Peoples And Cultures Of The World: The Great Courses (social Sciences)

In this course of lectures Prof. Fischer surveys anthropology, the study of human societies and comparative customs with a special emphasis on pre-capitalist societies and the things which pre-capitalist societies and modern societies have in common. Abstract: In this course of lectures Prof. Fischer surveys anthropology, the study of human societies and comparative customs with a special emphasis on pre-capitalist societies and the things which pre-capitalist societies and modern societies have in common Content: Disc 1. Lecture 1. The study of humanity Lecture 2. The four fields of anthropology Lecture 3. Culture and relativity Lecture 4. Fieldwork and the anthropological method Lecture 5. Nature, nurture, and human behavior Lecture 6. Languages, dialects, and social categories. Disc 2. Lecture 7. Language and thought Lecture 8. Constructing emotions and identities Lecture 9. Magic, religion, and codes of conduct Lecture 10. Rites of passage Lecture 11. Family, marriage, and incest Lecture 12. Multiple spouses and matrilineality. Disc 3. Lecture 13. Gatherers and hunters Lecture 14. Headmen and horticulturists Lecture 15. Cannibalism and violence Lecture 16. The role of reciprocity Lecture 17. Chiefdoms and redistribution Lecture 18. Cultural contact and colonialism. Disc 4. Lecture 19. Cultures of capitalism Lecture 20. Is economics rational? Lecture 21. Late capitalism : from Ford to Disney Lecture 22. The Maya, ancient and modern Lecture 23. Maya resurgence in Guatemala and Mexico Lecture 24. The Janus face of globalization.