Additional Information

Course Number

ANTH 2536/ANTH 2537

Course Level

Course Description

This seminar uses a bioarchaeological lens to explore the ways in which social inequalities manifest in the human body, weaving together contributions from ethnography, material culture studies, and mortuary archaeology to ‘flesh out’ studies of human remains. We will examine how particular aspects of social identity (e.g. gender, childhood) amplify or diminish inequalities in different contexts. We will also read a range of case studies that illustrate how trajectories of increasing social inequality vary over time and space, examining how large-scale social processes (e.g. aggregation, warfare, colonialism) impact human bodies. Overall, the course will analyze how social inequalities become embodied in human skeletal remains while also being shaped by social, ecological, and economic factors.

Syllabus Available

Yes

Notes

Jess Beck has provided a PDF version of this syllabus on her blog, Bone Broke, along with a discussion of the course.

Taxonomies

RPA Codes & Standards

• Adequate Preparation for Research Projects
• Archaeologist's Responsibility to Colleagues, Employees, and Students
• Archaeologist's Responsibility to the Public
• Integrity of Research Methodology

CIfA Codes

• Principle 3: Responsibility for acquiring and recording reliable information of the past in archaeological research

Keywords & Terms

• Armed Conflict and Violence
• Burials and Human Remains
• Equity and Representation; Discrimination and Harassment
• Integrity of Research Methodology and Field Procedures
• Respect for and Responsibility to Affected Groups
• Standards of Data Collection, Recordation, Analysis

Topics & Issues

• Biological Anthropology/Archaeology
• Colonialism and Imperialism
• Ethical Case Studies
• Ethical Responsibilities of Archaeologists
• Human Remains and Ethical Practice
• Human Rights and Social and Economic Inequalities
• War, Violence, and Conflict