University of Miskolc – Faculty of Arts
Course desciption – Cultural Anthropology
Basic concepts in anthropology I.
The aims of this introductory seminar are to give an overview about the basic approaches and
concepts of cultural anthropology, to acquaint the students with the different subfields of
anthropology. During this course the students gain a basic knowledge about the subjects of
their future research, let these be either on the micro or on the macro levels of the society. The
broad perspective of the course makes it possible for the student to familiarize with the basic
concepts, approaches, problems and methods of the cultural and social anthropology.
Basic concepts in anthropology II.
During the seminar the students go through the classic literature of cultural anthropology. The
course helps the students to deepen their knowledge of the basic concepts of anthropology, to
get used to the language of the scientific literature from the earliest to the modern time.
Fundamental concepts in the social sciences
This introductory lecture is taken parallel with the seminar on basic concepts. The aims of this
course are similar to those of the seminar, namely to give an overview on the intellectual
history and environment in which the social sciences were born. The lecture focuses on the
enlightment, romanticism, postivism, evolutionism and historical particularism. The course
works through the primer analysis of the works of classic authors, as well as through the
interpretation of the current literature.
The origin of humanity
The lecture gives an anthropological perspective on the earliest forms of human culture in the
pre- and protohistoric past. Topics include the most important points of human- and cultural
evolution, the history of climatic and ecological changes. The course focuses on the rise of
major civilization in prehistory and protohistory throughout the world, with special emphasis
on a range of regions that were centers of significant cultural development, namely Europe
and the Middle East. In the center of the course there are the topics of the initial appearance of
sedentism, agriculture, and social stratification and social complexity. The lecture draws its
broad material from the fields of archeology, geology, paleontology, social and cultural
anthropology.
Introduction to environmental studies
The course serves as a basic introductory lecture to environmental studies. It gives an
elementary knowledge about geology, geography, hydrology, botany, zoology, soil science,
ecology and cartography. The goals are to familiarize students with the different
environmental types and adaptations. By the end of the course the students are able to analyze
the relationship between culture and habitat.
Field methods I.
The course focuses on the anthropological approach to the study of culture and human
society. The cultural anthropology is a science based on data gained by empirical methods
through personal experiences and fieldwork. The lecture is an introduction to the world
inhabited by anthropologists, and the theories and methods that they use. A wide range of
issues are covered to provide a comprehensive introduction to this diverse and complex area.
The course concentrates on showing how the theory can be practically used to give meaning
to anthropological data. Within this framework the topic discusses issues including field
methods, data collecting, organization and analysis of data.
Field methods II.
The seminar runs parallel with the lecture series on field methods. It provides an opportunity
for the students to see theory in practice, to get used to the application of methods. The
coursework includes the practice of proxemic observation, genealogical interview, participant
observation, interview techniques and also helps students develop their critical and analytical
abilities and well as their ability to create and sustain an argument. In addition, they develop a
sense of anthropology as a profession, with particular orientations, problems and professional
values. They should leave the course with some feeling for how anthropologists think and
write as well as with the ability to critically assess anthropological issues as they appear in
professional discourse.
History of the cultural anthropology
This course introduces students to the theory of cultural anthropology, the intensive study of people’s
lives as shaped by social relations, cultural images, and historical forces. Through the critical reading
of various kinds of theories and texts, including the theory of cultural area, diffusionism, historical
particularism, culture and personality, social anthropology and structuralism. The second part of the
lecture introduces students to theoretical works and ideas that have formed the modern field
of anthropology. These include cognitive, ecological, symbolic, interpretive, feminist and
postmodern approaches in anthropology.
Basic concepts in visual anthropology I.
The course provides a problem oriented approach toward the fundamental concepts of visual
anthropology. It focuses on the first people to describe and explore foreign cultures. After
this, the lecture turns toward the material culture of different societies and to the role of visual
methods in the anthropological research. Topics also include theories on perception and
memory, on visual presentation in art history. Particular attention is paid to the visual
perception, to the usage of space and image, in different societies and cultures. It aims to give
students an understanding of the ability of art studies in cultural anthropology and to help
students become familiar with the major techniques used in visual anthropology.
Ethno cultural types
The lecture draws its material on the introductory course on environmental studies and
describes the ethno cultural types that inhabit the different ecotypes on the Earth. Topics
include hominids sharing food; peoples living in a variety of environments from caves to
deserts with economies ranging from foraging to early agriculture; and the origins of
sedentism and social complexity.
People of Central Europe
This course is designed to provide the student an anthropological approach toward the life,
political structure, historical-cultural regions, space- and identity structure, custom and culture
creation and maintenance and isolation or integration of the different groups in Central
Europe. The course will deal with the highly debated question of the borders of this region
and the changing concept of Central Europe and also will be concerned with the different
ethnicities and nationalities living in the area.
Basic concepts in Visual anthropology II:
The seminar deals with concepts of material culture, visual environment and with the cultural
determination of these concepts, both from the everyday and from scientific perspective. It
also provides an understanding of the description and interpretation of still and moving
images and, with the close reading of the literature, familiarizes students with the necessary
vocabulary of the scientific language of the field.
People of Europe
This course is designed to provide the student with a general overview and understanding of
the historical, political, economic and social forces that underlie the creation and maintenance
of present-day European societies and culture. The course will deal with the historical
background of the region, focusing on historical regions, development, religious, ethnic,
economic and social stratification. Nationality, national cultures, migration, settling and
exoduses are focal points of the course. Although the lecture provides an understanding from
the historical point of view, its main goal is to draw attention of issues and topics of a more
contemporary, anthropological nature.
People of Africa
This course introduces students to anthropological and historical scholarship on the African
diaspora. It focuses mainly on African culture in terms of ecological zones and cultural
development. The lecture gives an overview of the different cultures, political and social
structures, bands, tribes, chiefdoms and highly centralized societies. The primary goal is to
provide a general knowledge about Africa and its culture and also to show how theory could
be applied.
People of Asia
Asia, being 44,2 million km2, has 1/3 of the mainland of our planet. More than half of the
population of the Earth lives on this continent. This course introduces students to the
prehistory, cultures, life ways and living conditions of those living in Asia. The religion,
being the leading principal of Asian life and ways of thinking, serves as primary topic of the
lecture, during which the specificities of certain groups, societies, languages, economies and
institutions are discussed.
People of America and Oceania
The aims of the course are to give an overview of the population patterns, ethnical linguistic
and anthropological differences of the American continent. A special emphasis is put on the
newest scientific results of American studies, mentioning also the work of Hungarian
researchers. Beside informing students about the most important ethno cultural types and
cultural areas of the continent, the topics of the course also include discussions about the
colonial history - acculturation, assimilation, integration – and the current issues on Native
relations.
The second half of the course focuses on the anthropological, ethnic, linguistic and cultural
pattern of Australia and the archipelago: it examines the tribal societies of Micronesia,
Polynesia, Melanesia and Australia.
Introduction to the Psychological Anthropology
Psychological anthropology is an analytical, comparative approach toward the psychological
specificities and behaviors of the human, creator of culture. The discipline deals about the
subject, its formation and dependence of the social environment. During the course students
get to know the main theories and subfields of the psychological anthropology and gains
knowledge about the basic principles of social psychology, personality development,
anthropology and about the integration of these into the broader anthropological approaches.
With this the students are able to form a new understanding of the subject that includes both
their primer stereotypes and their newly acquired knowledge.
Field methods III.
The goal of this seminar is to make preparations for the individual fieldwork, after they
obtained knowledge on the theory of practice. Every student is required to write a research
plan that is discussed at length on the seminar. During the course we also focus on the
analysis of the current scientific works dealing with the given topics. The students are
required to put together an annotated bibliography on their chosen topics.
Philosophical anthropology I.
The current cultural anthropology could be described with the dual nature of understanding
and analyzing. Because of this approach we can’t do without introducing the hermeneutic
point of view. The hermeneutics is the art of “hermenuein”, in other words the art of
utterance, translation, explanation and interpretation (Gadamer), which helps to develop a
sense of anthropological approach. The aims of this lecture series are to provide an
understanding of the field of hermeneutics, its concepts, history and problems, to show its
significance in the social sciences. During the course we deal with the focal points of modern
hermeneutics, originated from the exegetical tradition, through the works of Schleiermacher,
Dilthey, Heidegger and Gadamer.
Field methods IV.
The goal of this seminar is to teach students how to write social scientific thesis, what are the
requirement in terms of style, form, logic and science. Both the theoretical – coherence,
consistence, hypothesis – and the practical aspects of the texts – introduction, abstract, notes –
are introduced through the work of the students own fieldwork material. The seminar follows
the first fieldwork experience, empirical data collection students have during the summer after
the 4th semester. The most important goal of this course is to have students to understand the
complex process of writing anthropology that goes from the actual fieldwork through the
systematic research and analysis and arrives to the point of writing.
Philosophical anthropology II.
The lecture examines the focal points of hermeneutics that are extremely important from the
interpretive anthropological point of view. Topics include the analysis of the esthetical
horizon of contemporary cultures, the summary of the ethical, rhetorical and linguistic
consequences of understanding. The series end with the discussion of the methodological and
theoretical approaches in interpretive anthropology.
Anthropology of religion
The course examines the basic work in the theory of religion, including works by Emile
Durkheim, Max Weber, Sigmund Freud and Bronislaw Malinowski. The lecture is a survey of
anthropological approaches to religions and related phenomena including magic, taboo,
shamanism and witchcraft. There is an emphasis on the connection between religious ideas
and practices and other aspects of social life in a variety of cultures. Topics include: religious
beliefs and experiences in "traditional" and complex societies, interconnections between
religion and some political, economic, and familial aspects of culture.
Anthropology of Economy
The course deals with one of the four sub institutions of the society that is economy. Its
specificities, theories, concepts, methodologies and the relationship between economy and
society are the subjects of this discipline. The goal is to inform students about the working of
economy, to have them understand its connections to the society, cognition and culture, to
help them realize and analyze the economic aspects of their own fieldwork.
Visual anthropology I.
The goal of the lecture series is to show how visual anthropology analyzes the understanding
and usage of images in the society. Topics include: how the already existing image “works”
within its environment through its history, how the understanding become part of the image
itself, what are the real functions of an image. The lecture series draws its examples mainly
from the second millennium of the European civilization. It shows the differences between the
official ideology and local understanding, between the legalized and hidden usage of images
(respect and destruction).
Visual anthropology II.
The course deals with the analytic techniques used in the interpretation of moving images. It
shows the usage of film and video in the research of today, focuses on the specificities of
collecting data by using moving images. Topics also include the techniques of editing, the
basic principles of ethics and authenticity, the interview techniques and also the self
involvement of the researcher as an influential element. The course uses classics as well as
current documentaries as examples. It shows/creates a connection between textualized and
filmed sociographies.
Cognitive anthropology
Because of the nature of fieldwork and anthropological analysis, it is obvious that during the
work the researcher, willingly or not, applies or adds his/her own mental constructions to that
of the others (subjects or groups) being part of the interaction. Realizing this is essential for
anybody working with human subjects. The topics of this course are the human as conscious
and self-conscious being; the psychological elements and cultural variations of the human
mental processes (understanding, realization, memory, thinking, feelings, etc.) and the
manifestation of these (communication, behavior, action). The course approaches toward
these with the, lightly forced, distinction between intrapersonal and interpersonal.
Ecological Anthropology
Drawn on the knowledge gained through taking the introduction to environmental studies the
students familiarize with the current ecological theory and practice. Topics include
consideration of the relationships between culture and the environment, problems involving
the application of basic ecological concepts and principles to human societies and evaluation
of various explanatory frameworks regarding cultural adaptations, the problematic nature of
categorizing ecosystems, models of ecosystem. The course also helps students to learn about
the methods used on the field of ecological anthropology.
Social anthropology (Research on family and kinship systems)
The course introduces students to the field of social anthropology, research on kinship, social
ties based on kinship or other relationships and also improves their skills in collecting,
analyzing and interpreting kinship terminologies. It deals with the history, schools and
methods of social anthropology. Topics include forms of blood relationships (incest,
exogamy, endogamy, preferences, marriage, etc.); family forms and kinship systems
(genealogical systems, terminologies, dual system, lineage, clan, etc.); forms of inheritance
and succession; grouping (secret societies, cults); relationship of self and society, rites de
passages.
Historical anthropology
Historical anthropology is one of the young fields of the modern European social sciences.
With melting the synchronic and diachronic approaches in the research of everyday life it
destroys the boundaries between disciplines. The historian’s work who deals with the
specificities and cultural logic of societies, in terms of time, far from us is similar to that of
the anthropologist who deals with the deeper systematic meanings and interconnections of
contemporary societies through the behavior of their members and through the interpretation
of ones own society. The course focuses on the scientific history of the field, with its
theoretical and methodological principals and its main research topics.
Special fields in cultural anthropology
This is a course on special interests in cultural anthropology. The topic changes on a term-toterm basis and includes the study of anthropology of law, symbolic anthropology, medical
anthropology, ethno botany and other specializations in anthropology. The lectures always
deal with the specific theories and methods of the given subfield.
Applied anthropology
Within the discipline of cultural anthropology there is a tendency, emerged in the last 50
years, to apply the academic knowledge to the practical aspects of life. These pragmatic
anthropologists use the results, concepts and methods of academic anthropology to solve
economic, technical, social problems both in their own and foreign societies. In the last
decade there were several terminuses to address this discipline, which has a goal to improve
cultural and social conditions. The course focuses on the different approaches of this
emerging field.
Thesis building
The goals of this course is to give direct and personal help to build and write a professionally
and stylistically satisfactory thesis. The thesis has to be a social scientific text based on the
analysis of social, cultural problems explored through the primer experience of doing
fieldwork. The seminar serves as a control between fieldwork and writing, it helps students to
avoid the misunderstanding of certain phenomenon and draw false consequences. It serves as
a base to successfully pass the final exam and write a scientific work.
Problem oriented research
The goal of this seminar is to have students work closely with their supervisors on their
specific projects, to deepen the knowledge of the given field, methods, analytic possibilities
and interpretive techniques. Parallel with this the difficulties and problems of the actual
fieldwork and thesis building are discussed.
Sources in visual anthropology
One of the most important problems in visual anthropology, being an empiric social science,
is to find its sources, data. Some of the objects of foreign cultures (mostly those described as
art) is collected by museums. Some elements of popular culture are now also part of
collections, such as furniture, ex voto, cards, menus, etc. But many elements of the visual
cultural, especially the connection, context, usage of these objects and images is still
unexplored. The course introduces students to the world of these, with discussing their
exploration, analysis, interpretation and bibliographic study. It also focuses on the history of
visual anthropology, the “art” of collecting and archiving data and its interpretation.
Theories and practices in the anthropological research
The lecture focuses on the disciplinary changes and trends in cultural and social anthropology
occurred after the World War II. One of the most important turns in the last 50 years, which
is marked by the name of the most influential American anthropologists, such as Marc
Abélés, John Bornemann, David Coplan, Arturo Escobar, David Scott and Michael Herzfeld,
wanted to explore the changes in the status of cultural anthropology within the social
scientific world from the paradigmatic categories of the social scientific horizon. Topics of
the course include the epistemological, historical, political, environmental and aesthetical
aspects of anthropology and their most influential authors. The course is a thematic and
modern summary of the theories and practices in cultural and social anthropology.
Qualitative methods in anthropology
The goal of the course is familiarize students with the qualitative methods used in the
anthropology, to explore the deeper theoretical connections. The lectures show what the basic
qualitative criteria are and how the anthropologists are using them. A special emphasis is put
on the questions of contextualization, on the need for complexity, on the concept and
interpretation of qualitative data. It is also important to describe the specific role of being a
researcher, this being the prerequisite to deal with qualitative data. The qualitative research
that is based on fieldwork uses the self perspective of the given society as a starting point of
the interpretation and analysis. In the last decades this approach gained special popularity and
became an extremely important part of the anthropological knowledge.
Quantitative methods in anthropology
The goal of the course is to familiarize students with the quantitative methods used in the
anthropology, to explore the deeper theoretical connections. The lectures show what the basic
quantitative criteria are and how anthropologists are using them. The key element of this
approach is the quantification, which is the mathematical, statistical objectivation of the
empiric data of the social sciences. The course discusses the methods of collecting
quantitative data and the coding, processing and interpretation of it.
Methods in related fields
The goals of the course are to inform students about the basic concepts, results and methods
of the related fields of anthropology. Special focus is put on the literature, ethnography,
history, sociology and archeology. The course is a natural outcome of the interdisciplinary
nature of cultural anthropology.
Visual techniques and methods in the anthropological fieldwork
The modern techniques of taking still images, the optical-chemical and digital technologies,
are very useful tools in the researcher’s hand. During the seminar the students learn about the
possibilities and boundaries of collecting data with visual methods, they learn that in what
kind of research they can and should use visual tools and in what kinds of research they
shouldn’t or mustn’t apply them. The course also focuses on the helpful or – in some cases –
discouraging aspects of visual tools in interview situations, participant observations and
jotting. By the end of the seminar they learn about the problematic points of collecting and
organizing visual data, the difference between text and image.
Reading seminar
During the reading seminar students read and discuss the works of current authors in cultural
anthropology in English, German, French or Russian. The goal is to get them ready to read
and analyze texts written in foreign languages. It also helps them to familiarize with the
foreign terminology.
Religion in Europe
The lecture is about the history of the ever changing religious map of Europe in the last 2000
years. Starting with the discussion of the polytheist Roman Empire the course goes through
the great monotheist religions (Jewish tradition, Christianity, Islam) and arrives to the
contemporary religious movements of Central Europe and Hungary. It focuses on questions of
secularity, rural religion and the role of religion in the modern society.
Historical forms of life
The lecture series deals with the diversity of life patterns and models and with the most
important theoretical and methodological questions of the research of lifestyles in sociology,
anthropology and ethnography. It sketches the historical lifestyle models of Hungary and then
discusses the lifestyles of Hungarian peasant culture in details. Topics include the
characteristics of traditional production strategies, the consumption of peasant economies,
characteristics of labor in peasant societies, modernization of peasant mentality.
Spatial differences in culture
The aims of this course are to show the spatial-cultural differences in the Carpathian basin and
their geographical-ecological basis. The geographical, ethnical, cultural diversity and the
variations in possessive relations in the historical Hungary result a difficult system of borders.
These borders serve usually as zones of interference, their population more or less adopt some
aspects of the culture, values, norms and identity symbols from the other side of the border.
The course wants to situate the traditional Hungarian culture within its environment; it wants
to put the Hungarian traditions to a broader perspective.
The structure of the current Hungarian society
The course deals with the structure, stratification and building of the current Hungarian
society – minorities, region, class, groups are among its subjects. The goal is to have students
be able to realize and analyze in their own fieldwork the characteristics that originate from the
structural differences in the society, to describe and put given groups into the broader
Hungarian society, to evaluate certain effects.
National culture, concept of nation in the 19-20th century
The aims of the lecture are to connect the concepts of folk-nation-and culture. It examines the
national images in the 18-20th century Central European knowledge and intellectual history
with a special focus on the Hungarian cultural history. Topics include the reinvention of
national culture, folk art and national culture, folklore, nationalist narratives, national symbols
and stereotypes and their role in creating identities and in tourism.
Introduction to the European ethnology
This course focuses on the history and tradition of the European research on culture. Topics
include the history of Volkskunde-type European ethnography, the scientific paradigms of
traditional ethnography, the most important turns and changes in the European research. In
spite of this, this isn’t a lecture about the scientific history of European ethnological research
but about the basic concepts of studying culture, its theoretical and pragmatic approaches and
about the different aspects of culture itself. During the course, students gain knowledge on the
status of European ethnology among the social sciences; and also on the reasons of the
changes in German and Scandinavian national ethnography.
Theories on visual expression
Although the bibliography on verbal expression, grammaticism, style and verbal acts is
extended and deep – it goes from the language of everyday life up to the science of high
literature – and highly emphasizes the interdependence of language and culture, there is only a
very few works on visual expression. The nonverbal nature of visual expression makes the
theories and research practices on verbal expressions useless. The bibliography on education
and art history discusses the basic problems of visual expression, the emergence and effect of
visual sign, code or symbols, the use of material, technology, composition, theme, usage of
space and colors through the works of European high art and applies it at most to the drawings
of children or to the art education. Therefore this course – with the required explanation of the
difficulties – chooses only a subtheme, pars pro toto: it explains through the most popular
time periods and regions of art how did the visual expression work in the given time.
The anthropology of body and space
There are several basic theoretical approaches toward the social usage of space and body.
They are mainly unorganized and come from different social sciences or the field of art
history, but still, they are inescapable for the anthropologist. The role of this course is to look
at these theories, organize them and have the students learn the research techniques. The
historically changing cultural patterns regulate every bodily aspects of socialization, coming
of age and social roles. According to the archeological and ethnographical records, the space
– or the inner space – is a very important element of the cultic buildings. Therefore most of
the earlier researches on space are connected to buildings, their structure and function. On the
other hand, the anthropology of space allows us to think in a broader scale, to overcome the
basic difference between inner and outer, between cultivated and wild.
The visual culture of Hungarians
By the end of the last century, with the reinvention of folkart, the scientific interest turned
toward the objects and visual world of the folk culture. The leading role is usually that of the
artists, who are looking for new sources. In this process they find and reinvent – sometimes
with a fake twist – the visual culture of foreign lands or that of the folk culture. But with their
interest they create a broader interest, that of the scientific world to systematically explore the
folk culture. The anthropology today has enough knowledge to give a broad understanding of
the material culture, costumes, use of space and body in the Hungarian society.
Anthropology of art
During the course the students learn about the theories on the origin of art: about the different
conceptions of art, about the creation, function, use and values of objects in different cultures
– on the basis of comparative research – and about the connection of traditional and
subjective invention, creativity and virtuosity. Beside of these – based on the anthropological
results from the 19-20th century – the course deals with the connections between myth, magic
and art in tribal societies; and with the role and function of objects in rites and memory.
Photography as the source of visual anthropology
Family albums and photo collections – with their textual commentaries – are in the focus of
visual anthropology. On the one hand the collections serve as primer reports for the researcher
on otherwise hardly accessible customs, events, social connections, values. On the other hand,
during the interviews, communications the photos themselves create new meanings and
interpretations. The seminar looks at the history of popular photography, and at the most
important public collections. With learning the history of the changing role of photography in
the social scientific research and with analyzing the culturally relevant context of taking still
images the students get ready to work on their own case studies. When working on a
collection they are required to pay attention to every visual aspect that is relevant in terms of
the interpretation, to analyze it systematically. They also learn the methods of comparing
visual and textual materials, realize the different effects they have on the meaning and they
also learn about the possibilities of comparative perspective.
Film as the source of visual anthropology
The goal of this course the have the students learn about the possibility of using video during
the anthropological research. They learn how to use a camera in the most popular methods of
anthropology, such as participant observation, and what to do after it (showing the
documentary, learning more about the culture from the reaction of their informants, etc.) The
course deals partly with the professional and ethical responsibilities of the research, these
being the prerequisites of the work. Topics also include the question of subjectivity and
objectivity, repetition and correction, possibilities of control and the problem of identification
with the subject of the research.
Photo techniques
One of the most needed technical tools for a cultural anthropologist is the camera. During the
course the students get to know the basic techniques of photography. They deepen their
knowledge on color and light, learn about the optical and chemical background of taking
pictures and familiarize with the different camera brands and accessories. After it they use
these techniques in interviews and reproductive processes. The students also learn how to
develop black and white images. During all of this they gain knowledge on composition and
basic rules of image construction.
Multimedia in the social sciences
After they are able to use the necessary technical tools, the students choose a segment of their
own fieldwork and are required to analyze it in a complex textual and audiovisual
presentation. The multimedia is one of the most useful tools in anthropology, because it is
able to use the same complexity the research itself does.
Applied hermeneutics
According to the hermeneutics, everything is a meaningful “text” that waits for decoding. The
job of the anthropologist is to be an interpretator who works on solving, presenting and
translating the “mysteries” of the text. The aims of the course are to deepen the theoretical
knowledge with the practical example of concrete situations that occur in a completely
foreign, although from the primer linguistic point familiar, culture. Topics include religion,
time, relation to the past, tradition, aesthetic, ethics and language.
Structuralism and structural anthropology
In our century the schools and theories of structuralism from different disciplines flourished.
The goals of the course are to show the history of structuralism, the different forms of its
application in the social sciences. We also deal with some of the most influential authors in
order to learn about the philosophical roots of the structural methods used in anthropology.
Another important goal of the course is to provide a theoretical background for every research
undertaken on the field of philosophical anthropology. There is a special focus on the work of
Saussure, Foucault, Barthes and Lévi-Strauss and their effect on the development of structural
anthropology and folkloristic.
Structural methods in anthropology
The aims of the seminar are to show students the possibilities of structural research in the
social sciences, especially in the anthropology. First, the course takes the works of LéviStrauss through which the students learn how the primarily linguistic method can be used in
the analysis of kinship systems, totemic traditions, magical practices and myths. They also
learn the boundaries of theory through the comparison of reality and model. Secondly, we
take examples from the structural-semiotic researches on folklore, everyday communication,
folk-art and rites de passages both from inside and outside Hungary. During the last few
classes we try to work on the structural analysis of some aspects of the culture in Gyimes.
Holism and cybernetics
The aims of the lecture series are to take a look at the questions of cybernetics and the
possibilities of their application in social sciences. The emergence of the general cybernetics
and holism in anthropology opens new horizons in terms of the researches, for the
interpretation of culture or society as system requires the reevaluation of methodology. Our
goal is to provide an understanding of the basic categories and theories. Among others we
deal with the cybernetic works of P. Chekland, L. von Bertalanffy, K.H. Tjaden and
Philippsen and their implications in the social sciences. The analysis of the culture as opened
system, and the need for a holistic approach could open a brand new perspective in the
anthropological research.
Holistic approach in the anthropological research
The course would like to help in connecting the interpretational techniques of the sciences
dealing with our environment(s) – natural sciences, social sciences, different sub-fields – and
in realizing that the work of a social scientist is always part of the whole culture. We also take
a look at the biological and ecological focal points of the development of cybernetics –
according to which every living system, ecosystem is in the state of constant changing, and
tries to reduce the entropy – and their possible application to human societies.
Theories on the understanding of “savage” mind
The goals of the lecture series are to take a look at the development of modern interpretive
sciences and their effect on the interpretive techniques of anthropology. The other culture, the
problem of understanding the ‘foreign’, weaves through the whole world of social philosophy,
which also determines the problems in anthropology. It is important to realize that the
categories Western researchers use to describe the modes of thinking in foreign cultures –
their mythology, religion, art, etc. - are the products of the European intellectual tradition.
That means that different cultures would define the described phenomenon differently. The
students get to know the nowadays extended bibliography of the topic through the works of
G. Kippenberger, Peter Winch, Alasdair MacIntyre and Leszek Kolekowski.
Deconstruction and postmodern anthropology
The method that is marked by the name of J. Derrida who worked on the deconstruction and
rebuilding of the text could broaden the perspectives of the anthropological research. The
marks of changes in a culture – that only signs with referring to another “sign” that something
has changed radically – makes it possible to trace the sense of the changes in meaning in any
cultures. In order to understand the colorful nature of a culture we have to find not only the
actual meaning-connections but also the hidden contexts that are in the background. To obtain
this we can call the deconstruction for help. During the course we deal with the interpretation
of J. Derrida’s, P. Feyerabend’s, J. Habermas’ theories on modernity and postmodern, and
also with the analysis of Derrida’s critique of structuralism as one of the sources of
deconstruction.
Psychological anthropology I.
This course deepens the knowledge obtained by taking the introductory course on
psychological anthropology. The aims of the course are to have the students learn about the
complex process of learning and adopting from culture to culture. A very important element
in this process is the memory as an important psychical function of adaptive/creative life. The
memory helps to keep and inherit the forms of dealing with conflicts and adaptation. With
following the rules and norms of the society the subject is able to form a healthy identity.
Because of the role of culture in this question, it is also very important to take a look at the
dimension of health and disease/illness.
Psychological anthropology II.
The seminar deals with the biological and physiological processes that determine the human
development. The students explore rules of creating culture and the patterns of behavior
through the results of comparative psychology and the integration of the observations of
psychological anthropology. The culture gives us safety through its norms and rules. Every
nation and society has its own ideal personality, therefore in time and space there are several
adaptive model-personality. The students realize this through their own examples during the
seminar.
Self-knowledge
With the help of an objective self-knowledge, a self-ideal and self-image it is easier to find
way in the labyrinth of the psyche. The anthropologist’s self-knowledge is essential to the
effective fieldwork, for this is the prerequisite of understanding others. The goal of the
seminar is to have the students learn more about themselves, to help them form their selfimage as researchers.
The role of the psychological anthropology in the social scientific research
The goals of the course are to familiarize students with some psychological test and with the
analysis of their results. After the test there is always quantification and analysis. The
psychological anthropology could help to understand certain social groups, their functions,
traditions and trends. The psychological methods could help the researcher to find the
personality that isn’t affected by the culture. The course deals with the psychological methods
and tests that can be used during the anthropological fieldwork, such as TAT, CAT, PFT,
drawing tests, IQ tests and helps students to find out how to analyze their data.
Culture and personality
The aim of the course is to interpret and present the roles of culture in value and norm
transmission, and subject formation. The course deals with the reflexive character of the
subject, its effect on changing the culture by its own needs and desires. Knowing the different
types of personality in foreign cultures could help to explore the difficult relationship between
cultural activity and personality.
Intercultural communication
The course emphasizes the interdependence of culture and communication. It examines the
universal principles of communication, the cultural constructions of narrative and discourse,
interethnic communication. The lecture focuses on types, values and images of
communication in different culture. A special emphasis is put on the international and
interethnic communication because of its flourishing existence.