Category Archives: Miscellaneous

The Sexual Lives of Others

As a linguistic anthropologist, I turn my attention to the fact that sex is not only about, well, sex, but how people talk about sex. In Love Stories: Language, Private Love, and Public Romance in Georgia, I address a distinctive way of ordering sex, reproduction, and romance among the Khevsurs of Georgia. As a linguistic anthropologist, my goal was to use ethnography to illustrate the pervasive role of language in mediating some sphere of social life, in this case, sexuality. Language and sexuality are explored through the linguistic genres of romance such as conversation, poetry, and gossip. read more…

  • dateMay 25, 2015
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  • posted byPaul Manning
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Teaching Anthropology: A Graduate Seminar

There is no way to tackle the depth and complexity of teaching in one blog posting, nor would I be qualified to do so. Instead, here I’d like to offer my experience of designing, executing, and revising my Teaching Anthropology graduate seminar. My goal is to share resources and perspectives to contribute to the growing interest in talking about teaching in Anthropology. read more…

  • dateSeptember 11, 2014
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  • posted byJill Fleuriet
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Studying Science, Studying Up

When I began my research at the bioscience facility at the University of Prince Edward Island—it’s also the campus where I teach—I didn’t have a particular audience in mind. At the time I was much more concerned with making the most of my opportunity to “study up,” in Laura Nader’s phrase. Toward the end, though, when I did have to start thinking about “writing culture,” and for whom, the idea of aiming for a primarily undergraduate audience, especially students in their first and second year, seemed like a good way to address problems I encounter as an instructor… read more…

  • dateAugust 5, 2014
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  • posted byUdo Krautwurst
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University Presses Under Fire

Having just read an excellent overview of the state of university presses I’m reminded of the Hydra—the multi-headed monster that terrorized the people of Greece. The Hydra had the body of a serpent and many heads which could never be harmed by any weapon, and if one head did manage to get severed, another would grow in its place. The challenges in scholarly publishing are many. And no sooner do we adjust to one challenge than another arises in its place… read more…

  • dateMay 13, 2014
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  • posted byAnne
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Getting Real and Making it Relevant: Teaching Introductory Anthropology

I survey my students on the first day of class to find out why they’ve come and from that data I know to treat their arrival as a gift. I’ve got just one chance to make anthropology relevant to their lives. If I try to treat them as potential colleagues—as anthropologists-in-the-making—I risk alienating them. That risk rises if I require them to read textbooks thick with hundreds of pages of abstract or alien information. Will all that “stuff” survive a few months’ brain storage let alone a lifetime? If not, then it might be better to get something anthropological to stick for their lifetime. In this blog post I provide a few concrete examples of the pedagogical approaches I use. read more…

  • dateFebruary 27, 2014
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  • posted bySarah Mahler
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