Anthropology 4990: Capstone Seminar in Anthropology
Fall 2008 TR 9:30-10:45 Swallow Hall, Rm 106
Syllabus
Deborah M. Pearsall
email: PearsallD@missouri.edu
office: 101 Swallow Hall
phone: 882-3038
office hours: 11:00-11:45 TR, 10-11:45 M,
or by chance or appointment
TA: Carolyn Giroux
email: clg21d@mizzou.edu
office: 212 Swallow Hall
office hours: 11-1:00 Tuesday
Anthropology—the study of humans—is made up of four sub-fields: cultural anthropology,
archaeology, physical anthropology, and linguistics. Anthropology is an integrative discipline that
looks at the cultural and biological aspects of being human from a variety of approaches that
crosscut the sub-fields. In this writing intensive seminar—the capstone experience of your
major—we will consider a series of topics of active research and debate in anthropology, most of
which can be addressed from the perspective of at least two of the four sub-fields. We will
examine these issues from several sides, studying and debating different theoretical positions,
methods, and types of data. By the end of the course you should not only develop a better
appreciation of how all areas of anthropology interact to form a single discipline, but how to
evaluate ideas critically.
There is important information in this syllabus. Please read it carefully and keep it
for reference. If you have a disability and need academic adjustments or auxilary aids and
services, including classroom materials in alternative formats or special arrangements in case the
building must be evacuated, please inform me immediately, so that appropriate accommodations
can be provided. Students who request formal academic accommodations are also required to
register with the Access Office, A048 Brady Commons, 882-4696.
All students are expected to observe the University’s standards for academic behavior.
Any student suspected of academic dishonesty, including plagiarism, will be reported to the
Provost’s office, and will receive no credit for the affected assignments. Plagiarism is a very
serious issue and will not be tolerated. You are encouraged to use appropriate internet sources
when completing short essays and your term paper, but DO NOT CUT AND PASTE information
from those sources. All sources (internet and traditional published literature) must be
paraphrased in your own words and cited properly; to do otherwise is plagiarism of the most
serious sort. Make sure you consult me if you are in doubt about plagiarism, paraphrasing,
quoting, or collaboration.
Course Summary
We will start the semester with the topic of science and interpretation in anthropology,
and will include four additional topics to be decided upon by the class. Potential topics include
myth and ritual, peopling of the Americas, food in human cultures, ethics, diet and evolution, the
origin of language, and others listed in the accompanying handout. Five class periods will be
devoted to each topic. We will spend two days between Topics 3 and 4 exploring career issues
and options within anthropology.
Early in the semester I will divide the class into 5 groups, each of which will prepare a 40minute oral presentation on one of the discussion topics. Each person in the group will write an
individual term paper on the topic. In addition, you will write take-home essays on four of the five
topics, in-class reviews of fellow students’ essays, and brief evaluations of readings.
Presenters/term paper writers are not required to write the essays or in-class reviews for their
topic. There are no exams.
Structure of the Class
This class is a seminar, which for many of you will be a new experience. In a seminar,
the instructor does not lecture, only guides the discussions. For a seminar to be successful, each
participant must attend every session, and be prepared to discuss the readings for the topic. This
means that you must read and think about the readings before you come to class. Always.
ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED and will be taken at all classes.
We will devote five class periods to each of our five topics, following this plan:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Class discussion of readings; final drafts of essays on previous topic due
Class discussion of readings
Class discussion of readings
First drafts of topic essays due.
In-class peer evaluations written and discussed.
Class discussion of topic
Day 5 Group presentation on topic
Question and answer on presentation; final thoughts on topic
Summary of Assignment due-dates:
Topic
Science and interpretation
Topic 2
Topic 3
Topic 4
Topic 5
Presentation Date
9/16
10/2
10/21
11/13
12/9
Term paper draft due date
9/30
10/16
11/4
11/20
12/2
Readings
Readings for each topic, scholarly journal articles or book chapters, are available in PDF
format on Blackboard. I expect everyone to come to class prepared to discuss the readings—this
is the key to a successful and enjoyable seminar. We will cover the readings in the order in which
they are listed for the topic. See the reading guidelines for tips on reading academic texts. The
best essays will incorporate ideas and perspectives from all the readings on a topic.
There is one required book:
Turabian, Kate L (author), Wayne C. Booth (Ed.), Gregory G. Colomb (Ed.), and Joseph M.
Williams (Ed.). 2007. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Seventh
Edition: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and
Publishing). University of Chicago Press.
Assignments
Written assignments include the following:
four 2-3 page typed essays addressing each topic except that of your term paper (see
guidelines for writing essays). The first draft of the essay is due at the beginning of class on Day
4 of the topic. The final draft is due at the beginning of class on Day 1 of the following topic.
Essays turned into my mailbox or emailed to me after class on the due date will be counted as
late and receive a 10% reduction. Late essays will receive half credit if turned in no later than the
next class period. No credit will be given after that. Essays will be accepted for full credit in the
case of an excused absence from class (see Attendance and Class Participation).
four 1-page reviews of essays written by fellow students (written in class on Day 4 of the
topic). Your comments will be evaluated on the basis of both the quality and thoughtfulness of
your critique and the quality of your spontaneous writing. These reviews will give you practice in
learning to communicate through writing whenever asked. Presenters/term paper writers are not
required to write the in-class reviews for their topic. No make-ups of this work can be given, even
for excused absences.
5 1-page typed evaluations of readings. To help you understand and prepare to discuss
the readings, I recommend that you write a brief evaluation of each reading prior to class (see
reading guidelines). You are required to post your evaluation of the first reading on Blackboard
prior to the beginning of class on Day 1 of each topic. All students, including those presenting on
the topic, are required to do this. If class discussions go well for the first topics (i.e., all students
come to class prepared), this requirement will be dropped; if discussions go poorly, extra written
evaluations will be required. No credit will be given for late evaluations, except in the case of an
excused absence from class (see Attendance and Class Participation).
10-12 page typed term paper on your assigned topic. See Term Paper Guidelines for
further information. All term paper topics must be chosen and approved no later than September
23. Due dates for paper first drafts are given above; drafts must be turned in at the beginning of
class to be considered on-time. Late first drafts will be penalized 10% per day until turned in,
except in the case of an excused absence from class (see Attendance and Class Participation).
The final drafts for all topics must be turned in to me no later than noon, 12/19 (our scheduled
final exam time; there is no final exam.)
Since this is a writing intensive class, your topic essays and term paper will consist of a
first draft and a revision. In revising your essays and term paper, I expect you to consider not only
my comments and those of the class TA, but also peer-reviews and in-class discussions of the
topics. Revisions are required of all students for the first three essays that you write; students
who receive a score of 17 or higher on the first draft of the fourth essay may choose not to
complete a revision. In that case, an equivalent score will be given for the final draft. Revisions of
the term paper are required for all students who receive a score below 80% (32 points) on the
first draft. Revisions are optional for students receiving a score of 32 or higher on the first draft.
Students who choose not to revise their term paper will automatically be given a final grade
equivalent to the draft grade.
Oral assignments include the following:
40 minute group presentation on the discussion topic by students writing term papers on
the topic. The presentation will be given on Day 5 of the topic. All students are expected to
participate equally in the presentation, and will be individually graded. See Presentation
Guidelines for details.
active participation in all class discussions
Attendance and Class Participation
Because this is a seminar devoted to class discussions, attendance will be taken, and I
will make note of who does/doesn’t participate in discussions. Attendance and participation in
class discussions will provide up to 50 points towards your final grade. Any student whose
attendance falls below 70% MAY JEOPARDIZE HIS OR HER ABILITY TO GRADUATE
WITHOUT REPEATING THIS COURSE. There will be no opportunity to make up lost attendance
points, unless you provide written documentation that you missed class because of illness, family
emergency, or professional obligation (attendance at professional meeting, job interview, or
similar).
Grading
Your final grade will be based on the following:
evaluations of readings (5 at 5 points each)
first draft of essay (4 at 20 points each)
80
revision of essay (4 at 25 points each)
100
first draft of term paper
40
25
revision of term paper
group presentation
peer evaluations (4 at 5 points each)
attendance and participation
Total
60
50
20
50
425 points
Final grades will be based on a straight 90/80/70/60% scale and +/- grading will be used.
REMEMBER: You must receive a C- grade or higher in this class in order to graduate.
Summary Class Schedule:
Introduction
8/26
Introduction to the class; selection of 4 topics
8/28
Tips for reading and evaluating primary literature effectively. Writing a strong
essay.
Topic 1: Science and Interpretation in Anthropology
9/2, 9/4, 9/9, 9/11 (essay 1st drafts due), 9/16 (presentation)
Topic 2: to be selected
9/18 (Topic 1 final essays due), 9/23 (ALL TERM PAPER TOPICS TO BE CHOSEN AND
APPROVED), 9/25, 9/30 (essay 1st drafts due; Topic 1 term paper 1st drafts due), 10/2
(presentation)
Topic 3: to be selected
10/7 (Topic 2 final essays due), 10/9, 10/14, 10/16 (essay 1st drafts due; Topic 2 term
paper 1st drafts due), 10/21 (presentation)
Career Week:
10/23: Career Center visit and presentation
10/28: Is anthropology relevant? What can I do with my degree? Graduate school
Topic 4: to be selected
10/30 (Topic 3 final essays due), 11/4 (Topic 3 term paper 1st drafts due), 11/6, 11/11
(essay 1st drafts due), 11/13 (presentation)
Topic 5: to be selected
11/18 (Topic 4 final essays due), 11/20 (Topic 4 term paper 1st drafts due),
THANKSGIVING BREAK, 12/2 (Topic 5 term paper 1st drafts due), 12/4 (essay 1st drafts
due), 12/9 (presentation)
12/11: CAP exam; Topic 5 final essays due
12/19: ALL FINAL TERM PAPER DUE BY NOON.
Readings for Topic 1: Science and Interpretation in Anthropology
(1-6 required; 7-8 recommended)
Read in this order:
1) Kuznar, Lawrence A. 1997. Anthropological science. In Reclaiming a Scientific Anthropology.
Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press, pp. 17-49.
2) McGee, R Jon and Richard L Warms. 2008. Anthropological Theory: An Introductory History,
4th edition. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield. (pp. 482-484, 532-537)
3) Scheper-Hughes, Nancy. 1995. The primacy of the ethical: propositions for a militant
anthropology. Current Anthropology 36(3):409-440.
4) D’Andrade, Roy. 2008 [1995]). Moral models in anthropology. In McGee, R Jon and Richard
L Warms. Anthropological Theory: An Introductory History, 4th edition. Mountain View, CA:
Mayfield, pp. 562-579. [Original source: Current Anthropology 36(3):399-408]
5) Winterhalder, Bruce and Eric Alden Smith. 2000. Analyzing adaptive strategies: Human
behavioral ecology at twenty-five. Evolutionary Anthropology 9:51-72.
6) Balée, William. 1998. Introduction; Historical Ecology: Premises and Postulates. Pp. 1-10, 1329 in Advances in Historical Ecology, William Balée, editor. Columbia University Press, New
York.
7) Sidky, H (2004) Perspectives on Culture. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. (Chapter 13 —
Symbols, symbolic anthropology, and the interpretation of culture)
8) Sidky, H (2004) Perspectives on Culture. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. (Chapter 15 —
Postmodern anthropology and cultural constructionism)