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ANTH-411 Consuming Drug Foods: Chocolates, Sugar and Coffee
This seminar centers on three drug foods–sugar, coffee, and chocolate–whose production, exchange, and consumption have played an important role in the history of industrial capitalism and in the structuring of colonial and post-colonial societies. Drug foods with complex histories and changing properties must be viewed from historical, political, economic, geographical, and gendered perspectives. They are linked to such globally salient issues as sustainable development, land tenure, international trade, state politics, and global identities. The course begins with a comprehensive overview of theories of commodities, consumption, and gifts. From there, we move to study the cultivation, processing, sale, advertising, and consumption of these foods. We will trace changing patterns of food consumption and shifting meanings attached to their use and exchange as well as the implications for households, communities, businesses, cultures, and nations under changing international circumstances. The texts chosen–single-authored monographs, book chapters, articles, films, and television episodes–are drawn primarily from anthropology but also include selections from other disciplines. Students will also be asked to complete mini-fieldwork assignments in conjunction with their
readings. The emphasis on theory, fieldwork, the writing intensive assignments, and emphasis on group discussion will complement and revisit methodological and epistemological issues raised at the outset and during the course of the anthropology major.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: ANTH 001 + One other Anthro Course
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