Teaching code

4S00742

Teacher

Giorgia Decarli

Coordinator

Giorgia Decarli

Credits

6

Language

Italian

Scientific Disciplinary Sector (SSD)

M-DEA/01 - DEMOLOGY, ETHNOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY

Period

Sem. 2B dal Apr 7, 2025 al May 24, 2025.

Courses Single

Authorized

Lessons timetable Moodle Seminars 0

Learning objectives

At the end of the course the student should: - have a basic knowledge of the fundamentals of socio-cultural anthropology in the various fields of kinship, visions of the world, power relationships, economics, social inequalities and the modern globalized world in order to comparatively understand human variation from a social and cultural viewpoint; - have a knowledge of the most widespread social and cultural inequality construction processes in order to understand the main forms of racism in the contemporary world At the end of the course, the student should be able: - to promote cultural decentralization and to use anthropological knowledge to intervene in marginality situations and integration difficulties; - to plan, create and evaluate in an anti-racist perspective of social inclusion and intercultural dialogue.

Prerequisites and basic notions

None

Program

The first part of the course will focus on the ways in which individuals use culture to relate to and transform the world and on the organisation of material life. The outlines of general anthropology will be explained and questions such as: what is the anthropological perspective? What is the anthropological concept of culture? What does anthropology mean by cultural relativism? What is ethnographic research? What is cosmology? What are relationality systems? What are marriage and family structures?
The course will then look at the relationship between European and non-European societies by addressing issues such as inequality (of gender, class, caste, 'race'), ethnicity and nationalism, cultural imperialism and cultural hybridity, and evolutionary anthropology.
Finally, the course will delve into some aspects of the anthropology of enterprise, dwelling on the specificity of the anthropological approach in understanding production models and their effects on work and everyday life, and emphasising how workplaces, more than technological and productive spaces, are first and foremost social spaces traversed by powers and counter-powers.

Bibliography

Didactic methods

Teaching enriched with case studies and ethnographic examples partly from personal field experiences. Teaching involves active involvement of students.

Learning assessment procedures

The examination includes a written test to ascertain the learning expected of students. The test will cover the main topics of the syllabus.
The student will have to prove that he/she understands the basic elements of socio-cultural anthropology, that he/she is familiar with the main concepts of the anthropology of enterprise and that he/she is able to present his/her arguments appropriately.
The exam consists of 3 open questions.
The time allowed for the exam is 1 hour.
There are no differences between attending and non-attending students with regard to the assigned readings. Attendance, however, is strongly encouraged as the work done in the classroom significantly facilitates individual study.
The study program for Erasmus students is the same as for the class. They can choose to take the exam in Italian or in English, although choosing Italian is strongly encouraged.

Evaluation criteria

Each answer is assigned a score from 0 to 10 points based both on the correctness and accuracy of what is expressed, and on the use of language that must be anthropologically appropriate and correct from the point of view of syntax and grammar. Honors can be awarded.

Criteria for the composition of the final grade

The grade will be calculated by adding the scores obtained for each correct answer.

Exam language

Italiano

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