Europe's Peoples: Nationalism & Transition in Central & Eastern Europe - Fall 2006 - Prof., Study notes of Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

Download Europe's Peoples: Nationalism & Transition in Central & Eastern Europe - Fall 2006 - Prof. and more Study notes Introduction to Cultural Anthropology in PDF only on Docsity! 1 Ant 412/512 Peoples of Europe Fall 2006 Mon. & Wed. 2-3:15 353 ten Hoor Dr. Marysia Galbraith Offices: 17 ten Hoor, 101D Carmichael Office phone #: 348-0585 (Anthropology) 348-8412 (New College) Office Hours: Tues. 1-3 (Carmichael) Wed. 3:15-4:30 (ten Hoor) E-mail: mgalbrai@ua.edu 2 Course Description: The course examines critical issues that affect contemporary European Societies: nationalism, ethnicity, democratization, unification, and fragmentation. Central anthropological topics such as kinship, gender, exchange, and religion are also considered in relation to European populations. This semester, the focus will be on the impact of state socialism (communism) and postcommunist reforms on the people of Central and Eastern Europe. This course has a core curriculum “W” designation. Students’ writing will be graded and commented upon and become part of the assigned grade. Course Objectives:  To gain an understanding of cultural continuity and change in the midst of the radical restructuring of European Societies since 1989.  To review the contributions of anthropological concepts and methods to the study of Europe.  To engage in scholarly debates and express scholarly opinions through writing, seminar discussions, and oral presentations. Reading: The following texts are available in the SUPe Store and the Alabama Bookstore: Dunn, Elizabeth 2004 Privatizing Poland: Baby Food, Big Business, and the remaking of Labor. Ithaca, NY: Cornel University Press. Verdery, Katherine 1996 What Was Socialism and What Comes Next? Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. West, Barbara 2002 The Danger is Everywhere: The Insecurity of Transition in Postsocialist Hungary. Prospect Heights, IL: Westview. The following texts are available via electronic reserves: http://library.ua.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?DB=local&PAGE=rbSearch Barany, Zoltan 1998 Orphans of Transition: Gypsies in Eastern Europe. Journal of Democracy. 9(3):142-156. Barth, Fredrik, ed. 1969 Ethnic Groups and Boundaries: The Social Organization of Culture Difference. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. Pp. 9-38. 5 choosing. You will be expected to submit a paper proposal and bibliography. You will also meet with me at least once during the semester to discuss your paper, and you will submit a draft to two classmates for peer review (you will also review their papers). All of these preliminary assignments will count towards your final grade on the paper. Possible topics include (but are not limited to): Ethnic and religious minorities (for example Gypsies or Jews) Migration (for example Eastern Europeans in Germany) Ethnic conflict (for example Serbs, Croats, and Muslims in Bosnia) Gender (for example gendered concepts of the nation) Religion (for example Polish Catholicism and the state) European Integration (for example attitudes toward the expansion of the EU in the Czech Republic) Economic reform (for example, privatization in Romania) Marriage and Family (for example a comparison before, during, and after communism) Academic Misconduct: All acts of dishonesty in any work constitute academic misconduct. This includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, fabrication of information, misrepresentations, and abetting of any of the above. The Academic Misconduct Disciplinary Policy will be followed in the event that academic misconduct occurs. Students should refer to the Student Affairs Handbook, which can be obtained in the Office of Student Life and Services in the Ferguson Center. Attendance: Attendance is mandatory. You are allowed two absences; if you have any absences beyond that, you are required to complete a make-up assignment (usually a paper of 600 words or more on the topic that was discussed in class). Missing assignments will count against you when your final grade is calculated. Outline of Topics: Topics and assignments are subject to revision over the course of the semester. Part 1: History of East Central Europe Date Topic Assignment Aug 23 Introduction to course Introduction to Central and Eastern Europe Aug 28,30 History of the Eastern Bloc and the Cold War What was socialism?Why did it fall? Okey Eastern Europe 1740-1985; Verdery, Pp. 3-38 6 Part 2: Life and Work under State Socialism Sept 4,6 SEPT 4-LABOR DAY-NO CLASS Factory work and resistance Haraszti Pp. 21-79 Sept 11,13 Factory work and resistance, cont. FILM: Decalog Haraszti Pp. 80-157 Sept 18,20 State control of time and people Library session: making use of databases to find academic resources Verdery ch. 3 DUE: Proposal for research paper Part 3: Transition Sept 25,27 What comes next? DUE: Analysis Essay #1 Verdery ch. 8, afterward; Mason & Kluegel: Marketing Democracy Oct 2,4 FILM: Kolya DUE: List of citations Oct 9,11 Insecurities of transition in Hungary West chs 1,2,4,6,8 Part 4: Life and Work under Capitalism Date Topic Assignment Oct 16,18 Family and social networks West, ch. 3; Galbraith: Gifts and Favors; Sampson: The Informal Sector in EE Oct 23,25 Privatization: remaking of business Dunn, Pp 1-93 Oct 30, Nov 1 Privatization; remaking of labor In-class essay Dunn, Pp. 94-174 Part 5: Gender and Ethnicity Nov 6,8 Ethnic conflict--Yugoslavia FILM: We Are All Neighbors Student presentations Barth: Ethnic Groups and Boundaries; Bowman: Xenophobia, Fantasy and the Nation; Hayden: Imagined Communities and Real Victims Nov 13,15 Gender and the state Student presentations Verdery ch. 3; West, ch. 7; True: Gender, Globalization, and Postsocialism 7 Nov 20,22 Gypsies Nov 22-NO CLASS-Thanksgiving Barany: Orphans of Transition Part 6: National Identity and Supranational Structures Nov 27,29 Polish Catholicism Student presentations Galbraith: On the Road to Częstochowa; Byrnes: Transnational Church in a National Setting DUE: Research papers Dec 4,6 Expansion of the European Union Risse: European Institutions and Identity Change; Verdery ch. 5; West ch. 5 Dec 14 FINAL 3:30-6 PM FINAL