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Anthropology of Africa 01:070:243 Anthropology of Africa 01:070:243 Spring 2018, Starts 01/16 Cathryn Townsend [email protected] Room 309, Biological Sciences Building, Douglass Office Hours: Tuesdays 2:00pm – 4.00pm Classroom Hours: Mondays 10:55am-12.15pm RAB 207 D/C, Thursdays 10.55 – 12.15pm, BIO 205 D/C Credits: Course Number: 01:070:361 Course Description This course explores the central issues and debates in the anthropology of sub-Saharan Africa. The objectives of the course are to give students a broad appreciation for 1) the cultural and historical diversity of the region, and 2) the role that ethnographic research has played in our understanding of this diversity. In media and in popular representations, Africa is frequently portrayed as a place of poverty, conflict, and dependence. This course will examine many of the problems that contemporary Africans face. Our aim, however, will be to contextualize these problems and counter prevailing narratives about Africa by exploring the resilience and rich cultural life on the continent. We will take a geographically and thematically broad approach to address topics including colonialism and post-colonialism, kinship and social organization, ethnicity and nationality, economics and politics, globalization, religion, health, gender and sexuality, the arts and popular culture. Students will learn to connect examples of ethnographic fieldwork with the key theoretical contributions of the anthropological study of Africa. A contemporary novel, current news articles, and selections from popular African cinema and music will complement ethnographic readings and films. The course will incorporate lectures and group discussion. Core Curriculum Learning Goals Met by this Course Areas of Inquiry B: Social Science and History h. Understand the bases & development of human and societal endeavors across time and place. B1: Historical Analysis k. Explain the development of some aspects of African society and culture over time, including the history of ideas or history of science. l. Employ historical reasoning to study human endeavors. B2: Social Analysis m. Understand different theories about human culture, social identity, economic entities, political systems, and other forms of social organization. 1 n. Apply concepts about human and social behavior to particular questions or situations. Learning Objectives 1. Students will expand their knowledge of the diversity of African peoples and societies. 2. Students will understand how life has changed on the African continent and be able to connect current events to their historical antecedents. 3. Students will learn to connect examples of ethnographic fieldwork with the key theoretical contributions of the anthropological study of Africa. Course Components & Evaluation Participation and Attendance (25%): Active participation, regular attendance and timely arrival are expected in this course. Students are expected to demonstrate consistent engagement with the course. ‘Engagement’ means that for each class session, you should: 1) complete the readings; 2) come prepared with thoughts and questions; 3) contribute to our group discussion. In other words, mere attendance is not sufficient to earn a high mark for participation. The instructor reserves the right to issue “pop quizzes” on assigned readings and count these towards the participation grade. Students are expected to attend all classes; an attendance sheet will be circulated at the beginning of each class. If you expect to miss one or two classes, please use the University absence reporting website (https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/) to indicate the date and reason for your absence. An email is automatically sent to me. Per university policy, in cases where you must miss class for periods longer than one week, you will be directed to see a Dean of Students for assistance to help verify these circumstances. Your grade will be reduced for each class meeting you miss over two, with exceptions made for documented emergencies. Map Quiz (5%): At the beginning of Lecture 2, on January 29th, there will be a short quiz covering the political geography of contemporary Africa. Short response papers (4 assignments x 5% = 20% of course grade) Four times in the semester you will write short response papers of around 750 words (approximately three double-spaced pages). These responses should be submitted in hard copy at the beginning of the assigned class and relate to the readings for that day. Assignments will not be accepted late. You should structure your responses using a conventional essay style (Introduction, Body, Conclusion, References). Content may include: a) A brief analysis of the readings. What are the main arguments being made? b) A short evaluation of the readings. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the readings? What kinds of evidence do the authors use? Is the author’s interpretation convincing? What other interpretations might be made? c) A discussion of the relationship between these and other course materials. d) Relating the readings to current or historical events. e) Questions for further inquiry that the readings might suggest. Any assignment turned in with plagiarized materials will be given a zero and reported to the appropriate university authorities. Please see the Rutgers academic integrity policy and consult with me if you have any questions about what constitutes plagiarism. Midterm essay (25%): Write a 2,000 word essay that analyzes Aman: The Story of a Somali Girl with reference to one or more themes we have taken up in the course. These themes might include: representations of Africa; gender; witchcraft; ancestors; and pastoralism. Please submit your essay as a Word attachment under the Assignments tab on Sakai by 12:15pm on Friday, March 9th. Essays will be marked down 5% for each day late. Plagiarism will result in a zero for the essay. Final exam (25%): For the exam, you will be given a mixture of multiple choice and short-answer questions to answer. Academic Integrity All students must strictly adhere to the Rutgers Academic Integrity Policy, which identifies and defines violations of cheating, fabrication, facilitating academic dishonesty, plagiarism, and denying others access to information or material. Full definitions of each of these violations, as well as the consequences of violating the Academic Integrity Policy, are available online at http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu I encourage you to study this website carefully for information about what constitutes plagiarism and how to properly acknowledge the ideas and words of other. The complete Policy can be viewed at: http://academicintegrity.rutgers.edu/academic-integrity- policy Absence Reporting If you will be absent, please email me and report your absence through the online absence reporting system: https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/ Course Outline General Orientation Class Thursday, 1January Lecture 1: The Map of Africa Thursday, 25 January Essential Reading: McNulty, Michael. 1995. "The Contemporary Map of Africa," pp. 3-45, in Africa, Phyllis Martin and Patrick O'Meara, Eds. Indiana University Press. Watch in class: BBC Audio Slideshow: Mapping Africa (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world- 12675464) Lecture 2: Representations of Africa Monday, 29 January In Class Quiz: the map of Africa “Introduction” to Part I: Representation and Discourse (POA) Jean Comaroff and John Comaroff, “Africa Observed: Discourses of the Imperial Imagination” (POA) Lecture 3: Witchcraft, Science & Rationality Thursday, 1 February Essential Reading: “Introduction” to Part V: Witchcraft, Science, and Rationality: The Translation of Culture (POA) Evans-Pritchard, “The Notion of Witchcraft Explains Unfortunate Events” (POA) Watch in class: “Strange Beliefs” (2-2522) Lecture 4: Elders & Ancestors Monday, 5 February Essential Reading: “Introduction” to Part VI: Ancestors, God, and the Philosophy of Religion (POA) W.P. Murphy, “Secret knowledge as property and power in Kpelle society: Elders versus youth.” Africa 50 (1980): 193-207. Lecture 5: Hunters & Gatherers, Immediate-Return Thursday, 8 February First Reading Response Due Essential Reading: Introduction: to Part IV: Hunter-Gatherers in Africa (POA) James Woodburn. 2005. ‘Egalitarian Societies Revisited (Chapter 1)’. In Property & Equality, Volume 1: Ritualisation, Sharing, Egalitarianism’, Widlok, T & Tadesse, W. G. (eds.), New York, Oxford: Berghahn Books. Read in class: Excerpts from Colin Turnbull’s The Forest People Watch in class: “N!ai: The Story of a !Kung Woman” (2-1638) Lecture 6: Hunters & Gatherers, Delayed-Return Monday, 12 February Essential Reading: Corinne Kratz. 2000. ‘Forging Unions and Negotiating Ambivalence: Personhood and Complex Agency in Okiek Marriage Arrangement’ in I. Karp and D. A. Masolo (eds.), African Philosophy as Cultural Inquiry, Bloomington IN: Indiana University Press. Read in Class: Excerpts from Colin Turnbull’s The Mountain People Lecture 7: Horticulturalists Thursday, 15 February Essential Reading: Ester Boserup. 1970. ‘The Economics of Polygamy’. POA Jane I. Guyer. 2005. ‘Female Farming in Anthropology & African History’. In M. di Leonardo (ed.), Gender at the Crossroads of Knowledge. Lecture 8: Pastoralists Monday, 19 February Second Reading Response Due Essential Reading: John Iliffe. 2004. ‘Honour, Rank and Warfare Among the Yoruba”. In John Iliffe, Honour in African History (Cambridge University Press). Dorothy L. Hodgson. 1999. ‘Pastoralism, Patriarchy and History: Changing Gender Relations among Maasai in Tanganyika, 1850-1930.’ Journal of African
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