Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

El Artesano Y La Comercialización Del Patrimonio Cultural Del Norte De Argentina Un Estudio De Caso: Salta Y La Quebrada De Humahuaca Y El Patrimonio De La Humanidad Por La Unesco, Jessica Slattery

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In northern Argentina, the artisan is in danger of extinction. In 2003, the Quebrada de Humahuaca (Jujuy, Argentina) was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This distinction encouraged preservation of natural and cultural heritage of the region and protection for way of life of indigenous peoples, exhibiting potential to have a positive environmental and social impact. Paradoxically, the designation of the Quebrada de Humahuaca as a World Heritage Site has created a series of adverse effects to the indigenous peoples of the region in context of globalization. The Gorge has become a tourist destination and opened the area to …

Reconstructing Pitaguary Identity: Indian Exchange And Outside Resources, Tess Mcmahon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research explores the recent methods by which the Pitaguary Indians in Ceará, Brazil have been reconstructing and revalorizing their indigenous culture using outside resources. Like many Indian populations within the Latin America, the Pitaguary have lost their culture due to conquest, exploitation, and assimilation policies. Only in 1997 did the Pitaguary file for governmental recognition and territorial demarcation[1] as an indigenous group. Since the mid-1990s, the tribe has been engaged in ‘rescuing’ and rediscovering their traditions and their culture. Three years ago, in 2007, an organization called Movimento Saude Mental Comunidade do Bom Jardim[2] came to the …

Rally Around The Flag And Support The Black Stars: Multi-Relational Analysis Of Nationalism And Contemporary Football In Ghana, Elka Peterson Horner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research paper examines the relationship between sports and nationalism in Ghana. I draw on Ghana‟s performance in the 2010 FIFA World Cup as a major resource and site of argument in framing the research. Ghana, just like many other postcolonial African countries, has a multitude of ethnic groups and cultural variations; past governments worked very hard to cultivate a sense of nationalism Ghana. I am arguing that football transcends these differences or variations, especially since the culture of football is a significant tool in promoting expressions and feelings of unity and nationalism. I also argue that football is an …

Identity And Fashion: A Look At Jordanian Christian Women And How Their Identity Is Portrayed Through Their Clothing, Brittany Witcher

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My research seeks to analyze the relationship between identity and fashion among Jordanian Christian women between the ages of 18-24. The goal of my project was to discover how Jordanian Christian women identify themselves, whether their clothes reflect their identity, and lastly find out what ways their clothes reflect their identity. In order to investigate my study, I observed various places throughout the city of Amman, the media and various churches; surveyed 20 women regardless of religion; held a focus group; and lastly, interviewed 5 Jordanian Christian women between 18-24, and 1 Jordanian Christian man of similar age. Through my …

Education As A Detour On The Path To Inevitable Motherhood: The Acquired Values And Collective Ambitions Of The Students At La Maison D’Education Mariama Ba, Hannah Deangelis

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The values young Senegalese women acquire at home revolve around motherhood, domesticity and, above all, solidarity. The students lucky enough to attend La Maison D’Education Mariama Ba, the most elite girl’s high school in all of Senegal carry these community-centered values. Here, young Senegalese women have a chance to take a detour from the prescribed path that their gender has dictated by spending seven years living and studying with their peers in a highly intellectual setting. An understanding of the narratives of their lives before school, time spent at MEMB, and vision of their futures provides a lens through which …

La Arqueología En El Ecuador: Investigando Las Lecciones Del Pasado Y Las Cuestiones Del Presente, Brett Erspamer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Durante las últimas tres semanas, desde el 8 de noviembre hasta el 26 de diciembre 2010, tuve la oportunidad de hacer una pasantía con el Instituto Nacional de Patrimonio Cultural (INPC) en Cuenca, la tercera cuidad más poblada del Ecuador. El INPC fue creado por el Estado en 1978 y “es el encargado de investigar, conservar, preservar, restaurar, exhibir y promocionar el Patrimonio Cultural en el Ecuador.” El país, en lo que concierne a este Instituto, está dividido en 7 Regionales, cada cual con una oficina que es responsable por la administración de 3 o 4 provincias. La de Cuenca …

The Kora And Korafolaw: A Treatise On The Musical Instrument And Those Who Play It, William Ridenour

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“The kora is what they play in heaven” a friend once told me. I agreed with him, easily. Ever since I first heard the kora played in the United States, my interest in it and the culture that produced it has deepened. Being able to carry out research on it has been a blessing and a pleasure.

All of my fieldwork was done in Bamako, the capital of Mali between April 15th and May 7th 2010. I spent most of my time in the company of the venerable jeli and korafola Dialy Mady Sissoko, who more or less adopted me …

Utopian Marketization And The Historical Fate Of Rural Society: Sideng Village, Shaxi Township, Ilona Nanay

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In his analysis of post-Mao China, historian Maurice Meisner writes, “it was the countryside where the majority of the Chinese people live and work, that was first to feel fully both the economic dynamism and the social destructiveness of a market economy” (Meisner 460). Meisner’s statement underscores how the commercialization of the rural economy changed rural society. Deng Xiaoping’s ascension to power in 1978 marked a re-articulation of state orthodoxy that prioritized economic development. The era of ‘reform’ was launched in the countryside with the break up of the communes and the introduction of the household responsibility system. What are …

Desenterrando La Verdad: El Equipo Argentino De Antropología Forense Y La Continuación De La Búsqueda Para Los “Desaparecidos” = Unearthing The Truth: The Argentina Forensic Anthropology Team And Search For Argentina’S “Disappeared”, Frederica Tunnard

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Thirty four years after the military dictatorship in which 30,000 Argentine citizens were kidnapped, tortured, and murdered, their families and Argentine society as a whole continue to search for the truth of what happened to their “disappeared.” This search, however, has not been easy. To start, the military leaders carried out their reign of terror in incredibly secret ways – burying many bodies in unmarked mass graves or, famously, throwing bodies out of airplanes in the Atlantic Ocean – making the recovery and identification of the remains almost impossible. Although organizations like the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team and the Latin …

Views From The Road: An Inquiry Into The Meaning Of Development In Lower Mustang, Tracy Pecher

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

By considering the new road that connects the urban center of Pokhara to the previously isolated region of Lower Mustang, this paper examines the impacts of development in the area. I focus on the varied perspectives of three sets of individuals in the area: the founder of an NGO focused on agricultural development, youth from villages surrounding Jomsom, and a Canadian woman who settled in small village with her Thakali husband. I combine these personal accounts with an analysis of development on a broader scale, discussing a range of themes including conceptions of culture, education, and poverty. I emphasize that …

Babylon By Tro-Tro: The Varieties Of Rasta Identity And Practice In Ghana, Jonathan Tanis

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

1. Title: Babylon by Tro-Tro: The Varieties of Rasta Identity and Practice in Ghana

2. Author: Jonathan Tanis (tanis@usc.edu; University of Southern California)

3. Objective: Intrigued by the lack of scholarship in Ghana on the highly visible and prominent Rasta culture, I sought to examine aspects of Rastafari identity and practice including the following:

a. How the Rasta identity is defined, constructed and maintained by both Rastafarians and non-Rastafarians of varied backgrounds.

b. How Rastafarians perform and express said identity through specific practices

c. The importance of iconography and symbolism in transmitting Rastafarian identity, and the negotiation of identity through …

Pabean Sangsit: A Cultural Study Through The Lives Of One Family, Sylvie Kovnat

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The objective of this Independent Study Project was to investigate life in Bali as a cultural and religious minority. I had already spent nearly two months with my family in Bedulu, a typical Hindu Balinese family, and I was curious to see how other people in Bali live. I decided to spend the ISP period in Pabean Sangsit, living with a Muslim family with Bugis roots. The main question I wanted to answer through this study was: What is life like in Bali for the religious and cultural minority? I decided to look into religion, culture, and daily activities to …