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Description

Undergraduate

Module Content

Course will introduce Medical Anthropology, which is the subfield of anthropology concerned with how human societies respond to and shape the experiences of health. Illness, and recovery. These human responses include uniquely evolved systems of diagnosis and therapeutic intervention based on diverse cultural ideologies, etiological assumptions, and views of the universe. You will study cultural definitions of health, well- being and ‘the normal’ and examine critical analysis of the social relations, ideologies and technologies that help constitute modern biomedical systems. You will reflect on the influence of social and political structures, cultural interpretations and norms, inequality, ecological contexts, and human relationships as they shape local clinical realities. The module will cover the following topics, which may be subject to variation depending on developments in academic research and the interests of the class:

• Birth and reproductionÌý
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• Death and dyingÌý
• Traditional therapeutic approaches
• Medicalisation
• Health disparities
• Infectious diseases

Learning Outcomes

• To provide students with a firm knowledge of the breadth and character of medical anthropology.
• To equip students with an understanding of theoretical debates in medical anthropology.
• To locate students understanding in a range of cutting edge and classic ethnographic studies.
• To enable students to reflect critically on how to study health and healthcare anthropologically.
• To support students in developing their ability to engage with academic texts, critical analysis, and the construction of progressively developed and ethnographically supported argumentation.

Delivery Method

One 2-hour lecture followed by one 1-hour group seminar per week.

Additional Information

• Students are expected to complete the required reading in advance of the seminar and participate productively in seminar-based discussion and debate.
• Please note that this module has a large discussion element. Students are expected to have a high level of English.

Postgraduate

Module Content

This course provides students with a broad over-view of Medical Anthropology and examines key topics in the light of relevant theoretical debates. You will be introduced to a range of contemporary and classical topics in medical anthropology. You will examine the ways in which local clinical realities are influenced by human relationships, political structures, ecological contexts and cultural norms. You will explore definitions of health and well-being and interrogate the ways in which social relations, ideologies and technologies intersect in modern biomedical systems. You will develop your own understanding and analysis of how human societies respond to and shape experiences of health. The module will cover the following topics, which may be subject to variation depending on developments in academic research and the interests of the class:

• Birth and reproductionÌý
• °ä²¹°ù±ðÌýÌý
• ´¡²µ±ð¾±²Ô²µÌýÌý
• Death and dyingÌý
• Traditional therapeutic approaches
• Medicalisation
• Health disparities
• Infectious diseases

Learning Outcome

• To furnish students with a firm grounding in the history and breadth of medical anthropology.
• To enable students to understand and analyse a range of theoretical approaches in medical anthropology.
• To provide students with an in-depth knowledge of contemporary and classic ethnographic studies.
• To develop students’ capacity for analytic and critical thinking, academic reading, and the development of progressively developed and ethnographically grounded arguments.

Delivery Method

One 2-hour seminar per week, with the option to attend the undergraduate lecture.

Additional Information

• Students are expected to complete the required reading in advance of the seminar and participate productively in seminar-based discussion and debate.
• Please note that this module has a large discussion element. Students are expected to have a high level of English.