ANTH 102
3 credits
Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology
Prerequisite(s): None
ANTH 102 is an introduction to basic concepts, methods, and history of ideas of social and cultural anthropology. The emphasis is on understanding anthropological explanations of economic, social, and ceremonial activities of selected societies and sub-cultures. The role of the study of culture and the impacts of world change, globalization, and colonialism will also be discussed. ANTH 102 is a basic foundation course, and is a prerequisite to several upper-level Anthropology courses.
ANTH 111
3 credits
First Nations of British Columbia -- Traditional Cultures
Prerequisite(s): None
An introduction to the anthropological literature on the indigenous cultures of the coast and interior of British Columbia. Topics include the archaeological record, languages, resource use, social structure, ceremonies, culture changes following the arrival of Europeans and the expansion of the Canadian state, and the relationship between colonialism and de-colonization.
ANTH 130
3 credits
Anthropology of World Religions
Prerequisite(s): None.
This course is an introduction to the world’s diverse religions from an anthropological perspective. The course considers the work on religion of several key social theorists, and examines ritual, belief, myth, morality, worldview, and religious identity (among other issues) in a number of ethnographic contexts, including those of the world religions.
ANTH 206
3 credits
The Politics of Art in Latin America
Prerequisite(s): None
In this course, we examine Latin American artistic culture from the perspectives of the social sciences. Focuses may include art, architecture, literature, film, music, dance, folk art, and popular culture. The intent will be to relate these to the social context in which they are located. In particular, we will be interested in the ways in which artistic expression helps to legitimize or to challenge particular social orders.
Note: This course is offered as LAS 206, ANTH 206, MACS 206, and SOC 206. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 209
3 credits
Language and Culture
Prerequisite(s): None. ANTH 100, ANTH 102, ENGL 109 or LING 101 recommended.
This course introduces students to a broad sample of the ways in which different cultures represent, organize, and express thought, knowledge, and discourses and the role of studies of culture and language in anthropology. This course will include linguistic representations in contemporary society including slang, jargon, and the language of various sub-cultures.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 209 and LING 209. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 210
3 credits
Gender and Sexuality across Cultures
Prerequisite(s): ANTH 102 or SOC 101
The most fundamental distinction in all societies is that of gender. There are many similarities and differences in the way that this relationship is organized across cultures. In this course, we explore the nature of social relationships between/among genders, their reliance on particular ideas about femininity and masculinity, their importance to sexuality, the body, and group identity, and the cultural frameworks, stereotypes, inequalities, and misunderstandings that often accompany them. Taking an ethnographic and feminist approach, and emphasizing the everyday, we examine the connections between gender, family, kinship, economy, politics, religion, ethnicity, race, and class. Students will be encouraged to make linkages between theory, literature, and personal experience.
ANTH 211
3 credits
Aboriginal Peoples in BC: Contemporary Issues
Prerequisite(s): None, ANTH 111 strongly recommended
This course will focus on issues of importance to aboriginal communities in BC related to land claims, self-government, and various aspects of community development including education, family, health and wellness, and resource management, as well as urbanization. Relevant historical events, circumstances, and/or current initiatives will be explored using key concepts and methods of analysis used by social scientists. Significant aspects of aboriginal/non-aboriginal interactions, relationships, and experiences will be examined.
ANTH 220
3 credits
Culture Change: Accommodation, Resistance, and Transformation
Prerequisite(s): 18 university-level credits or one of GDS 100, ANTH 102, or LAS 100 will be required.
Using case studies from around the world and particularly from Latin America, this course examines the changes in societies and cultures as a consequence of the incorporation of local cultures and economies into a global economic system driven by capitalism. Attention is given to the peasantry (indigenous and non-indigenous), and to cultural changes due to processes such as globalization, racialization, economic and technological change, population pressures and the availability of land, the commercialization of agriculture, colonization programs, Indigenous rights movements, migration, and urbanization. We will be particularly concerned with how Indigenous peoples, the poor, and marginalized communities have accommodated, resisted, and transformed cultural, economic, and political domination.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 220 and GDS 220. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 240
3 credits
Introduction to Archaeology
Prerequisite(s): None, ANTH 101 recommended
This course is an introduction to basic archaeological theories, concepts, and methods, with examples drawn from the archaeological record of early societies throughout the world. Special emphasis will be placed on understanding the archaeological and heritage record of Canada and British Columbia.
ANTH 255
3 credits
Introduction to Social Research
Prerequisite(s): One of ANTH 102, SOC 101, or MACS 110
This course provides a critical introduction to sociological and social anthropological research techniques, data analysis, and questions of methodology. Among the topics considered will be the research cycle, research design, developing and measuring concepts, sampling, methods of data collection, and elementary data analysis. Considerable importance will be given to an exploration of interpretive frameworks that guide research projects, as well as questions of ethical research.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 255, ANTH 255, and MACS 255. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 260
3 credits
Food for Thought: Food, Culture and Society
Prerequisite(s): ANTH 102 or SOC 101
While food is a material necessity of everyday life, it also bears a wide number of social and cultural meanings and is thus ‘food for thought’. Taking an ethnographic and cross-cultural perspective, this introductory course in the anthropology and sociology of food examines food production and consumption, the social and symbolic uses of food, the relationships between food and cultural identity, and the politics of food.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 260 and SOC 260. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 268
3 credits
Culture and Environment
Prerequisite(s): None, but either SOC 101 or ANTH 102 is strongly recommended
Our world is facing an environmental crisis as a result of increasing population growth, water, soil, air, and noise pollution, and overuse of rural resources. Using anthropological models and methods of analysis, this course will explore the fundamental relationship between people and their environment. We will compare and contrast different cultural perspectives within our own industrial society, as well as among hunters and gatherers and tribal agriculturalists in other societies.
ANTH 270
3 credits
Dynamics of Racism in Canada
Prerequisite(s): One of SOC 101, ANTH 102, MACS 130, or LAS 200
This course is a critical introduction to the area of race and ethnic relations within the Canadian context. In particular racism, inequality, and the social construction of racial and ethnic categories and identities will be examined. The student will develop an awareness of competing conceptual definitions and theoretical interpretations of racism, examine controversies about the extent and meaning of racism in Canada, and investigate how the process of racialization occurs within institutions such as education, the media, and the criminal justice system. Course material will draw upon a variety of historical and contemporary sources, cases, and examples, particularly those relevant to the Fraser Valley.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 270, ANTH 270, and MACS 270. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 299
3 credits
Special Topics in Anthropology I
Prerequisite(s): (ANTH 101) or (ANTH 102) or (15 university-level credits).
This course involves an examination of a selected topic in anthropology that is not addressed in current course offerings. Topics covered will vary from semester to semester.
Note: The special topic is denoted with a letter designation (e.g. ANTH 299C). Students may take ANTH 299 as many times as they wish, but will not receive credit for the same letter designation more than once.
ANTH 301
4 credits
Theoretical Currents in Contemporary Anthropology
Prerequisite(s): (45 university-level credits) to include (ANTH 102) and (at least 3 additional credits of anthropology)
A consideration of selected themes and ideas in current anthropological thought with respect to their historical origins and theoretical and applied importance..
ANTH 303
4 credits
Ethnography of a Selected Area
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include ANTH 102 and at least three additional credits of anthropology.
This course is a study of the ethnographic and theoretical problems in one area. Different cultures or regions may be selected each term.
ANTH 310
4 credits
Special Topics: Regional Studies in Latin America
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include at least 6 credits of anthropology, sociology and/or LAS. (One or more of SOC 250, ANTH 220, or LAS 102, 110, 200 or 206 recommended.)
Using sociological and anthropological approaches, this course is designed to provide insights into the society and culture of a specific nation or region within Latin America.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 310, LAS 310, and SOC 310. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 325
4 credits
Culture and Theory of the City
Prerequisite(s): ANTH 102 or SOC 101, and ANTH 225/SOC 225, in addition to 45 university-level credits; or permission of instructor.
In this seminar course, we examine the application of ethnographic theory and techniques to the city, with a special emphasis on the theoretical approaches anthropologists, sociologists, and others have taken to cities and urban life. Our explorations in reading and discussion will draw attention to cities as sites of power and magnetism as well as of social differentiation and disempowerment. A special focus of the course will be on the urban ethnography of Canadian communities in order to permit a consideration of urban theory amid local and regional contexts, and particularly concerning the influences of colonialism, migration, ethnicity, and globalization on Canadian urban milieux.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 325 and SOC 325. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 344
4 credits
Indigenous Methodologies
Prerequisite(s): 60 university-level credits.
This course examines the complexities of Indigenous research frameworks. Students will learn to identify how Indigenous methodologies differ from historical mainstream western approaches. Successful students will be able to make meaningful links between Indigenous philosophies, knowledges, identities, and policies examined in the course and their own practice as researchers.
Note: This course will include field trips.
Note: This course is offered as IPK 344 (formerly IPK 444), ANTH 344 (formerly ANTH 444), and SOC 344 (formerly SOC 444). Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 355
4 credits
Quantitative Research Methods
Prerequisite(s): (One of STAT 104, STAT 106, or PSYC 110) and (ANTH 255/MACS 255/SOC 255).
This course is an examination of measurement issues within sociological and anthropological research, focusing on the logical and conceptual construction and interpretation of tables, and an examination of the uses and abuses of statistics. Students will blend classroom knowledge of statistics with real life analysis of sociological data (including the use of computer software) to develop practical research skills. The course focuses on the application, rather than the mathematics, of statistics.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 355, ANTH 355, and MACS 355. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 356
4 credits
Qualitative Research Methods
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include ANTH 255/MACS 255/SOC 255
This course examines methods used in the collection and analysis of sociological data including interviews, participant observations, ethnographic research, archival research, feminist and critical methodologies, and research ethics.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 356, ANTH 356, and MACS 356. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 360
4 credits
Eating and Thinking: Food, Identity, and Power in Global Societies
Prerequisite(s): ANTH 102 or SOC 101 required; ANTH/SOC 230 recommended; in addition to 45 university-level credits.
In the modern world, it is increasingly the case that people neither eat what they grow nor grow what they eat. This seminar course examines the global ethnographic, social, political-economic, and theoretical implications of this conundrum. We explore a number of issues in the contemporary anthropology and sociology of food, including the gender, status and identity meanings of food; the relationships between food, power, and development; the local and global impacts of food production and consumption; and the growing importance of food-based movements for social change.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 360 and SOC 360. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 363
4 credits
Processes of Development and Underdevelopment: Latin America
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include at least 6 credits of Sociology, Anthropology, LAS, or GDS. (SOC 250, ANTH 220, LAS 200 and GDS 100 are recommended.)
This course is an examination of theories and strategies of socioeconomic development and underdevelopment as applied to the Global South from 1945 until the present. Special attention will be paid to Latin America as the source of several development theories and the best example of the application of related development strategies.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 363, ANTH 363, LAS 363 and GDS 363. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 367
4 credits
Culture and Theory of Diaspora
Prerequisite(s): 45 university-level credits
This seminar course investigates the phenomenon of diaspora in modern, postcolonial, and global contexts. Examining an interdisciplinary literature from the social sciences and humanities, students will become familiar with the social features of diaspora and the cultural expression of the diasporic condition through a consideration of theoretical, literary, and ethnographic texts. Particular attention will be given to the local nuances of diaspora in Canada and Europe.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 367 and ENGL 367. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 368
4 credits
Environment and Society
Prerequisite(s): 45 university-level credits including one of ANTH 102 or SOC 101.
An examination of selected approaches to ecological and environmental issues, resource use, case studies of resource use conflicts, environmentalism, and the ways in which different cultures view the environment.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 368 (formerly ANTH 468) and SOC 368 (formerly SOC 468). Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 375
4 credits
Indian Mediascapes
Prerequisite(s): One of ANTH 102, SOC 101 or MACS 110; plus 45 university-level credits including a further six credits of ANTH, SOC, MACS, or INCS. Recommended: ANTH 303 (Peoples and Cultures Of India) and FILM 220.
In this course, students will critique how Indian society and socio-cultural issues are represented in South Asian media through their comparison with the ethnographic record. Taking an anthropology of media approach, the complexities of belonging to a diversity of regional South Asian communities are examined in both ethnographic and media interpretations. In particular, the course will consider religious, ethnic, caste, class, and gender communities, the influence of postcoloniality, and processes of modernity and diaspora.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 375 and MACS 375. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 387
4 credits
Aboriginal Peoples of Canada
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include ANTH 102 and at least 3 additional credits of Anthropology and/or Sociology
This course looks at selected studies of cultural patterns and contemporary issues of Aboriginal peoples in Canada (including First Nations, Inuit, and Metis).
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 387 and SOC 387. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 388
4 credits
Minority Indigenous Peoples of the World
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include ANTH 102 and at least three additional credits of Anthropology and/or Sociology
This course will examine the social and cultural experiences of indigenous peoples within various modern industrial nation-states and relations of these peoples with majority societies and other indigenous groups throughout the world. Case studies will be drawn from Latin America and other areas.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 388, LAS 388, and SOC 388. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 401
4 credits
Visual Anthropology
Prerequisite(s): 60 credits, to include ANTH 102 and at least 6 additional credits of sociology and/or anthropology
This course critically examines the production and uses of ethnographic images and representations of cultures in selected anthropology films and photographs, and comparison
textual representations.
ANTH 407
4 credits
Social Change and Contemporary Representation
Prerequisite(s): 60 university-level credits, to include one of ANTH 102, MACS 110, or MACS 130 and at least 6 additional credits of ANTH or MACS, or instructor’s permission. An upper-level anthropology course is recommended.
This course explores anthropological approaches to the arts, with a particular focus on the political nature of contemporary artistic expression and cultural representation. Topics to be explored include contemporary music (as political expression), forms of hip-hop culture including ethnic hip-hop, post-modern theatre forms, kabuki theatre, butoh dance, moshing, raves, flash mobs, and other forms of cultural representation. The notion of alternative “imaginals” as forms of cultural representation will also be queried.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 407 and MACS 407. Students may only take one of these for credit.
ANTH 463
4 credits
Special Topics in Development Studies
Prerequisite(s): 60 credits, to include at least 9 credits of Sociology and/or Anthropology. (ANTH 220, SCMS 363, and SOC 250 recommended.)
This course is an examination of processes of social and cultural change in selected Third World societies. Topics will change from semester to semester, but may include liberation movements and colonialism; the comparative study of post-revolutionary societies; the persistence, transformation, and disappearance of contemporary peasantries; and directed change programs.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 463, ANTH 463, and LAS 463. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 470
4 credits
Race and Racism: Selected Topics
Prerequisite(s): 60 credits, to include at least 9 credits of Sociology and/or Anthropology.
Questions of race and ethnicity arise frequently in the context of popular discussions of social problems, national identity, and even national unity. They are equally important in academic discussions about modern societies around the world. This course explores selected topics related to race, racism, and ethnicity from sociological and anthropological perspectives. Topics covered may include ethnic conflict, immigration and immigration policy, multiculturalism, racism, the development of immigrant identities and communities, charter groups/dominant cultures, indigenous and migrant subordination, the meaning of exile, etc. Students should consult the department to determine the content for a particular semester.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 470 and ANTH 470. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 471
4 credits
The Anthropology of Medicine, Health Care, and Illness
Prerequisite(s): 60 credits, to include ANTH 102 and at least 6 additional credits of sociology and/or anthropology.
This course explores various cultural examples of health and illness and situates the relationship between human behavior, social life, and health within an anthropological context. This course looks at how knowledge, meaning, livelihood, power, and resource distribution are shaped and how, in turn, these phenomena go on to shape patterns of disease, experiences of health and illness, and the organization of treatments. The course will focus on empirical research as well as on symbolic, methodological, and theoretical issues.
ANTH 472
4 credits
Latin America: Race, Ethnicity, and Immigration
Prerequisite(s): 60 credits, to include at least 9 credits of Sociology, Anthropology and/or LAS. (LAS 110 and/or HIST 261 recommended)
Concepts of race and ethnicity have been crucial elements in the formation of Latin American society, culture, and identity. Migration has further shaped identity and society among Latin Americans inside and outside Latin America. This course explores various aspects of Latin American concepts of race, ethnicity, and immigration from several perspectives. It also examines patterns of migration from Latin America to Canada and the effects of Canadian concepts of identity, race, ethnicity, and multiculturalism on the integration of Latin Americans into Canadian society. Topics covered may include: the push/pull factors causing immigration, immigration policy, the development of immigrant identities, the meaning of exile, and the formation of immigrant communities and their relationship to the dominant culture of Canadian society.
Note: This course is offered as ANTH 472, LAS 472 and SOC 472. Students may take only one of these for credit.
ANTH 490
4 credits
Directed Readings in Anthropology
Prerequisite(s): 60 credits, to include at least 9 credits of anthropology, plus permission from supervising faculty member and department head.
This is a directed reading course in a selected field of study in anthropology under the direction of a single faculty member. A major paper will be required.
ANTH 492
2 credits
Directed Studies in Social, Cultural, and Media Studies
Prerequisite(s): 45 credits, to include 6 credits of area of specialization (ANTH, SOC, LAS, MACS). Permission to enter requires written consent of both the faculty member supervising the student and the department head.
This course is designed for upper-level students who wish to examine in greater depth a particular problem/issue in Anthropology, Sociology, Latin American Studies, or Media and Communication Studies.
Note: This course is offered as SOC 492, ANTH 492, LAS 492, and MACS 492. Students may take only one of these for credit.
