City Life: Critical Urban Anthropology

Course Description

Summary

Over half of the world’s population is estimated to live in cities, with that number expected to grow significantly in the coming decade. Cities are not new a concept, by any measure, but this continued trajectory from rural to urban living changes how people interact with one another and is effectively redefining humanity. Historically, anthropologists focused on rural areas, and many of the discipline's foundational theoretical and methodological frameworks are rooted in that early work. For contemporary anthropologists conducting ethnographic research in urban areas, do these frameworks translate seamlessly from rural to urban settings? Furthermore, are we doing ethnography in the city, or of the city? Must we rethink anthropological methods and theories from urban perspectives? This class explores these and other questions related to social science in a rapidly urbanizing world. We will use recent urban ethnographies to critically engage with concepts of inequalities, power structures, and sustainability.