Prof Hana Cervinkova is the Head of Department in Anthropology.
Dr Thomas Strong is the Undergraduate Coordinator in the Department of Anthropology. His details and contact details of all academic staff members can be found below:
Thomas Strong
Undergraduate Coordinator
Room 1.05 Rowan House, Ext. 6719
E-mail: [email protected]
Hana Cervinkova
Head of Department
Room 1.17, Rowan House, Ext. 6551
Email: [email protected]
Steve Coleman
Room 1.04, Rowan House, Ext. 3932
E-mail: [email protected]
Ela Drazkiewicz
Room 1.08, Rowan House, Ext. 6084
E-mail: [email protected]
Pauline Garvey
Director of Postgraduate Studies
Room 1.14, Rowan House, Ext. 3587
E-mail: [email protected]
David Prendergast
Room 1.15, Rowan House, Ext. 6205
Email: [email protected]
Chandana Mathur
Room 1.10, Rowan House, Ext. 6083
Email: [email protected]
A. Jamie Saris
Room 1.16, Rowan House, Ext. 3983
Email: [email protected]
SEMESTER 1
COMPULSORY MODULE
AN301 Contemporary Theory and Ethnography I (Dr Ela Drazkiewicz)
This compulsory course looks at contemporary theory and ethnographic approaches in anthropology.
OPTIONAL MODULES
AN302 Special Topics in Anthropology 2 (Future Imaginations) (Stuart Lang)
Anthropology has typically been a discipline focused on the past, but throughout its history there have been those who have looked forward in time. In this module, students will learn about how people think about the future and how this impacts the present. We will also explore multiple visions of the future and how each of these are informed by both the past and the present. Themes including science-fiction, dystopic and utopic thinking, and the perception of time will be part of the discussion within this module. Using a number of anthropological texts, students will critically engage with the themes of the module to gain a better understanding of how we as humans think about the future and our place in it.
AN307 Thesis Draft (Tara McAssey)
This course involves the preparation and writing up of data collected for a B.A. thesis.
AN315 Anthropology, Creativity & Innovation (Dr Mary Galvin)
Anthropologists working in areas such as design ethnography interact with the tools and models of creativity and innovation. However, these tools and models have not yet been transferred into the classroom for undergraduate students. This module includes some discussion of design ethnography, but the focus is on creative skills. Every organisation needs creativity, and creative skills are in short supply. All innovation starts with an idea and every idea begins with a spark of creativity. In organisations as diverse as Google and Oxfam, it's the creative people who are driving and leading positive change. In this module you will learn the tools and models of creativity and innovation. You will discover the components of individual creativity and learn techniques to boost your own creativity as well as learning how to increase the creative competence of the teams and people with whom you work. Innovation is a means of pursuing an opportunity of solving a problem and hence innovation and problem solving are two sides of the same coin. You will learn about the different types of innovation and how to facilitate people and processes to deliver the results you need.
AN338 Anthropology & the Environment (Dr Chandana Mathur)
The anthropologist Eric Wolf coined the term 'political ecology' in 1972. Since then, anthropologists have made significant contributions to the interdisciplinary field of political ecology, exploring the networks of power underlying human-environment relationships. This module will familiarise students with these contributions, theoretical as well as ethnographic.
SEMESTER 2
COMPULSORY MODULE
AN304 Contemporary Theory and Ethnography II (Dr Ela Drazkiewicz)
A close reading and discussion of recent theory and important ethnographies, with attention to theory and methods that go into their production.
OPTIONAL MODULES
AN309 Globalisation (Prof Hana Cervinkova)
This course explores the concept of globalization, which has come to dominate the social sciences in the last two decades. We will begin with a consideration of the existence and definition of the concept and proceed to discuss its key principles: homogenization; hybridization; cross-cultural consumption; disappearance of home; de-territorialization and demise of state borders. The Course will also take a critical look at the alleged promises of globalization and its possible alternatives.
AN318 Thesis II
This course involves the writing up and completion of a B.A. thesis.
AN336 Semiotic Anthropology (Dr Steve Coleman)
his module explores contemporary anthropological applications of Charles S. Peirce's semiotic theory. The concept of "semiosis" (the action of signs) is useful for understanding relations between human and non-human agency, between discursive meaning (as in language) and other forms of action and agency, and for understanding the qualitative, sensuous dimensions of culture and social life. We will explore the theoretical bases of semiotics as method and theory, and critically read a few recent ethnographies which focus on the relations between the "human" and "natural" realms.
AN341 Conspiracy Theories (Dr Ela Drazkiewicz)
In this module we will examine recent theory and ethnographies of Conspiracy Theories. At the time when Fake News is on everybody’s lips, and conspiracy has become the contemporary lingua franca, what can anthropologists contribute to the debate? In this course we will consider conspiracy theories through anthropological lenses. We will move beyond a normative approach and look for comparative angles. The objective is to take these theories and people who believe in them seriously, and examine what social functions does conspiratorial thinking play in the contemporary world? We will specifically examine why do people believe in conspiracy theories? How do conspiracy theories operate? How do conspiratory ideas travel, how are they born, but also how do they die? We will also grapple with such questions as: what is the difference between a Whistle Blower and a Conspiracy Theorist? Is there any?
AN339 Troubling Identities: Activisim & Anthropology Today (Dr Thomas Strong)
This seminar focuses a reflexive and critical anthropological lens on contemporary identity politics. The module samples historical genealogies of identities today, as well as philosophical, social scientific, and historical analyses of how ‘the self’ has come to be a key problem in contemporary society. We will review several of the dominant frameworks that shape contemporary identity politics, including multiculturalism and the politics of recognition, representation and cultural appropriation, inequality and intersectionality, and so on. Moving from the emergent norms and forms that make identity intelligible as a political problem, the seminar also focuses on activist strategies and tactics in this arena. Substantial attention will be given to anti-racist activism in Ireland, the US, and elsewhere, as well as to the mutating global politics of gender and sexuality, including especially queer and trans* perspectives.
To access the Moodle space for Anthropology modules, first log in to Moodle at http://moodle.nuim.ie or via the quick link on the University home page, using your Maynooth University username and password.
Moodle has been set up to display automatically the modules for which you are registered as a student under the heading My Courses on the Moodle homepage (this should be on the left hand side - scroll down if necessary).
However, please note, if your courses do not appear in your Moodle, this normally is an indication that there is something wrong with your registration and you should also check your status with the Student Records office.
Getting Help: If you have any problems with Moodle, you can find further help on the main Moodle homepage, under Main Menu. You can also contact [email protected] for help. If you are working in the Public Access Cluster Rooms, a Computer Assistant may be able to help you log in to Moodle and find your course.