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| Semester | spring semester 2019 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Miriam Badoux (miriam.badoux@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | In this proseminar, we will approach Kenya through older and newer ethnographic texts dealing with a wide range of topics such as politics, ethnicity, urban life, popular culture, or the land question. Kenya is Eastern Africa’s leading economy and plays a central role in the sub-region. With 44 officially recognised ethnic groups and various types of geographical settings ranging from the arid plains of the North to the Rift Valley’s fertile highlands, the country is characterised by a high level of diversity. Kenya is famous for its technological innovation (‘Silicon savannah’, mpesa mobile money), its safaris and sand beaches, but also, sadly, for political unrest and recurrent ethnic violence. In this proseminar, we will approach these aspects in their context, and move beyond clichés to explore and understand not only Kenya’s historical background, but also the daily life of its inhabitants and the processes of social change the country has gone through. Beside ethnographic texts, students will be given the opportunity to use Kenyan literary sources and films to complement their understanding of the various topics of the course. |
| Learning objectives | - Students are familiar with Kenya's historical background (pre-colonial, colonial, post-colonial); - Students gain an overview of how ethnography has explored social change and daily life in Kenya. - Students improve their abilities to read academic texts, hold presentations, and write essays. |
| Bibliography | The literature will be made available on ADAM. |
| Comments | The language in which this proseminar will be taught (English or German) will depend on the linguistic background of the participants (we will decide on the language during the first session of the semester). |
| Admission requirements | The number of participants is limited to 30 people. The places are assigned according to date of enrollment and subject of study. Priority will be given to the subjects listed under "modules". |
| Course application | |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Modul: Ethnographien (Bachelor's degree subject: Anthropology) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | All students are expected to attend the seminar on a regular basis and to hold a presentation accompanied by a handout on one of the topics of the proseminar. Students who intend to write a proseminar paper should contact the lecturer before the beginning of the semester (Miriam.Badoux@unibas.ch) |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Ethnologie |