Instructor: Dr. Aleksa Alaica
Mondays 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Description:
An essential method in the study of past human society is through the remains of animals. Animal bodies hold primary and secondary resources like meat, milk and wool, but their companionship also shaped human behaviour. Fundamentals of zooarchaeology, or the study of animal bones, to expand perspectives on human-animal interactions.
Instructor: Dr. Helena Zeweri
Tuesdays and Thursdays
9:30 am to 11:00 am
Description:
This course examines how migrants and refugees create community and identity in the aftermath of displacement. What new cultural formations emerge when a community is dispersed throughout the world? Through an anthropological perspective, students will learn about different communities’ experiences rediscovering their cultural identities, finding a sense of home, and building new communities across generations and places throughout the world. Students will explore case studies that unsettle fixed notions of belonging, thereby transcending nationalist imaginaries of citizenship, assimilation, and integration. We will explore these themes through oral histories, film, and ethnographies.
Instructor: Dr. Vinay Kamat
Mondays and Wednesdays
9:30am to 11:00 am
Description:
This course explores how medical anthropologists have recently reconfigured their theoretical and methodological approach to global health in light of the on-going debates regarding the Anthropocene – a geological and historical epoch marked by humanity’s role in accelerating ecological destruction of our planet. The course will cover topics such as the effects of climate change on health, microbial insurgency, new and re-emerging infectious diseases, eco-risks, human vulnerability, resilience, and well-being in the Anthropocene.
Instructor: Dr. Samantha Walker
Tuesdays and Thursdays
2:00 pm to 3:30 pm
Description:
This course introduces students to the study of ancient and historic societies in the North American Arctic and Greenland, with emphasis on Pre-Dorset and Dorset (Paleo-Inuit), ancestral Inuit (Thule), and historic Inuit peoples. Students will emerge from the course with an understanding of the region’s culture history, how diverse societies emerged in challenging environments, and the analytical challenges specific to northern archaeological research. We will also consider emerging research directions in Arctic studies, including advancements in community-based participatory research, archaeological engagement with Inuit ways of knowing, ancient DNA and isotope analyses, climate change research, and the management of at-risk sites.
Instructor: Dr. Helena Zeweri
Mondays and Wednesdays
3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
Description:
This course introduces students to Australia as a site for rich anthropological inquiry. Students will engage with ethnographies of migration, Indigeneity, multiculturalism, social policies, race, and settler colonialism in Australia. Students will also learn about Australia’s unique history as a site where liberal ideals of multiculturalism clash with the ongoing violence of racism and settler colonialism. Ethnographies of Australia will serve as lenses to understand broader anthropological debates on power, culture, and colonialism in the contemporary world.
Instructor: Dr. Sabina Magiliocco
Mondays and Wednesdays
12:30 pm to 2:00 pm
Description:
How do you think of the Mediterranean: vacation paradise, romantic destination, food mecca, cradle of Western civilization – or underdeveloped, conflict-riven area dominated by religion and violence? Come examine these conflicting portraits of the modern Mediterranean, an area in which many Canadians have cultural roots. While some anthropologists have treated the Mediterranean as a single culture area, others have emphasized its diversity, seeing it as a border in which many different cultures have historically come into contact, and, at times, conflict. Thus one of the course’s central questions will concern the nature and extent of the unity of the Mediterranean as constructed by both anthropologists and Mediterraneans themselves. Focusing on concepts such as honor and shame, hospitality, festivals and celebrations, gender, and conflict in the comparative study of Mediterranean cultures, we will explore the realities and representations of the peoples whose homes border on the Mediterranean Sea through a series of ethnographies, articles, films, and foods (yes, you read that right: get ready learn to cook and eat Med food!).
Prof. Magliocco is an Italian native who has conducted fieldwork in and published on the Mediterranean since 1986.
Instructor: Dr. Lennon Mhishi
Tuesdays and Thursdays
3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
Description:
Exploring the intersections of music and socio-cultural life in the negotiations of place and belonging in the African Diaspora. What is the place of music in the histories and formations of African diasporic consciousness and legibility? How do communities, through music, grapple with the afterlives of slavery and colonialism and create livingness in the face of multiple historical and contemporary challenges?
Instructor: Dr. Samantha Walker
Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays
3:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Description:
This course explores popular depictions of archaeology that may misrepresent the past and mislead the public. But the line between fact and fiction is not always clear — our understandings of the past are constantly changing, and alternative perspectives can challenge research in productive ways. Over the semester, students will acquire the tools to discern between valid controversies and not-so-valid claims through the critical exploration of archaeological hoaxes, myths, and propaganda, and will assess how archaeology is portrayed in fiction and media. Throughout these exercises, students will identify the responsibilities that archaeologists hold towards the public as storytellers of the past.
Instructor: Dr. Zhinchun Jing
Mondays & Wednesdays
2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Description:
This course invites you to embark on an enthralling exploration of ancient China, from its earliest beginnings to the emergence of its first civilizations through quintessential archaeological excavations and recent ground-breaking discoveries, spanning from the primal Peking Man to the awe-inspiring Terra-Cotta Warriors, from the invention of pottery to ceremonial drinking rituals, and from the timeless beauty of jades to the intriguing world of ancient bronzes. This course seeks to illuminate how archaeology has profoundly rewritten historical narratives and transformed our understanding of the making of Chinese culture and society.
Upon completing this course, students will be expected to learn and understand the essence of major archaeological discoveries and their importance in shaping and transforming our perception of ancient China. Furthermore, the course aims to foster an understanding of the modern-day relevance of these discoveries within the contexts of both contemporary China and the global stage. The course will help students develop analytical skills for assessing and interpreting archaeological data. It further aspires to learn how to appraise a myriad of research themes and inquiries, facilitated by the detailed examination of compelling case studies in the investigation of early China.
Alexia Bloch
Russian Translation published by Academic Studies Press (2024)