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| Semester | fall semester 2015 |
| Course frequency | Irregular |
| Lecturers |
A. Elisabeth Reichel (elisabeth.reichel@unibas.ch)
Philipp Schweighauser (ph.schweighauser@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | This course engages with the ethnographic writings, films, photographs, and considerable body of poetry of three major early-twentieth-century cultural anthropologists: Ruth Fulton Benedict, Edward Sapir, and Margaret Mead. As students of Franz Boas, they were instrumental in establishing cultural anthropology as a science based on fieldwork and in making 'culture' a central concept in the humanities and social sciences. Mead is also one of the founding figures of visual anthropology. What is less well known is that they published a large body of poetry, some of which appeared in distinguished journals such as "Poetry" and "The Dial". Focusing most closely on Benedict, we will consider these three pivotal figures' experiments in writing and other media as practices that predate the "writing culture" debate in cultural anthropology and in their use of non-textual media such as photography and film also gesture beyond it. This course will also give students insights into a related SNSF research project: "Of Cultural, Poetic, and Medial Alterity: The Scholarship, Poetry, Photographs, and Films of Edward Sapir, Ruth Fulton Benedict, and Margaret Mead" (https://sbm.unibas.ch/). |
| Learning objectives | Students engage with the literary and ethnographic work of three major early-twentieth-century cultural anthropologists to learn about the various intersections between art and science. |
| Bibliography | Two books need to be read before the beginning of the term: Ruth Benedict's monograph "Patterns of Culture" and James Clifford and George E. Marcus's edited volume "Writing Culture: The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography". Please order these books early, ideally via the Labyrinth book store (Nadelberg 17). |
| Weblink | https://sbm.unibas.ch/ |
| Admission requirements | This seminar is open only to MA students and PhD candidates. |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | Online, optional |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Doktorat Anglophone Literatur- und Kulturwissenschaft: Empfehlungen (PhD subject: Anglophone Literary and Cultural Studies) Doktorat Französische Literaturwissenschaft: Empfehlungen (PhD subject: French Literature) Doktorat Iberoromanische Literaturwissenschaft: Empfehlungen (PhD subject: Ibero-Romance Literature) Modul Anglophone Literary and Cultural Studies (Master's degree subject: English) Modul English & American Literature (Master's degree subject: English (Start of studies before 01.08.2013)) Modul Literatur im Zusammenspiel der Künste und Medien (Master's degree program: Literary Studies) Modul Literatur- und kulturwissenschaftliche Forschung (Master's degree program: Literary Studies) Modul Research in Anglophone Literary and Cultural Studies (Master's degree subject: English) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | Regular and active participation |
| 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 Englische Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft |