Department
of Anthropology
John Jay College of Criminal Justice
The City University of New York
Spring 2006
Ant 208: Urban Anthropology
Instructor:
Dr. Anru Lee
Class hours: MW, 6:25-7:40PM at 2513N
Office
hours: MW 1-1:30PM and 5-6PM; or by appointment
Office:
Room 434.01T
Telephone: (212) 237-8571
Email:
alee@jjay.cuny.edu
Web
page: http://web.jjay.cuny.edu/~alee/
Course Description
As social complexity, industrialization, and urbanization spread
globally,
anthropologists increasingly study these processes and the social
problems they
create. Urban anthropology, which has theoretical and applied
dimensions,
is the cross-cultural and ethnographic study of global urbanization and
life in
cities. This course will explore the cultural diversity of cities
around
the world, with emphasis on the following issues: urbanism and its
diverse
forms; meanings of space and place; migration, urban class, ethnicity,
and
poverty; urban social movements and activism; globalization and
transnationalism.
Required Texts
1. George Gmelch and Walter P. Zenner (2002) Urban Life: Readings
in Urban
Anthropology, 4th edition, IL: Waveland Press. (hereafter,
G&Z4)
2. James L. Watson (ed.) (1998) Golden Arches East: McDonald's in
East Asia,
Stanford: Stanford University Press.
3. Other required readings are on electronic reserve in the library. (The password will be announced in class.)
Course Requirements
|
Article Reviews |
20% of final grade (2% each) |
|
Exams |
40% of final grade (20% each) |
|
Ethnographic Reports |
40% of final grade (20% each) |
|
Class Presentation |
5% of final grade |
|
Total |
105% |
1.
Article
Reviews (ARs): Throughout the semester, you will choose
ten
articles from
our required readings to do Article Reviews. Each article review
will be
worth of 2% of the final grade. See the separate sheet for
details and
due dates.
2.
Exams:
There will be two in-class exams. In each case, I will hand out a
study
guide a week in advance for your preparation.
EXAM DATES ARE FIRM.
Instructor approval is required for all makeup exams that will be
permitted
only with a doctor's written certification stating the student was too
ill to
attend school on the day the exam was
given. Makeup
exams must be taken within a week that
the exam is given.
3. Ethnographic Reports:
There will be
two 4 page ethnographic reports, in conjunction with the topics of
"Urbanism" and "Migration." See separate
instructions.
4. 5% extra
credit is built
in the final grade calculation. As such, there will be NO
other opportunities for extra credit given in this class.
5. NO incompletes
are given in
this course.
Final
letter grades will be determined according to the following
distribution:
|
Grade |
Percentage Equivalent |
Numerical Value |
|
A |
93.0-100.0 |
4.0 |
|
A- |
90.0-92.9 |
3.7 |
|
B+ |
87.1-89.9 |
3.3 |
|
B |
83.0-87.0 |
3.0 |
|
B- |
80.0-82.9 |
2.7 |
|
C+ |
77.1-79.9 |
2.3 |
|
C |
73.0-77.0 |
2.0 |
|
C- |
70.0-72.9 |
1.7 |
|
D+ |
67.1-69.9 |
1.3 |
|
D |
63.0-67.0 |
1.0 |
|
D- |
60.0-62.9 |
0.7 |
|
F |
Below 60.0 |
0.0 |
Source:
John Jay College of Criminal Justice Undergraduate Bulletin.
Attendance
1. Although you will not be penalized for skipping classes, my own
experience
has shown that there is a high correlation between regular attendance
and high
grades. Regular class attendance will not guarantee a high grade,
but
irregular attendance will generally guarantee a lower one.
2. If you are absent for any class,
it
is your responsibility to contact a classmate for handouts, if
any, and
any other material that may have been distributed and/or covered in
class
during your absence. You are, therefore, responsible for any
material
covered during any missed classes. All students are expected to
have at
least 1-2 "contact persons" to communicate with in order to obtain
information about missed material. It is your responsibility to
keep
track of any missed classes.
Academic Integrity and
Plagiarism
1. Plagiarism is against College policy. It is a serious
offense.
Anyone who is found to plagiarize or cheat on an exam or writing
assignment
will be given a grade of F for that assignment. Subsequent
incidences
will result in a failing grade for the course as well as administrative
action. For more details, see the College's Undergraduate
Bulletin or the
College Website http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/studentdevelopment/academicintegrityform/.
2. All writing assignments will be
subjected
for check to turnitin.com,
an online plagiarism detection service subscribed by the College.
Note:
The instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus at her
discretion.
|
1/30 (M) Introduction |
|
Topic One: City in the
History |
|
2/1 (W), 2/6 (M), 2/8 (W) The
Preindustrial City 1. Gideon Sjoberg (1955) "The Preindustrial
City," in G&Z4, pp. 20-31. Turn in Your Bio-card on
2/8 (W) |
|
Topic Two: Urbanism and Beyond |
|
2/15 (W), 2/21 (T), 2/22 (W) Urbanism
as a Way of Life 1. Louis Wirth (1938) "Urbanism As a Way of
Life," in G&Z4, pp. 65-82. |
|
2/27 (M), 3/1 (W), 3/6 (M) Beyond
Industrial Urbanism: Suburbanism and Gated Communities |
|
3/8 (W) Exam I |
|
Topic Three:
Globalization and Transnationalism |
|
3/13 (M), 3/15 (W), 3/20 (M), 3/22 (W),
3/27 (M) Emergence of the Global City/ and the Class Divide 1. Leslie Salzinger (1991) “A Maid by Any
Other Name: The Transformation of ‘Dirty Work’ by Central American
Immigrants,” in Michael Burawoy et al. (eds.) Ethnography Unbound:
Power and Resistance in the Modern Metropolis, Berkeley: University
of California Press, pp. 139-160. (on reserve) Film: "Coat of Many Countries" (1999) |
|
3/29 (W), 4/3 (M) Global Consumer Culture
and Local Dynamics (I) Ethnographic Report I due
3/29 (W) |
|
4/5 (W) Last Day to Drop
Class Without Academic Penalty |
|
4/5 (W), 4/10 (M), 4/26 (W) Global Consumer
Culture and Local Dynamics (II) |
|
4/24 (M) Exam II |
|
Topic Four: Migration and the (Re)construction of Citizenship |
|
5/1 (M), 5/3 (W), 5/8 (M), 5/10
(W) Concepts and Analytic Frameworks Film: "Nowhere Else to Live" |
|
5/15 (M), 5/17 (W) Migration and
Adaptation: Case Studies Choose One |
|
Ethnographic Report II due
5/22 (M) |