NMC241H1

Anthropology of the Middle East

This course aims to familiarize students with the anthropological study of the contemporary Middle East. It introduces key questions and concepts for anthropological study: who speaks for the Middle East? What is culture? What is ethnography? It analyzes systems of power and exclusion, and everyday life and relations in countries like Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, and Kuwait. The course will provide critical perspectives on gender, religion, family relations, national belonging, migrant workers, and refugees. Students will apply anthropological methods learned in class to do an independent project.