Alexandre Enkerli PRO
Bilingual freelance ethnographer (English/French) currently working in User Research (UXR), workshop facilitation, collaborative writing, professional training, field observations, open-ended interviews…
Africanist Anthropology
ANTH326/4A – Peoples & Cultures of Sub-Saharan Africa
Meeting 1: January 12, 2015
Activity 1: People’s Thoughts on Africa
- What Do People Say about Africa?
- What Do People Say about Africans?
- What Do People Say about Sub-Saharan Africa?
Collaborative Syllabus
Which Topics Would You Like to Address in this Course?
Course Texts
- Building up
- Options
- All online
- Accessible to Concordia community (Netname)
- Work before class
- “Work smart” vs. “work hard”
- Gain and share insight
Tentative Schedule (Part I)
- Week 2: Infrastructure (Geography, Kinship…)
- Week 3: Superstructure (Music, Religion…)
- Perceptions Exercise Due
- Week 4:Issues (Development, Human Rights…)
- Week 5: Writing Africa
- Week 6: Ethics and Fieldwork
- Representations Exercise Due
- (Reading Week)
Getting Acquainted
Experiences with Africa?
Backgrounds
“Call Me Alex”
- alexandre.enkerli@concordia.ca
- Office Hours: Mondays, 5–6:30p (17:00–18:30)
- H-1125-28
Africanists
Trends
- Exoticism
- Dispelling myths
- Diversity
- Wisdom
- Postcolonialism
- Postdevelopment
- “Voluntourism“
Interdisciplinary
- Anthropology
- History
- Literature, Fine Arts, Humanities…
- Cultural Studies, Ethnic Studies
- Language, Linguistics
- Political Science
- Economics, Environment, Health…
Programs
- Mostly US/Europe
- IU, SOAS, Leiden…
- Post-Colonial
A Few Authors
- Bâ, Diop, Mudimbe
- Nkrumah, Kenyatta, Senghor, Nyerere
- Fanon, Soyinka, Achebe, Appiah
- Dieterlen, Griaule, Evans-Pritchard, Southall, Turner
- Cole, Ferguson, Comaroffs
- Grinker and Steiner
A Few ConU Resources
African Diversity
Cultural Diversity
- Languages
- Regions
- Environments
- Contacts
Common in Africa?
- Generalizations
- Colonial
- “Non-Western”
- Diffusion
- Globalization
Logistics
Coursework
- Low Stakes
- Active Learning
- Insight over form
- Options
Policies
- Online
- Due before class
- Late penalty
- “Prewrite”
Requirements
- Contributions
- Journal
- Online Activities (10/11)
- Reflection Posts (10/11)
- Activities (4/5)
Contributions
- What do you bring to the class?
- Not necessarily “vocal”
- Not necessarily in-class
- Partly self-assessed (March 1)
Journal
- Reflexivity
- Fieldwork practice
- Private
- Occasional feedback, qualitative
- Aggregate grade
Online Activities
- Hands-on
- Start in-class or online
- Quick post
- Peer-rated
- Can miss one
Reflection Posts
- Gain and share insight
- Come prepared
- Make links
- Use outside sources
- Peer-rated
- Can miss one
Exercises
- Low stakes field practice
- Perceptions
- Representations
- Observations
- Conversations
- Plans
- Short writeup
- Can miss one
Qualitative Assessments
- Excellent: ~90%
- Very Good: ~80%
- Good: ~70%
- Average: ~60%
- Not Good Enough: ~50%
- Disappointing: ~40%
Next Week: Basics
Activity 1: People’s Thoughts on Africa
Journal: Thoughts on Africa
Reflection Posts: Infrastructure
Geography, History, Social Organization, Economy, or Urban Life
Africa, Fourth Edition
- Chapter 1– Africa: A Geographic Frame
- Chapter 2 – Legacies of the Past: Themes in African History
- Chapter 3 – Social Relations: Family, Kinship, and Community
- Chapter 4 – Making a Living: African Livelihoods
- Chapter 6 – Urban Africa: Lives and Projects
Week 3: Superstructure
Africa, Fourth Edition
- Chapter 5– Religions in Africa
- Chapter 8 – Visual Arts in Africa
- Chapter 9 – African Music Flows
- Chapter 10 – Literature in Africa
- Chapter 11 – African Film
ANTH326, Meeting 1
By Alexandre Enkerli
ANTH326, Meeting 1
Slides for the first class meeting in Alex Enkerli’s ANTH326 course (Peoples and Cultures of Sub-Saharan Africa) at Concordia University.
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