ANTH& 100: Survey of Anthropology

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Class Program

Anthropology

Credits

Weekly Contact Hours

Course ID

091421

Meets Degree Requirements For

Diversity,

Social Science

Description

A general introduction to the four fields of anthropology: biological anthropology, archaeology, anthropological linguistics, and sociocultural anthropology. The approach will be holistic, scientific and social. Students will be challenged to reexamine their perceptions of the relationships between the biological and culturally defined human experience.

Grading Basis

Graded

Course Learning Outcomes

Understand the importance and relevance of culture diversity to their lives through a working knowledge of the concepts of ethnocentrism and cultural relativism via ethnography.

Understand the history of evolutionary thought science and the scientific method as it pertains to the scientific understanding of the order Primates over time.

Understand the biological variation inherent in the order Primates over time (64 million years), specifically among the hominines over the past 6 million years.

Understand the cultural dynamics of humanity over the last 3 million years, and the importance of our past in enabling us to understand the present and imagine our future.

Understand the term “race” as both a biological and cultural construct.

Have a working knowledge in evolutionary theory.

Have gained an understanding of the biological and cultural variation inherent in our human past and present.

Apply the tools to critically evaluate what they hear (read) on this topic outside the classroom.

Core Topics

Ethnocentrism and cultural relativism as it pertains to understanding contemporary cultural diversity: subsistence, race, ethnicity, kinship and descent, gender, religion.
Evolutionary theory, science and the scientific method.
The living non-human primates.
The primate and hominine record over the past 65 million years.
Race as a non-biological but cultural construct.
Human cultural evolution over the past 3 million years as exemplified by the archaeological record.
Artifact interpretation for status, gender, technology and status identifications and interrelationships
Language for communication
Language as defining and reinforcing status, gender, race and ethic identities
Culture and food procurement
Tools within culture for addressing human development, kinship, resource distribution and leadership