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2020-2021 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Course Descriptions
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Course Numbering System
The following lists include all courses normally offered at Albion College. However, not all courses are offered every year. When possible, courses offered in alternate years are designated. For details, students should consult the Class Schedule for each semester, available online at: www.albion.edu/registrar. The College reserves the right to add or withdraw courses without prior announcement, as conditions may require.
Unless otherwise stated, 100 level courses are intended for freshmen, 200 level for sophomores, 300 and 400 level for juniors and seniors.
A list of courses which meet the core and category requirements, organized by departments, is available online at www.albion.edu/registrar.
Further information may be obtained at the Registrar’s Office in the Ferguson Student, Technology, and Administrative Services Building.
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Anthropology |
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ANTH 105: An Introduction to Anthropology
(1 Unit)
What does it mean to be “human”? How can we understand human variation and change? This course provides a basic introduction to anthropology, with an emphasis on cultural anthropology. It also explores archaeology, biological anthropology, and linguistics. Chase, Harnish, Webb.
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ANTH 187: Selected Topics
(1/4 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. Staff.
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ANTH 188: Selected Topics
(1/2 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. Staff.
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ANTH 189: Selected Topics
(1 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. Staff.
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ANTH 238: South Asian Identities
(1 Unit)
ANTH 105 or SOC 101 or permission of instructor. ANTH 105 or SOC 101 or permission of instructor.
An introduction to the peoples and cultures of South Asia (Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan). Examines issues including caste, South Asian religions, family life, colonialism, communal violence, popular culture and the South Asian diaspora. Chase.
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ANTH 240: Ancient Civilizations
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or permission of instructor.
Although the human species has been on the planet in its present form for at least 100,000 years, complexly organized societies with cities, governments and organized religions did not emerge until the last 5,000. This phenomenon took place independently throughout the globe, and while some ancient civilizations collapsed, others became the foundations upon which the modern world was constructed. Why is this so? Through a comparative analysis of Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Indus, Maya, Aztec and Incan societies, among others, students will learn to analyze the factors that have led to the emergence and transformation of civilizations. Chase.
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ANTH 241: Principles of Archaeology
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or permission of instructor.
Archaeology is the investigation of human societies through the study of their material remains. It provides the only source of information regarding the period from the evolution of humans over the last two million years to the widespread adoption of the written word (in some places) over the last few thousand. During historical periods, archaeology gives voice to those rendered invisible by their exclusion from historical documents. More fundamentally, archaeology provides novel insights into the material worlds that actively shape as well as reflect social life. Students will learn the fundamentals of archaeological research through the analysis of case studies in conjunction with a series of hands-on field and laboratory exercises. Chase.
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ANTH 242: Biological Anthropology
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or permission of instructor.
Biological anthropology is the holistic study of the origins and bio-cultural nature of the human species. This course addresses several of the most important areas of biological anthropology such as human evolution; patterns of human physical diversity; human health and nutrition; gender and sexuality; bioarchaeology; primatology; dynamics of genetic ancestry, race, and ethnic identity; and forensic anthropology. Webb.
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ANTH 248: Africa: Peoples and Cultures
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: SOC 101 or ANTH 105 , or permission of instructor.
A survey of African cultural diversity past and present. Explores the lives and livelihoods of African peoples through ethnographic case studies that span the continent. Engages stereotypes and challenges the ways in which Africa is popularly depicted in the media. Considers key issues in anthropology, including colonialism, conflict, ecology, economic development, food security, gender, childhood, religion, health, humanitarianism and globalization. Harnish.
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ANTH 256: Native North America
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: SOC 101 or ANTH 105 or ETHN 103 or permission of instructor.
The historical and anthropological study of Native peoples of North America, with an emphasis on the twentieth century. Topics include federal policy, political movements, gender, the construction of identities and relationships between scholars and Native communities. Same as HIST 256 . Staff.
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ANTH 263: Modern China
(1 Unit)
Same as HIST 263 . Staff.
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ANTH 264: International History of Modern Japan
(1 Unit)
Same as INTN 264 . Yoshii.
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ANTH 271: Nature and Society: An Introduction to Ecological Anthropology
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or SOC 101 or permission of instructor.
Provides an understanding of the diverse and ever-changing relationships between people and their natural environments. Considers the historical foundations of ecological anthropology and the human dimensions of contemporary environmental issues ranging from deforestation and desertification to ecotourism and environmental justice. Through cross-cultural case studies, students learn how human perceptions of and interactions with the environment are conditioned by social variables like gender, race, politics, economics and religion/worldview. Harnish.
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ANTH 279: Global Health
(1 Unit)
ANTH 105 or SOC 101, or permission of instructor
This course explores the economic, cultural, and political factors leading to the uneven distribution of health and disease around the world. Students will learn about the global burden of various diseases – acute and chronic, epidemiological transitions, and syndemics. Programming considerations and global health goals will also be considered. The course will draw from public health, epidemiology, (medical) anthropology, sociology, and economics. Webb.
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ANTH 287: Selected Topics
(1/4 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. May be taken more than once for credit. Staff.
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ANTH 288: Selected Topics
(1/2 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. May be taken more than once for credit. Staff.
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ANTH 289: Selected Topics
(1 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. May be taken more than once for credit. Staff.
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ANTH 315: Anthropological Theory
(1 Unit)
ANTH 105, junior standing recommended
This course questions what anthropologists should study and how they should study it by examining key theories and theorists that have shaped the discipline. By focusing on the foundational works comprising the “anthropological cannon,” the course considers how the basic assumptions, research methods, and social conditions of anthropological practice have changed over time. This overview of the history of theorizing about society and culture allows for examination of the discipline’s past, present, and future. Webb.
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ANTH 320: Indigenous Peoples of Latin America
(1 Unit)
This course surveys the cultural diversity of contemproary indigenous peoples living in Latin America. It traces how indigenous cultural traditions and societies have both continues and changed since through European conquest, colonialism, and statehood. The course emphasizes language rights, territorial rights, sovereignty, and state violence through the lens of anthropology. Webb.
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ANTH 325: Methods in Anthropology
(1 Unit)
ANTH 105, junior standing recommended
How do anthropologists practice their craft? What exactly do they do “out there” in the field and what is unique about their modes of studying the human experience? This course examines the primary methods and ethical issues involved in anthropological fieldwork. Particular attention will be paid to research design, participant observation, and the representation of cultures through ethnographic writing and museum curation. Harnish.
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ANTH 357: Violent Environments
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or SOC 101 and junior standing or permission of instructor.
Does environmental degradation produce violence? What is the relationship between population growth, resource scarcity and violent conflict? In what ways do different environments (e.g., African national parks, Appalachian coal mines, hurricane-ravaged coastal cities) feature differential access to and control over natural and economic resources? This course first explores anthropological perspectives on violence, including biological, archaeological and cultural approaches to understanding war. Then, it investigates the multifaceted linkages between environments and conflict—the articulations among resource extraction, urbanization, economic development, population growth, biotechnology, biodiversity, natural disasters, human health, structural violence and social inequality. Harnish.
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ANTH 365: The Archaeology of Empire
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or SOC 101 and junior standing or permission of instructor.
The global interconnections and inequalities that characterize the twenty-first century have their origins in the sixteenth-century European imperial expansions that drew peoples from all regions of the globe into novel economic, political and ideological relationships that fundamentally transformed the identities of all parties involved. European imperialism, however, was not a unique incidence of this phenomenon, but was rather the most recent in a series of colonial encounters that began over 5,000 years ago as the institutions of the world’s first cities expanded their influence beyond the floodplains of Mesopotamia. In this course students gain a more complete understanding of the modern world through the critical review of case studies including Uruk, Greek, Roman, Aztec, Incan and European civilizations. Chase.
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ANTH 366: Archaeology of Social Change
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: ANTH 105 or SOC 101 and junior standing or permission of instructor.
In the last 6,000 years people from all over the world have shifted from living in societies in which status and leadership was based on age, gender, and individual achievement to societies in which some people are born into superior social positions. In most societies today—including our own—small groups of people have access to greater resources and economic benefits for little reason other than their family history. How did this come about? Why did people allow themselves to become the subjects of others? Archaeological case studies are analyzed in an attempt to understand this fundamental transition in human society. Chase.
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ANTH 368: Medical Anthropology
(1 Unit)
ANTH 105 and junior standing or permission of the instructor.
A survey of the cultural practices that contribute to understandings of health and disease. The course introduces students to a broad range of topics in medical anthropology, including examination of treatment therapies in Western and non-Western cultures. Students are encouraged to move beyond purely biological understandings of health and disease and consider how healing practices are embedded within social, cultural, economic, and political domains. This course will be of particular interest to premedical students and those interested in allied health professions. Webb.
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ANTH 387: Selected Topics
(1/4 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. Staff.
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ANTH 388: Selected Topics
(1/2 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. Staff.
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ANTH 389: Selected Topics
(1 Unit)
An examination of subjects or areas not included in other courses. Staff.
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ANTH 391: Internship
(1/2 Unit)
Offered on a credit/no credit basis. Staff.
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ANTH 392: Internship
(1 Unit)
Offered on a credit/no credit basis. Staff.
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ANTH 401: Seminar
(1/2 Unit)
Staff.
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ANTH 402: Seminar
(1 Unit)
Staff.
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ANTH 408: Senior Paper
(1 Unit)
Prerequisite: Senior standing, a major in the department.
An intensive study and written paper emphasizing a topic in either anthropology or sociology. Staff.
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ANTH 411: Directed Study
(1/2 Unit)
Staff.
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ANTH 412: Directed Study
(1 Unit)
Staff.
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