Anthropology

This course explores the relationship between ecology and cultural processes. It examines various current ecological issues, from an anthropological perspective. This course also discusses means of subsistence, sustainable development, land management, and conservation.

The course provides a study of the biological and social attributes of human beings and discusses anthropological perspective of human biology and social problems, as well as the progress of research in the field of anthropology. Topics include the interaction of geographical environment and genes to make humans walk upright on two legs; hair degeneration, developed sweat glands, brains and other unique physical characteristics; the genetic structure, history, language, culture and customs of various ethnic groups and tribes in the past and present; the formation of the Chinese nation and the historical, cultural, and genetic characteristics of various ethnic groups; human evolution and human health; the application in the field of forensic medicine; and future development, direction, and prospects of anthropology.

Climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic are asking us to find new ways of knowing, caring for, and relating to the world. Anthropologists are increasingly paying attention to the human-nonhuman relations that constitute the more-than-human anthropocene, and different forms of knowledge to tackle the crisis of the imagination. This course introduces the interdisciplinary endeavors to find alternative ways of knowing the world that goes beyond the apocalyptic discourse of crisis. Readings include, but are not limited to materials from anthropology of science, environmental anthropology, and science and technology studies.

This course examines ethnographic and historical analyses of new and old methods of surveillance, while exploring the “Deep State” and its transformations over time. It covers the networks of economic, political, and military interests that covertly enable different forms of state surveillance; the experiences of diplomats, spies, and soldiers and how they've changed over time; how states adapt to the digital era; and how common citizens navigate a world without privacy.

This interdisciplinary course practices a critical way of examining contemporary cultural practices. In these practices of production, dissemination, and reception, masculinity and femininity are permanently (re)constructed, just as are concepts of class, race, ethnicity, and geopolitical location. Students study cultural practices manifest through popular culture as well as examine the cultural logic underlying art practice and visual ethnographic research. In all, old and new identities are contested and reconstructed; the interaction between text and image is the main focus.

The course offers students an introduction to modern Swedish society from an anthropological perspective. It is based on issues of politics, social norms, and social change in Sweden and on a number of ethnographical research studies. Anthropology is often based on an empirical understanding of people's experiences and can therefore provide insights into the everyday life of people and organizations. The course enables students to investigate and analyze case studies of social and political changes in Swedish society. Examples of this include the views of political governance, work and education, and focusing on the way they affect the people concerned.