AJ17050 Introduction to the Culture of North American Aboriginal Peoples

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2009
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 2 credit(s) (plus 2 credits for an exam). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Jeffrey Alan Vanderziel, B.A. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Jeffrey Alan Vanderziel, B.A.
Department of English and American Studies – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Tomáš Hanzálek
Timetable of Seminar Groups
AJ17050/A: Tue 8:20–9:55 G31, J. Vanderziel
AJ17050/B: Tue 10:00–11:35 G31, J. Vanderziel
Prerequisites (in Czech)
AJ09999 Qualifying Examination && AJ07002 Intro. to American Studies II
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 60 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/60, only registered: 0/60, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/60
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 10 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to identify the major cultural traditions of the aboriginal inhabitants of North America. They will be be able to explain the relationship between the environment of specific regions and the cultural manifestations associated with that region. They will be able to recognize material culture associated with specific regions and explain the relationship between material and non-material culture in pre-Columbian North America.
Syllabus
  • This seminar is a survey of the history, culture, life-way, social organization, and world views of the aboriginal inhabitants (i.e. Native Americans) of Canada and the United States. The course uses a geographic approach to these issues, examining how Native American cultures adapted to each of the nine geographic regions into which North America is divided for this course. From each region, a selection of readings focusing on one specific group will be used as a model for the other groups in the region. Readings for this course will be extensive and include ethnographic, ethno-historical and historical texts, as well as traditional Native American folklore. In addition, video taped materials will be used.
  • Week 1: Course Introduction; Introduction to Anthropological Principles: Social and Political Structures, Technology, Languages, Archaeological Principles
  • Week 2: The Arrival of People in the Americas: the Paleo-Indian and Archaic Periods
  • Week 3: Arctic (Part I)
  • Week 4: Arctic (Part II), Sub-Arctic
  • Week 5: Eastern Woodlands: Northeast
  • Week 6: Eastern Woodlands: Southeast and Mississippi River Valley
  • Week 7: Great Plains
  • Week 8: Southwest (Part I)
  • Week 9: Southwest (Part II)
  • Week 10: California (Part I)
  • Week 11: California (Part II), Great Basin
  • Week 12: Northwest Coast (Part I)
  • Week 13: Northwest Coast (Part II)
Literature
  • Ballatine, Betty and Ian. 1993. The Native Americans: an illustrated history, Atlanta: Turner Publishing Co.
  • Chance, Norman A. n.d. Iñupiat of Arctic Alaska http://arcticcircle.uconn.edu/CulturalViability/Inupiat/.
  • Cushing, Frank Hamilton 1979. Zuñi. Selected Writings of Frank Hamilton Cushing (Edited by Jesse Green). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
  • Downs, James F. 1966 The Two Worlds of the Washo. An Indian Tribe of California. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
  • Forde, C. Daryll. 1931. “Hopi Agriculture and Land Ownership” in The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, Vol. 61 (Jul., 1931), pp. 357-405
  • Heizer, Robert F. and Albert B. Elsasser 1980. The Natural World of the California Indians. Berkeley: University of California Press.
  • Hoebel, E. Adamson 1978. The Cheyennes. Indians of the Great Plains. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
  • Hudson, Charles 1976. The Southeastern Indians. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press.
  • Leacock, Eleanor 1986. “The Montagnais-Naskapi of the Labrador Peninsula” in Native Peoples: The Canadian Experience, pp. 156-177. Edited by R. Bruce Morrison and C. Roderick Wilson. Toronto: Oxford University Press.
  • Parsons, Elsie Clews. 1921. “Hopi Mothers and Children” in Man, Volume 21 (July 1921), pp. 98-104
  • Rohner, Ronald P. and Evelyn C. 1970. The Kwakiutl. Indians of British Columbia, New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
  • Trigger, Bruce G. 1969. The Huron. Farmers of the North. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Teaching methods
A 1.5 hour seminar per week
Assessment methods
Assessment: in-class written test, based on both material presented in seminar and the readings.
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
http://elf.phil.muni.cz/elf/course/view.php?id=581
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 1999, Autumn 2000, Spring 2001, Autumn 2001, Autumn 2002, Autumn 2003, Autumn 2004, Autumn 2005, Autumn 2006, Autumn 2007, Autumn 2008, Autumn 2010, Autumn 2011, Autumn 2012, Autumn 2013, Autumn 2014, Autumn 2015, Autumn 2016, Autumn 2017, Autumn 2018, Autumn 2019, Autumn 2020.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2009, recent)
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