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77400-01 - Practical course: Staying Alive: An Interdisciplinary Exploration of Health in the Anthropocene (2 CP)
| Semester | fall semester 2026 |
| Course frequency | Irregular |
| Lecturers | Sahana Srinivasan (sahana.srinivasan@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | All humans want, and deserve, a life of health and well-being. But what is this “health” we strive to, and how do we attain and maintain it? This course focuses on the fundamental notion of health. We begin by defining health, and the lack of it (i.e., disease) from biological and medical perspectives. We will then explore the human experience of health and disease through representations in popular media and literature. Finally, we will interrogate how medical, healthcare, and pharmaceutical constructs define, shape, and drive current sociocultural experiences of health. Using concepts from molecular biology, sociology, medical anthropology, science and technology studies (STS), and media analysis (and more), we ultimately aim to integrate the social and the scientific: how does society, and how do humans, access and utilize health(care)? Can we do better? What would a different collective future look like? |
| Learning objectives | Students iteratively explore the basic phenomenon of health through multiple disciplinary lenses in order to identify and critically engage with how diverse realms of knowledge production rely on, strengthen, and perpetuate existing power constructs. Materials in the course are intentionally assigned to move between diverse disciplines of medical anthropology, cultural anthropology, sociology, public health, and may involve elements of biology, psychiatry, and media studies/media theory. This diversity of content is intended to impress upon students how realms of knowledge production rely on, strengthen, and justify each other. |
| Bibliography | Readings in the course may include (among others) “Necropolitics“, Achille Mbembe; "Justifying a Lower Standard of Care for the World’s Poor: A Call to Decolonize Healthcare“, Salmaan Keshavjee |
| Comments | No prior knowledge of biology/medicine/psychology is needed. This course is conducted completely in English. |
| Admission requirements | Grundstudium abgeschlossen. Die Teilnehmenden werden nach Fachrichtung, Studiengang und in der Reihenfolge ihrer Anmeldung auf die Liste gesetzt. Wer im Rahmen von Auslandaufenthalten und von Austauschprogrammen in Basel studiert wird unabhängig vom Listenplatz immer aufgenommen. Wer in der ersten Sitzung unentschuldigt fehlt, kann die Lehrveranstaltung nicht besuchen. Pro Lehrveranstaltung mit zwei Semesterwochenstunden sind maximal zwei entschuldigte Absenzen möglich. Siehe Merkblatt zum Umgang mit Absenzen und Sonderregelungen: https://kulturwissenschaft.philhist.unibas.ch/fileadmin/user_upload/kulturwissenschaft/Dokumente/Studium/Merkblaetter_allgemein/B_absenzen-sonderregelungen_24-01.pdf. |
| Course application | Anmelden bei sahana.srinivasan@unibas.ch; Belegen über services.unibas.ch |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| wöchentlich | Tuesday | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
Dates
| Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 22.09.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 29.09.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 06.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 13.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 20.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 27.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 03.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 10.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 17.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 24.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 01.12.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 08.12.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Tuesday 15.12.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Alte Universität, Seminarraum 207 |
| Modules |
Electives Bachelor History: Recommendations (Bachelor's degree subject: History) European History in Global Perspective (Master's Studies - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences) Modul: Research Lab Kulturanthropologie (Master's degree subject: Cultural Anthropology) Modul: Transfer: Europa interdisziplinär (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Module: Advanced Theories and Debates in Gender Studies (Master's degree subject: Gender Studies) Module: Bodies, Objects, Circulation (Master's degree program: Changing Societies) Module: Fields: Public Health and Social Life (Master's degree program: African Studies) Module: Migration, Mobility and Transnationalism (Master's degree program: Changing Societies: Migration – Conflicts – Resources (Start of studies before 01.08.2026)) Module: Migration, Mobility and Transnationalism (Master's Studies - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences) Module: Theory and Themes of Social Anthropology (Master's degree subject: Social Anthropology) Specialization Module Global Europe: Global Ageing and Health (Master's Studies: European Global Studies) Wahlbereich Bachelor Medienwissenschaft: Empfehlungen (Bachelor's degree subject: Media Studies) Wahlbereich Master Geschichte: Empfehlungen (Master's degree subject: History) Wahlbereich Master Geschichte: Empfehlungen (Bachelor's Studies - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Regelmässige und aktive Teilnahme. Erbringen der Leistungen im vereinbarten Zeitrahmen. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | as often as necessary |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Kulturwissenschaft und Europäische Ethnologie |