750C Ethnographic Locations: Near and Middle East

Key information

Status
Module not running
Module code
15PANH067
FHEQ Level
7
Credits
15

Module overview

This module introduces students to ethnographic studies in and of the Near and Middle East, the region's resident populations, and its diasporas, viewed through a variety of interconnected topics that have been important in the anthropological literature. The module draws on material on countries such as Syria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Palestine, and may also include literature on Muslims in South East Asia and Europe. Students will have the opportunity to explore classic and contemporary anthropological themes such as social organization, political economy, religion, gender and sexuality, race/ethnicity, violence and justice, consumption, labour and livelihoods, and social identities, as they take shape in particular locales.

The module also encourages students to consider how anthropological and historical understandings help us to recognize the fundamentally interconnected and global nature of any nation, subregion, or region, whose boundaries are often designated or shift as a result of colonial, post-colonial, and neo-colonial social processes and power relations.

Whilst anthropologists are well-attuned to the histories and politics of "regionality", we remain committed to our core critical and reflective tool of fieldwork-based research, which enables us to explore the effects of extralocal and historical dynamics in the everyday practices and lived experiences of specific communities and particular lives. Such grounded, experientially based knowledge is a key aspect of anthropology—whether the anthropologist is studying their own region/community or an initially foreign locale—and thus offers a distinctive contribution to programmes across the School.

The module’s lectures, tutorials, readings and assignments are designed to ensure that students develop a solid grounding in the anthropological study of the region covered, refine their ability to critically engage diverse literatures and perspectives, and communicate their knowledge in a variety of ways.

Prerequisites

Guided option for students on:

  • MA Social Anthropology
  • MA Social Anthropology + Intensive Language
  • MA Anthropology of Food
  • MA Anthropology of Food + Intensive Language
  • MA Anthropology of Global Futures and Sustainability
  • MA Medical Anthropology and Mental Health
  • MRes Social Anthropology
  • MRes Social Anthropology + Intensive Language

This module is also a School-wide Open Option. No prerequisites.

Disclaimer

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