Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2025 - SA 101 D100

Introduction to Anthropology (A) (4)

Class Number: 2539

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 6 – Apr 9, 2025: Tue, 8:30–10:20 a.m.
    Burnaby

  • Instructor:

    Kathleen Millar
    kmillar@sfu.ca
    Office: AQ 3149
    Office Hours: Wed 1:00-2:00 PM via In-person/Zoom by appt.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Anthropology asks fundamental questions about how people live and interact in different contexts. Engages with contemporary social life around the world, including the relations among people, ideas, and things. Provides analytical tools to help understand the role of culture and society in our lives. Breadth-Social Sciences.

COURSE DETAILS:

Anthropology is the study of human life in all its diversity. By exploring how people have lived differently at other times and in other places across the world, this course will fundamentally challenge your common-sense notions of how the world works and how we ought to live. Anthropology is also holistic. This means that anthropologists study any and all aspects of humanity—language, politics, sports, kinship, spirituality, economies, art, and much more. What makes anthropology unique is not so much what it studies but how it studies. We will learn why anthropologists spend years of their lives immersing themselves in the communities of those they study. They call this method of research “fieldwork,” and you will have a chance to try it out for yourself! We will also learn how to think like an anthropologist—how to understand the viewpoints of others on their own terms and in their broader contexts. Moreover, we will learn why anthropology matters. We will ask how an anthropological perspective can help us solve some of our biggest problems today such as global inequality, polarizing politics, violence, and marginality. And last (but not least!), we will ask why anthropology matters for our own lives. That is, you will get a chance to explore what anthropology can teach you in your personal life journey about the art of being human.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

 By the end of the course, students will be able to:
1. Develop an anthropological perspective through key concepts in the field including culture, cultural relativism, holism, participant-observation, and ethnography;
2. Gather information about the world using ethnographic research methods;
3. Describe some of the diverse topics and issues anthropologists study;
4. Distinguish an anthropological approach to these topics from approaches in other fields and explain why an anthropological perspective is valuable;
5. Communicate clearly and effectively in written expression and interpersonal dialogue;
6. Apply an anthropological perspective to issues in the world, including those experienced in one’s own life journey

Grading

  • Participation in tutorials 15%
  • Ethnographic exercises 30%
  • Midterm Exam 40%
  • Final Exam 15%

NOTES:

Grading: Where a final exam is scheduled and the student does not write the exam or withdraws from the course before the deadline date, an N grade will be assigned. Unless otherwise specified on the course syllabus, all graded assignments for this course must be completed for a final grade other than N to be assigned. An N is considered as an F for the purposes of scholastic standing.

Grading System: The undergraduate course grading system is A+, A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D, F, N (N standing indicates student did not complete course requirements). Intervals for the assignment of final letter grades based on course percentage grades are as follows:

A+ (95-100) | A (90-94) | A- (85-89) | B+ (80-84) | B (75-79) | B- (70-74) | C+ (65-69) | C (60-64) | C- (55-59) | D (50-54) | F (0-49) | N*
*N standing to indicate the student did not complete course requirements

ments

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

All readings are available through the SFU library, Canvas, or online as noted

REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity website http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the university community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the university. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the university. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.