Anthropology and Modern Society
ANT363 - Spring 2009
Tuesday & Friday 9:15-10:45 Room ?
Professor Tak Watanabe
Tel: 03-3238-4020
Email: takwatanabe.sophia@gmail.com
Office Hours: Tues & Fri 11-12
Office Location: Room 10-514
Course Description
This course explores modern society through the lens
of anthropology, focusing on questions of language,
exchange, and power. We will focus on classic social
theory necessary for understanding contemporary
anthropology, while bearing in mind social issues we
face today in our globalizing world. Requirements will
include short ethnographic projects, a midterm, and a
final exam.
Anthropology is founded on continental social theory
developed in the nineteenth century -- the moment when the modern era began. Modern science,
industrial capitalism, nation-states: they all came into being at the same time that anthropology began
its career. In this course we will seek to understand anthropology as both a product of and a response
to the crowning of Reason.
We begin with Kant, the philosopher of the Enlightenment, to think about this modern ascension of
Reason. From there we move through various theorists and their writing: Saussure's structural
linguistics; Mauss and Levi-Strauss as inheritors of French socialist thought; Marx as a critic of both
industrial capitalism and German idealism; Weber's hermeneutics of modern society; and Foucault,
who brings together these concerns into a powerful social critique. We will end with recent
ethnography to see how contemporary anthropology is grappling with the same questions raised by
these earlier thinkers.
This is primarily a course designed to give students the opportunity to engage with the readings. Texts
for this course are difficult but intellectually rewarding. There is no final research paper, but instead
three smaller projects that allow students to think about your daily lives through the lens of
anthropology. The course’s goals are to teach how anthropologists view modern society and to help
students develop skills in cultural and social analysis.
Requirements
Classroom and Online Discussions
3 Projects (15% each)
Midterm Exam
Final Exam
25%
45%
15%
15%
Attendance & Reading (mandatory)
It is imperative that students come to class fully prepared and on a regular basis. This means reading
the material, actively participating in discussion, and completing assignments on time.
Classroom and Online Discussion (25%)
Discussion is essential to the learning process. In class I want students to ask questions and voice their
opinions. As you read the course material, ask yourselves the following: what is the question the
ANT363 (S2009) – Anthropology and Modern Society (Watanabe)
author is asking and how is she trying to answer it? What sorts of evidence does she provide to
support her answer to the question? Do you agree or disagree with her?
Aside from in-class discussions, students will also respond to readings by posting on Moodle. A post
is your chance to react to the material. I encourage you to respond at a personal level: write about
aspect of the reading you didn’t like or found confusing; try to connect to prior discussions and
readings; or raise an issue you would like to discuss further. These are not meant to be well thought
out essays (a paragraph or two at most), but rather thought pieces to start off our class conversation.
You are welcomed to comment on other student’s posts.
Please also note that both classroom and online discussions do count when evaluating your
performance. Obvious lack of participation can impact your final grade.
Ethnographic Projects (3 @ 15% each)
I will ask students to do three small ethnographic research projects. These assignments will be based
on the materials covered in class. Each assignment is worth 15% of the final grade. Students will be
asked to write four to five pages. Paper topics will be announced a few weeks before the due date.
Midterm and Final Exams (15% each)
These will be exams based on the lectures, readings, and our class discussions.
Texts
The readings will be available on Moodle as PDFs, except for the four books below. The books will
be read in their entirety, so purchasing them is recommended. They are available at English-language
bookstores. The prices below were taken from Amazon Japan in April 2008. More information will
be available on Moodle. They are also available at the reserve desk in the library (you may opt to
copy, rather than buy, the shorter books on this list).
 Marcel Mauss, The Gift: The Form and Reason for Exchange in Archaic Societies (2,098 yen,
Routledge)
 Max Weber, Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1,242 yen, Economy Editions)
 Marc Auge, In the Metro (1,782)
 Anna Tsing, Friction: An Ethnography of Global Connection (2,471 yen)
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