Political Anthropology
Code: 101266 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year | Semester |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2500256 Social and Cultural Anthropology | OB | 2 | 2 |
Contact
- Name:
- Maria Montserrat Clua Faine
- Email:
- montserrat.clua@uab.cat
Use of Languages
- Principal working language:
- catalan (cat)
- Some groups entirely in English:
- No
- Some groups entirely in Catalan:
- Yes
- Some groups entirely in Spanish:
- No
Prerequisites
This subject does not have prerequisites, but it is recommended to have completed the subject Basic Concepts in Anthropology and History of Anthropology I and II
Objectives and Contextualisation
The course aims for the student to understand the object of study of Political Anthropology and its specificity within social anthropology. It presents an introduction to the basic concepts linked to politics and power in all areas of social relations, the central issues and debates of the sub-discipline, and the theoretical and methodological paradigms constructed to answer them.
The subject starts from a historical, maximalist, and transcultural perspective of the concept of politics, including in a transversal and specific way the gender perspective. The content considers the relation of politics with other areas of social life (economics, symbolism, ritual, legal anthropology, interethnic situations). Also, the subject will offer ethnographic examples of different political forms in different cultures and historical moments.
At the end of the course, the student will know the different theoretical contributions and ethnographic examples of the forms that politics takes and will be able to apply this knowledge critically and responsibly to understand and reflect on phenomena and conflicts of the current political order. In terms of competencies, students will acquire a holistic and non-ethnocentric perspective of the political while acquiring sensitivity to the situation and political position of other social groups and being aware of anthropological research's political and ethical implications.
Competences
- Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
- Apprehending cultural diversity through ethnography and critically assessing ethnographic materials as knowledge of local contexts and as a proposal of theoretical models.
- Demonstrate skills for working autonomously or in teams to achieve the planned objectives including in multicultural and interdisciplinary contexts.
- Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
- Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
- Students must demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the history of anthropological theory and the genesis of its basic concepts.
- Take sex- or gender-based inequalities into consideration when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
- Using the discipline's ethnographic and theoretical corpus with analytical and synthesis skills.
Learning Outcomes
- Applying the basic concepts of the anthropological theory.
- Assessing critically the explicit and implicit theoretical models in the ethnographic materials.
- Effectively working in teams and respecting different opinions.
- Establishing historical connection between ethnographic and theoretical development.
- Explain the explicit or implicit code of practice of one's own area of knowledge.
- Identify the principal forms of sex- or gender-based inequality and discrimination present in society.
- Identifying the transcultural variability of economic, kinship, political, symbolic and cognitive, educational and gender systems as well as their corresponding anthropological theory.
- Interpreting the cultural diversity through ethnography.
- Knowing and understanding the culture's influence in the various institutional systems of social action.
- Summarising acquired knowledge about the origin and transformations experienced in the several fields of anthropology.
- Summarizing the characteristics of a written text in accordance to its communicative purposes.
- Theoretically analysing ethnographic examples of cultural diversity in the fields of kinship, economy, politics and religion.
Content
1. From the definition of the "politician" to the specificity of Political Anthropology as an anthropological subdiscipline.
2. Historical approach to the origin and development of Political Anthropology.
3. Political order and control: prestige and power. Egalitarian societies, hierarchy, and stratification.
4. Political and Religion: sacred legitimacy. Ritual and symbolism in power relations.
5. Stability and change: forms of domination and resistance. War, peace, violence, and forms of mediation.
6. Theories on the emergence of the State: from the Primordial States to the contemporary nation-state.
7. The limits of the Democratic State: clientelism, globalization, identity policies, and social resistance movements.
8. The modern nation-state: race, ethnicity, and nation. Categories, stereotypes, and discourses of inclusion and exclusion.
Methodology
The protagonist in the teaching-learning process is the student. Under this premise, the planned methodology requires active student involvement in learning, the ability to work independently, self-regulation, and responsibility in the learning process.
The work by the students consists mainly of active and participatory listening in the classroom, the search, and analysis of complementary information, the realization of the deep reading of the compulsory texts, the realization of the works and comments, and critical and respectful participation in guided debates.
During the course, the teacher will give theoretical and practical presentations, which may include occasional guest talks. It will consist of reading and discussing compulsory texts, viewing documentaries, and participating in class discussions.
Personal attention will be given to the student through individual or group tutorials in the teacher's office at the time indicated at the beginning of the course. Email is not for tutorials. Students could use email to request an appointment if they cannot attend the office during the tutorial hours indicated by the teacher on the first days of class. The teacher will make communication with students through the Virtual Campus mail.
The student must remember that the Virtual Campus is the space through which the professor notifies essential information about the subject (tutorial schedules, changes of dates in the activities or scheduled deliveries, various incidents, news, etc. ). Therefore, they must pay attention to the news and information posted during the course.
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Activities
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Theoretical classes, discussion of texts, viewing of documentaries and debates | 50 | 2 | 2, 4, 7, 8, 1 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Individual or group tutorials, outings linked to the subject | 4 | 0.16 | 12, 2, 9, 4, 7, 8, 1 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Personal study, text reading, organization and analysis of annotations and diagrams of classes, virtual campus, writing of works, preparation of comments for debates, bibliographical search. | 74 | 2.96 | 12, 2, 9, 4, 7, 11, 1 |
Assessment
The evaluation of the subject is understood as a continuous and progressive process, which extends throughout the school period, and it's developed from the performance of different evaluation activities:
- Exam (50% of the final mark. It is necessary to pass the exam to make the average with the rest of the marks): written exam on all the content worked along the course through the theoretical classes, readings and activities realized.
- Work (30% of the final grade): Elaboration group work on a topic chosen by the students after doing at least tutoring of all the members of the group with the teacher.
- Participation in the classroom (20% of the final grade. This module is not recoverable): Discussion in the classroom of texts of compulsory reading and realization of practical activities (debates, viewings of videos, exercises, or others). The professor will evaluate the student's involvement in the discussion and the exercise previously developed to prepare for the session. Evidence of participation will be the written contributions derived from the activities carried out in the classroom during the discussion.
Suppose the student has justified reasons that do not allow them to attend classes regularly. In that case, they must notify the teacher at the beginning of the course to look for an alternative evaluation formula for this part.
At the time of each assessment activity, the teacher will inform students (in the classroom and via Virtual Campus) of the procedure and date of review of grades.
On the first day, the professor will deliver a timetable with dates of delivery of works, discussions of the mandatory texts, and the exam. The list of compulsory readings and the guidelines for carrying out the different works will also be provided, available in PDF format on the Virtual Campus.
EVALUATION CRITERIA:
The student must have taken the exam and completed the work to assess the subject. Therefore, a student who has not handled both tests will be NOT EVALUATED. To pass matter, they must obtain a minimum final grade of 5, the result of the average of the qualification of each module according to its percentage. Still, students must pass the exam with a minimum grade of 5 to average the remaining grades. If the student is assessable but does not pass the exam or assignment, they can retake them during recovery. The participation part is not recoverable.
The absence or late delivery of the evaluation activities without a duly justified and accredited cause means that the student will not evaluate which activity. Evaluation evidence that does not conform to the format standards of the guidelines and rubrics for completing the work will not be accepted.
In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a 0 for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities of the same subject, the student will be given a zero as the final grade for this subject.
RECOVERY CRITERIA
Recovery will consist of an examination of the suspended part that is recoverable. Students who meet the criteria to be assessable and have obtained a minimum grade point average of 3.5 will be eligible for recovery.
Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Individual examination of all the content worked | 50 | 2 | 0.08 | 12, 9, 6, 8, 11, 10 |
| Participation in the classroom in the discussion of compulsory reading texts, viewings and debates | 20 | 14 | 0.56 | 12, 9, 5, 7, 10, 1 |
| The elaboration of group work. | 30 | 6 | 0.24 | 2, 9, 4, 5, 7, 6, 11, 10, 3, 1 |
Bibliography
RECOMMENDED HANDBOOKS:
BALANDIER,G. (1969), Antropología Política, Ed. Península, Barcelona.
BALANDIER, G. (1994), El poder en escenas. De la representación del poder al poder de la representación, Paidos Studio, Barcelona.
CAÑEDO, Montserrat; MARQUINA, Aurora (eds.), (2011), Antropología Política. Temas contemporáneos, Edicions Bellaterra, Barcelona.
CAÑEDO, Montserrat (ed.) (2013), Cosmopolíticas. Perspectivas antropológicas, Madrid, Trotta.
GLEDHILL, J. (2000), El poder y sus disfraces, Perspectivas antropológicas de la política, Edicions Bellaterra, Barcelona.
GONZÁLEZ ALCANTUD, J. A.(1998), Antropología (y) política. Sobre la formación cultural del poder, Anthropos, Barcelona.
KRADER, L y ROSSI, I. (1982), Antropología Política, Anagrama, Barcelona.
LEWELLEN, T.C. (2010), Antropología Política, Edicions Bellaterra, Barcelona (edició revisada)
LLOBERA, J. (ed.) (1979), Antropología Política, Anagrama, Barcelona.
LUQUE BAENA, E. (1996), Antropología política. Ensayos críticos. Ariel Antropología, Barcelona.
MARQUINA ESPINOSA, Aurora (comp.) (2004), El ayer y el Hoy. Lecturas de Antropología Política. Vol. I y II. UNED, Madrid. Disponible versió digital a la Biblioteca.
PÉREZ GALÁN, Beatriz y MARQUINA ESPINOSA, Aurora (eds.) (2011), Antropología Política. Textos teóricos y etnográficos, Edicions Bellaterra, Barcelona.
VINCENT, Joan (1990), Anthropology and politics. Visions, traditions and trends, TheUniversity of Arizona Press, Tucson and London.
VINCENT, Joan (ed.) (2002) The anthropology of Politics. A reader in ethnography, Theory and Critique, Blackwell, Londres.
FUNDAMENTAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
ARENDT, Hannah (1997), ¿Qué es la política?, Paidós, Barcelona
ASAD, T. (1973), Anthropology and the colonial encounter, New York, Academic Press.
BALANDIER, G.(1988), Modernidad y poder. El desvío antropológico, Júcar, Madrid.
BARTH, F. (comp.)(1976), Los Grupos Étnicos y sus Fronteras. La organización Social de las Diferencias Culturales. F.C.E., México.
BARNES, B. (1995), La naturaleza del Poder, Pomares-Corredor, Barcelona.
BOURDIEU, P. (2000), La dominación masculina, Anagrama, Barcelona.
--- (1988) Cosas dichas, Gedisa, Barcelona.
CLASTRES, P. (1996), Investigaciones en antropología política, Gedisa, Barcelona.
--- (1978): La Sociedad Contra el Estado, Monte Ávila, Barcelona.
DOUGLAS, Mary (1996), Cómo piensan las Instituciones, Alianza Universidad, Madrid.
DUMONT, L. (1970): Homo Hierarchicus. Ensayo sobre el Sistema de Castas, Aguilar, Madrid.
--- (1987), Ensayos sobre el Individualismo. Alianza, Madrid.
EVANS-PRITCHARD, E.E. & FORTES, M. (1970[1040], African Political Systems, Oxford University Press.
FOUCAULT, M. (1982), Vigilar y castigar, Siglo XXI, Madrid.
GELLNER, E. (1997), Antropología y Política. Revoluciones en el bosque sagrado, Gedisa editor, Barcelona.
GLUCKMAN, M. (1978), Política, Derecho y Ritual en la sociedad tribal, Akal, Madrid.
GONZALEZ ALCANTUD, J.A. (1997), El clientelismo político : perspectiva socioantropològica, Anthropos, Barcelona
GRAEBER, D. i SAHLINS M. (2017), On Kings, Chicago, IL USA: HAU Books, 2017. Disponible en línia a la Biblioteca.
GRAEBER, D. (2011), Fragmentos de antropología anarquista, Virus editorial, Madrid.
HARRIS, M. (1978), Caníbales y Reyes. Los orígenes de las culturas. Argos Vergara, Barcelona.
HOBSBAWM, E.J. & RANGER, T. (1988), L’invent de la tradició, Eumo editorial, Barcelona.
LUHMANN, N.(1995), Poder, Anthropos, Barcelona
PUJADAS, J.J. (1993), Etnicidad: identidad cultural de los pueblos, Eudema, Madrid.
ROSS, Marc Howard (1995), La cultura del conflicto: las diferencias interculturales en la practica de la violència, Paidós, Barcelona.
SAHLINS, M. (1984), Las sociedades tribales, Labor, Barcelona.
SERVICE, E.R. (1984), Los orígenes del Estado y de la civilización: el proceso de la evolución cultural, Alianza Ed., Madrid.
TERRAY, E. (1971), El marxismo ante las sociedades primitives, Losada, Buenos Aires.
TILLY, C. (2009), Los Movimientos sociales,1768-2008: desde sus orígenes a Facebook. Crítica, Barcelona.
TURNER, V. (1980), La selva de los símbolos, Siglo XXI, Madrid.
WOLF, E.R.(1987), Europa y la gente sin historia, Fondo de Cultura Económica, México.