Outline

Overview

Economic anthropology teaches that there are different kinds of economy, grounded in different forms of value (gift, commodity) and on different rationalities (kinship, chiefly, market). The nature of these differences is explored through ethnographic studies, as are the conflicts that arise from their articulation within a global system. Characterisations of economic practice are as corrupt, irrational, informal, black, profit as the work of the devil, money as bitter are treated as signs of such systemic conflict.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	ANTH2653
Academic unit	Anthropology
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	None
Prerequisites ?	12 credit points at 1000 level in Anthropology
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	No

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Luis Angosto Ferrandez, luis.angosto-ferrandez@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Presentation	Group presentation Group Oral presentation	20%	-	12 minutes, 500 words (equivalent)
Outcomes assessed:
Participation	Class participation Participation	15%	-	n/a
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Short written reflection Short written reflection	25%	Week 07 Due date: 09 Apr 2020 at 23:00	1500 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Research proposal Essay	40%	Week 13 Due date: 29 May 2020 at 17:00	2500 words
Outcomes assessed:
= hurdle task ? = group assignment ?

Assessment summary

Please note that completion of all assessment items is required to pass the unit of study, regardless of marks attained for any particular item of assessment. Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction: on the relevance of economic anthropology	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 02	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (I)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 03	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (II)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 04	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (III)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 05	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (IV)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 06	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (V)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 07	The question of value (I)	Tutorial (3 hr)
Week 08	The question of value (II)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 09	The question of value (III)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 10	The question of value (IV)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 11	Making economic anthropology relevant (I)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 12	Making economic anthropology relevant (II)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 13	Making economic anthropology relevant (III)	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold. If a unit of study has a participation mark, your attendance may influence this mark.
Lecture recordings: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on Canvas. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

All readings for this Unit will be available on the Library eReserve link (on Canvas).

Here is the list of the readings set for each week:

Week	Topic	Readings
1	Introduction: on the relevance of economic anthropology	* Gregory, C. 2009. Whatever Happened to Economic Anthropology? The Australian Journal of Anthropology, 20: 285–300.
2	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (I)	* Douglas, Mary (2002) "The abominations of Leviticus". Chapter 3 of Purity and Danger: An Analysis of Concepts of Pollution and Taboo. London: Routledge, pp. 42-58. * Harris, Marvin (2012): "The abominable pig". In Carole Counihan, Penny Van Esterik, and Carole M. Counihan (eds) Food and Culture: a Reader. London: Routledge, pp. 59-71 (Chapter 6)
3	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (II)	* Okely, Judith (1983): The Traveller-Gypsies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [read chapter 6, ‘Symbolic boundaries’, pp. 77-104]
4	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (III)	* Bourgois, Philippe (1988): ‘Conjugated Oppression: Class and Ethnicity among Guaymí Banana Workers’. American Ethnologist, 15(2): 328-348. * Scott, Helen C. (2002): ‘Was there a time before race? Capitalist Modernity and the Origins of Racism’. In Crystal Bartolovich and Neil Lazarus (eds.) Marxism, Modernity and Postcolonial Studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press: 167-182.
5	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (IV)	* Taussig, Michael (1980): "The Devil and commodity fetishism". Chapter 2 in book "The Devil and Commodity Fetishism in South America". Chapel Hill: University of South Carolina Press, pp. 13-38.
6	Materialism, idealism and the search for causalities (V)	* Mintz, Sidney (1986). Sweetness and Power: the place of sugar in modern history. New York: Penguin. [Introduction, pp. xv-xxx]. * Wolf, Eric (1990 [1982]): Europe and the people without history. Berkeley: University of California Press. [Introduction]
7	The question of value (I)	Turner, T. (2008) "Marxian value theory". Anthropological Theory, 8(1): 43-56.
8	The question of value (II)	Angosto-Ferrandez, Luis (2016): "The Value of Everything and the Price of Nothingness". In Luis Angosto-Ferrández (ed.) Anthropologies of Value: Cultures of Accumulation Across the Global North and South. London: Pluto, pp. 1-28.
9	The question of value (III)	* Yanagisako, Sylvia (2018): Reconfiguring labour value and the capital/labour relation in Italian global fashion. Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 24(S1): 47-60.
10	The question of value (IV)	* Foster, R. J. (2007). The work of the new economy: Consumers, brands, and value creation. Cultural Anthropology, 22(4): 707-731.
11	Making economic anthropology relevant (I)	* Narotzky, S. (2016) "Between inequality and injustice: Dignity as a motive for mobilization during the crisis". History and anthropology, 27(1), 74-92
12	Making economic anthropology relevant (II)	* Palomera, J. (2014) Reciprocity, commodification, and poverty in the era of financialization. Current Anthropology, 55(S9): 105-115. * Sabaté, I. (2016). The Spanish mortgage crisis and the re-emergence of moral economies in uncertain times. History and anthropology, 27(1), 107-120.
13	Making economic anthropology relevant (III) - revisiting The Gift	* Mauss, Marcel (1990[1925]) The Gift. Verso Books. https://libcom.org/files/Mauss%20-%20The%20Gift.pdf

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. understand the key debates that have characterised economic anthropology
LO2. understand the nature of the relationship between economy and culture and the debates between economics and anthropology
LO3. read and comprehend ethnographic and theoretical scholarship in economic anthropology and understand its greater relevance to the field of anthropology
LO4. understand and appreciate the complexity and challenges of incorporating the economic dimensions of social and cultural life into ethnographic research
LO5. articulate one's ideas and interpretations constructively in a dialogue and toward collaborative work in a group
LO6. identify and use the forms of rhetoric used in proposing research and advocating for the impact of research
LO7. formulate a problem or question for research based on personal interests and curiosity
LO8. identify and critique assumptions about contemporary social and economic life
LO9. argue for connections between critical cross-cultural studies of economic practice and practical applications of knowledge

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

No changes have been made since this unit was last offered.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

ANTH2653: Economy and Culture

Semester 1, 2020 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect