You are in the official 2001-2002 General Catalog
for California State University, Fresno.
Department of Anthropology
Department of Anthropology
COURSES
Anthropology (ANTH)
A. The Core Curriculum
1. Introduction to Physical Anthropology (3)
Examines the biological basis of being human. Compares humans with what are thought to be primate relatives. Traces speculated evolution of species from four-million-year-old
australopithecines to try to account for the great anatomical and biochemical
diversity among modern human populations. (CAN ANTH 2)
2. Introduction to Cultural Anthropology (3)
Examines the nature of culture, humanity's unique mechanism for
adapting to the changing environment. Explores the varieties of
human life and explains how culture has made possible the range
of different and successful societies, from hunters and gatherers
to industrial civilization. G.E. Breadth D3. (CAN ANTH 4)
3. Introduction to Prehistory and Physical Anthropology
(3)
Examines the biological and cultural basis of being human. Compares
us with our primate relatives, traces the biological and cultural
evolution of our species from earliest ancestors, through the
development of agriculture to the emergence of civilization. G.E.
Breadth D3.
30. Critical Thinking in Anthropology (3)
Distinguish belief vs. knowledge and fact vs. opinion; examine
relationship between language/logic; use inductive/deductive reasoning;
recognize informal/formal fallacies; appreciate socio-cultural
context of critical thinking. These skills are applied to topics
of race/intelligence, religion/values, and social policy. Skills
demonstrated/assessed through oral and written performance. G.E.
Foundation A3.
100. Concepts and Applications (3)
This foundation course demonstrates the use of selected core concepts
within the context of a defined research project which the students
carry out during the semester. Acquaints students with the conceptual
framework of the discipline and the basic processes of anthropological
inquiry. (Formerly ANTH 103)
101A. Introductory Fieldwork in Archaeology (6)
An introduction to basic methods and strategies for archeological
excavation and site survey. The course will involve a commitment
by students of a block of time in the field away from campus.
101B. Advanced Fieldwork in Archaeology (6)
Advanced methods and strategies for archeological excavation
and site survey. The course will involve a commitment by students
of a block of time in the field away from campus.
B. CULTURAL Curriculum
102. Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 1 or 2. A compendium of current thinking on
language and culture from a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives.
Examines the nature of language, language description, language
and worldview, gendered speech, ethnicity and language, power
and performance, verbal and nonverbal art, and associated theories
and research methods.
104. History and Theory of Anthropology (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 2. A history of the growth of anthropological
thought through an analysis of the informational and explanatory
powers of five major theoretical schools: Nineteenth-century Evolutionists,
British Functionalists, Boasian Historical Particularists, Neo-Evolutionists/Marxists,
and Cognitivists.
105W. Applied Anthropology (3)
Examination and assessment of the use of anthropological data
and concepts to address contemporary issues in education, health
care, law, environmental planning, and social services. Students
work on applied problems and write observations, plans, reports,
and research documents geared to the needs of professionals, service
providers, and particularly planners in modern institutional contexts.
(Formerly ANTH 144W)
111A. Introduction to Ethnographic Fieldwork (3)
An introduction to methods of ethnographic field methods,
including participant observation, interviewing, and the use of
audiovisual media. Topics include the ethics of fieldwork, organizing
data, and ethnographic writing. Students will conduct short fieldwork
assignments on cultural and linguistic topics in the local area.
(Formerly ANTH 101)
111B. Intermediate Ethnographic Fieldwork (3)
Prerequisite ANTH 111A. Students conduct an enthnographic
field project under the direction of the instructor, employing
methods such as participant observation, interviewing, and audiovisual
media. The course involves field trips and may include weekend
sessions.
111C. Advanced Ethnographic Fieldwork (3)
Prerequisite ANTH 111B. Students continue work on an ethnographic
field project begun in ANTH 111B. Under the direction of the instructor,
students employ methods such as participant observation, interviewing,
and audiovisual media. Students produce a substantial written
review combining secondary sources with their own data.
115. Ethnography (3)
An examination of contemporary issues in anthropology based on
evidence from both classical and modern ethnographies. Considers
strategies of qualitative research and reporting, including ethics
and the application of enthographic research in modern societies.
(Formerly ANTH 129T)
116W. Anthropology of Religion (3)
Prerequisites: satisfactory completion (C or better) of the ENGL
1 graduation requirement, to be taken no sooner than the term
in which 60 units are completed; ANTH 2. Examines the patterned
belief systems of the world's tribal, peasant, and sectarian societies.
Stresses the role of religion in individual and group perception,
cognition, ritual, and social organization. Topics include myth,
magic, shamanism, mysticism, witchcraft, trance, hallucinogens,
and cultism. Meets the upper-division writing skills requirement
for graduation. G.E. Integration ID. (Formerly ANTH 150W)
117. Folk Medicine (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 2. A cross-cultural examination of health practices
and of the cultural assumptions and attitudes on which they are
based. Reviews ethnomedicine, ethnopsychiatry, and epidemiology
in the health care systems of non-Westerners and of ethnic communities
in pluralistic America. (Formerly ANTH 155)
118. Women: Culture and Biology (3)
(Same as W S 170.) Prerequisite: ANTH 1 or 2. A cross-cultural
and interdisciplinary analysis of the determinants of female statuses
and circumstances. Examines theories, including biological and
cultural determinism, which explain variations in the expression
of sexuality, maturation, reproduction, and the life cycle. (Formerly
ANTH 170)
119. Law and Culture (3)
A comparative, holistic perspective on the evolution of law. Examines
its natures and origins, the basic assumptions behind legal systems,
their cross-cultural expression and effects, and the directionality
of legal evolution. (Formerly ANTH 146)
120. Ethnic Relations and Cultures (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 2 or permission. The cultural and social origins
of ethnicity, and its opportunities and problems for contemporary
mass societies. Offers a critical review of major theories on
ethnic politics, economics, and ideology in the light of cross-cultural
evidence. G.E. Multicultural/International MI. (Formerly ANTH
172)
123. Peoples and Cultures of Southeast Asia (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 2. An introductory survey of the cultural and
historical adaptations of societies in Burma, Thailand, Laos,
Cambodia, and Vietnam; and of Insular societies in Indonesia,
Malaysia, and the Philippines. Examines the major effects of culture
contact between East and West.
124. Peoples and Cultures of East Asia (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 2. Examines cultural pluralism. Considers cultural
adaptations and change among minorities such as Moslems, Tibetans,
and Mongolians in China, and ethnic groups of Japan and Korea.
Outlines kinship, religion, organization, and technological factors
in the Asiatic culture complex.
125. Tradition and Change in China and Japan (3)
(Same as HUM 140.) Examines the current aspirations and problems
of the Chinese and Japanese in terms of their traditional cultures,
and explains how their histories, values, world views, and intellectual
traditions affect their lifestyles and their international relations
today. (Formerly ANTH 186)
126. Cultures and Foods of East
Asia (3)
(Same as ASAM 151.) Treats cuisine as a systematic product of
the interaction between culture and ecology. Focuses on sociocultural
rather than bio-nutritional factors in the preparation and ritual
implications of food in Mainland and Insular Asia. Students learn
to prepare and serve a variety of Oriental dishes. (Formerly ANTH
181)
130. Peoples and Cultures of the Southwest (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 2. A survey of Native American cultures of
the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico from their
prehistoric origins to the present. Emphasis is placed on cultural
continuity and change during the past 400 years of contact with
western culture. (Formerly ANTH 127)
138T. Topics in Cultural Anthropology (1-6; max total 12
if no topic repeated)
Prerequisite: varies with title. Special studies in the theory
and practice of organized cooperation and conflict in nature and
culture. (Formerly ANTH 149T)
C. ARCHAEOLOGY Curriculum
140. Contemporary Archaeology (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 3 or permission of instructor. Examines archaeological
theory (both historical and contemporary) as well as methods and
techniques used by archaeologists to gather, analyze, and interpret
data. (Formerly ANTH 106)
141. Prehistory of North America (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 3. Traces the development of Native American
cultures from the Arctic to Mesoamerica, from the peopling of
the continent to early historic times. Examines the archaeological
evidence for the antiquity, spread, and variation of cultural
adaptations to changing ecological conditions. (Formerly ANTH
131)
142. Old World Prehistory (3)
Examination of current knowledge of the prehistory of one area
of the Old World. Chronologies, current findings, and important
issues in theory method are reviewed. Consideration of these matters
in relation to work in archaeology throughout the world and to
work in closely related disciplines such as biology and geology.
Some historic archaeology may also be included. Areas include
Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Australia. (Formerly
ANTH 132)
143. Archaeology and Prehistory of California (3)
Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Origins and prehistory
of the California Native Americans. Examination of the archaeological
record, both statewide and regionally, with emphasis on adaptations
to natural and social environments from 12,000 B.P. until early
historic times. (Formerly ANTH 139T)
145. Cultural Resources Management (3)
Prerequisite: permission of instructor. Provides an in-depth overview
of historic and prehistoric cultural resources (districts, sites,
buildings, and objects), their significance, and their management
in the U.S. Topics include the legal context for CRM, identifying
and evaluating cultural resources, assessing effects, treatment
planning, and careers in CRM. G.E. Integration ID. (Formerly ANTH
139T)
159T. Topics in Archaeology (1-6; max total 12 if no topic
repeated)
Prerequisite: varies with title. Special studies in archaeological
methods, techniques, history and theory, or of prehistoric culture
areas not covered in the regular curriculum. (Formerly ANTH 139T)
D. PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY CURRICULUM
161. Bio/Behavioral Evolution of the Human Species (3)
Prerequisite: General Education Area B2 lower division requirement.
Examines the evolution of the human species and its relationship
to living and extinct primates. Explores the biological basis
of human culture. Integrates evolutionary biology, geochronology,
and anthropology in order to understand the bio/behavioral nature
of modern man. G.E. Integration IB.
162. Primates (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 1. An introduction to the study of primate
biological and behavioral evolution. Explores sociobiological
theory in order to explain the unity and diversity of social behavior
in prosimians, monkeys, and apes.
163. Human Variation (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 1. A cross-cultural examination of variations
in human morphology, physiology, and biochemistry. Establishes
the correlation between variations in human biology and variations
in climate, culture, nutrition, and disease.
164. Human Osteology (3)
Prerequisite: ANTH 1. Introduces a range of analytic techniques
for extracting information from human skeletal remains: sexing
and aging, osteometry, odontometry, the examination and diagnosis
of epigenetic traits and pathological lesion, and the statistical
interpretation of skeletal data.
169T. Topics in Physical Anthropology (1-6; max total 12
if no topic repeated)
Prerequisite: ANTH 1. Special studies of the discovery and interpretation
of information in physical anthropology, and of the application
of this subdiscipline in legal, medical, and scientific research.
E. ADVANCED STUDY CURRICULUM
190. Independent Study (1-3; max total 6)
See Academic Placement - Independent
Study. Approved for SP grading.
192. Directed Readings (1-3; max total 3)
Prerequisite: normally open only to students who have completed
the core curriculum. Supervised reading on a student-selected
topic outside the regular curriculum, conducted through regular
consultation with a faculty sponsor.
193. Internships in Anthropology (1-6; max total 6)
Prerequisite: ANTH 1 or 3. Interns will work on a variety of tasks
involving the analysis and curation of archaeological collections;
design and curation of museum displays; the collection and analysis
of physical anthropological data, including working with primates
at local zoos; and ethnographic data collection. (Formerly ANTH
109)
194. Honors Thesis (1-3; max total 3)
Prerequisites: normally open only to students who have completed
the core curriculum and who maintain a GPA in anthropology of
at least 3.5. Development of a student report or paper into a
manuscript of professional and publishable quality. Requires approval
by an Honors Committee of three faculty members. (Formerly ANTH
199)
195. Colloquium (1)
Each spring semester students and department faculty will meet
three times to discuss current problems in the field of anthropology.
These three hour seminars will be led by a faculty member. Students
will be expected to do all assigned readings and complete a paper
on one of the topics discussed.
197T. Current Topics in Anthropology (1-6; max total 12
if no topic repeated)
Subject matter of these courses combines topics from the various
subfields of anthropology, providing the student with a more integrated
view of the discipline.
Anthropology
Degrees