = 85 - 80 %
B- = 72 - 70 %
C- = 62 - 60 %
D- = 52 - 50 %
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F: Below 50
*Tentative Schedule of Lectures, Films and Readings
(* Depending on the progress we make during the classes, we may spend more time on
certain topics than on others. This may alter the course schedule to some extent.)
Week 1: September 6
Introduction: Overview of the course.
Understanding ourselves and understanding the ‘other’.
Week 2: September 11
What is culture? Anthropology and the concept of culture.
Read: Womack, Ch 1: pp. 1-15
September 13
Fieldwork, ‘participant observation, observant participation’
Read: Womack, Ch 2 
Film: TBA
Week 3: September 18
Story of anthropology
Read: Womack, Ch 3 
September 20
The world we live in and the world we define
Read: Womack, Ch 4 + Ch 15: pp. 401-417 
Start reading Weiner 
Week 4: September 25
Language, thought and communication
Read: Womack, Ch 7 
September 27
Verbal and non-verbal communication, symbols
Read: Womack, Ch 10 
Week 5: October 2
Review
Read all the assigned chapters and your notes

October 4
First in-class test
Week 6: October 9
Film: Trobriander
October 11
Political economy
Read: Womack, Ch 4
Week 7: October 16
Subsistence systems and distribution
Read: Womack, Ch 5
October 18
Distribution/Kinship
Read: Womack, Ch 6
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Week 8: October 23
Gender and age
Read: Womack, Ch 13 pp.340-354 
October 25
Self, Mind and the Body
Read: Womack, Ch 8
Week 9: October 30
Religion and Cosmology
Read: Womack, Ch 9 
November 1
Read all the assigned chapters and your notes
Review
  …
Week 10: November 6
Second in-class test
November 8
Death, economy and exchange (Read:Weiner-The Trobrianders of Pappua New
Guniea)
Film: Ashante Market Women
Week 11: November 13
Public Events and Ritual
Read: Womack, Ch 10 
November 15
Organization and differentiation
Read: Womack, Ch 1: pp.12-21 
Week 12: November 20
Human ways of life
Read: Womack Ch.11 pp.280-289 (The Kwakitul) + Ch.12 pp.291-302 (until the
Basseri)
November 22
Human ways of life
Read: Womack ch.13 pp. 325-340 (Until the Yap) + Ch 14
Week 13:November 27
Anthropology, Colonialism and Politics/Review Weiner
Read: Womack, Ch 15 
November 29 
Third in-class test
Week 14:December 4
Review
Read all the assigned chapters and your notes
December 6
Fourth in-class test
Have a good holiday!
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