Anthropology Commons^™

Dharma And The Free Market: Reconciling Buddhist Compassion With A Market Economy In Post-Socialist Mongolia, Yazmeen Mendez Nuñez

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In this inductive ethnographic study, I explore the unique social and theological pressures placed on Mongolian Buddhists after the wake of free market transition in Mongolia. It utilizes the Buddhist virtue of compassion as a lens by which the study might examine how Mongolians balance their spirituality and commitment to Buddhist ethics with new roles as rational agents in an emergent free market. In this study I draw on narratives from thirteen subjects as well as extensive participant observation to examine the ways that Mongolian market reform has guided social paradigms of ethic that present ethical contradictions with Buddhist dharma, …

Think Like A Mongolian: Cultivating Community Based Pasture Management, Karen Elizabeth Yoshida Weldon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since Mongolia’s democratization and move to a free market, the country has been grappling with the best approaches to deal with pasture degradation caused by both climate change and lifestyle changes of nomadic herders. International donors and NGOS have implemented community based natural resource management projects with the missions mitigating the effects of pasture degradation and livelihoods of herding families through building capacity. While studies have been done regarding the effectiveness of these community based conservation projects, minimal research has been done to understand how the traditions, values, and culture of Mongolia herders affect the success of these pastureland conservation …

Fa’Amatala Lau Tala: Samoan Pregnancy And Childbirth Narratives, Elsa Kendall

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Pregnancy is, for each individual woman, situated in a particular historical, social, and cultural understanding of her own body; the experience cannot be divorced from these components that inform what is deemed unhealthy or inappropriate. Most social research regarding pregnancy and childbirth focuses on economic and political implications. This study explored personal narratives of Samoan women’s experience with pregnancy and childbirth to shed light on cultural aspects of events. Seven women were interviewed as key informants using informal, unstructured interviews to better understand these topics, and are presented as a compilation of stories of the most intimate parts of their …

Stories Of The Stars: The History And Folklore Of Tibetan Ethnoastronomy, Mara Johnson-Groh

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Traditionally, the night sky played an important role in the lives of Tibetans. Stars and constellations were used in navigation and in telling time. Folklore and proverbs surround these constellations and there are myths about the moon and planets as well. However, many of the stories that can be found today either originate in or are influenced by Indian culture. With the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet, came Vedic texts on astrology, which had a profound impact on the culture of ethnoastronomy in the region. Adapted Vedic astrology, merged with practices from China, eventually replaced traditional ethnoastronomy. Because of the …

Evolving Stages: Duty And Fate In The Construction Of Tibetan Tradition, Divya Chandramouli

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In this paper, I discuss themes of preservation, adaptation, and the construction of tradition in the context of Tibetan performing arts. I chose to explore these issues by looking specifically at a play composed by His Holiness the current Karmapa, based on the life of Milarepa, one of the most revered yogis of Tibetan Buddhism. This play is unique in the sense that many of its aspects stem directly from traditional Tibetan opera, or lhamo, yet the ways in which it was presented and the reasons why it was presented this way diverge considerably from “tradition.” I conducted my research …

Preserving Tradition: Analyzing The Commoditization Of Cultural Identity Through Beauty Pageants Among Ethnic Minority Groups In Kathmandu, Martha Oster-Beal

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research primarily focuses on the “cultural talent contests” enrolling contestants who are members of the numerous minority ethnic groups residing in Kathmandu. In a growing metropolis, these beauty queens are often seen as symbolic representations of collective cultural identities, and the pageants as fields of active ‘cultural production’. This author surveys the growing literature on beauty pageants and several opinions of organizers, community members and the contestants themselves to better understand how culture is produced within the contexts of pageants. The study examines how beauty pageants operate as locations of commodification and consumption in a world increasingly influenced by …

Viendo De Camino A Casa: La Construcción De La Identidad Transnacional En La Comunidad Libanesa De Buenos Aires = Looking Homeward: The Construction Of Transnational Identity In The Lebanese Community Of Buenos Aires, Lindsay Miller

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

At the end of the 19^th century through World War I, around three million immigrants entered Argentina. The vast majority left behind homes in Italy and Spain; however, a significant minority population arrived from Greater Syria, specifically from present-day Syria and Lebanon. Today, the descendents of these Syrian-Lebanese migrants make up the third largest community in Argentina. Despite the significant presence of the community, the Syrian-Lebanese community has been largely absent from scholarly work on Argentine ethnic groups.

The objective of this study is to explore the relationship that the descendents of Lebanese immigrants, living in Buenos Aires, have …

You, Me And Society: Political Theatre And Its Impacts, Holden Taylor

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For a period of one month I researched three distinct categories of political theatre: Theatre of Witness, Theatre of the Oppressed and more traditional theatre –wherein the audience and performers are clearly defined and separated. I was interested in getting an in-depth look at various forms of theatre and their potential effects on both producers and consumers of the art form. To conduct my research I interviewed eight individuals involved in the theatric world, participated in a theatre workshop, studied a variety of theatric literature and attended three politically charged theatre productions. I discovered a litany of things from my …

“Papa, Should I Tell You What I Think Of This Exhibition, I Would Cry.” An Analysis Of Visitor Impression Books At The Bosnian Historical Museum In Sarajevo, Amanda Lawnicki

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Visitor impression book are often overlooked objects in museums. However, a study of these books can provide insight into a whole range of topics regarding museum and/or memory studies, especially in consideration of the larger socio-political climate. By nature, the books are both intensely personal and inherently collective – as they constitute an assembly of personal emotions and evaluations of the exhibit. This allows us to examine the books on a microscopic, individual level and in a global context.

My research involved an examination of the visitor impression books at the Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and focused on …

Mujeres Mozonteñas: Liderazgo, Tierra E Identidad En El Pueblo Indígena De Mozonte, Nueva Segovia, Karla Jiménez

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

La desigualdad entre mujeres y hombres es algo contra lo que los movimientos sociales luchan a nivel mundial. En Nicaragua, el machismo es un aspecto que aparenta estar arraigado en la cultura. Sin embargo, algunas mujeres han logrado crear espacios de participación, donde sus derechos e intereses son tomados en cuenta y respetados dentro de una sociedad patriarcal. ¿Cómo se estudia la desigualdad que han tenido las mujeres, junto con la desigualdad que han tenido las personas indígenas, al trabajar con mujeres indígenas? Hay una complejidad que existe al trabajar dentro de un Pueblo Indígena, ya que tienen dos gobiernos …

Redefiniendo Los Límites De La Colección: La Revolución Del Museo Contemporáneo El Caso Del Museo Antropológico Y De Arte Contemporáneo De Guayaquil, Camila Pacheco-Fores

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

La etimología de la palabra museo encuentra sus raíces en latín, de museum, que viene del griego mouseion, como mouseios: la casa de las musas (mousa).[1] En siguiendo esta epistemología, podemos entender los principios del museo, y su rol histórico en la sociedad. Las 9 musas fueron una gran parte de la mitología griega y representaron la inspiración en la literatura, la ciencia, y las artes: ellas eran las fuentes de todo conocimiento. Entonces, uno podría decir que el primer museo fue el templo, la casa de las musas. Este repositorio conservó esculturas y …

Nunca Han Visitado, No Han Vivido Ecoturismo Comunitario: Una Alternativa Sostenible Y Constitucional De Desarrollo En La Zona De Intag, Jenny Johnston

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Durante mi estudio en Ecuador y a través de todas mis clases, conversaciones, y experiencias, han habido muchos temas nuevos e interesantes. Aunque todas me han enseñado mucho, la experiencia que me impactó más fue mi semana en Intag. Durante toda mi vida siempre tuve una fascinación con el bosque nublado con la combinación de palabras más mística y romántica. La verdad es que antes de llegar en Intag la mi primera vez, no sabía nada sobre el poder de la belleza de los bosques, la naturaleza, y también sobre la lucha en contra de la minería. A través de …

Reviviendo Las Voces Perdidas: El Papel De La Educación Intercultural Y Bilingüe (Eib) En El Sistema Educativo Chileno, Ashlie Busone

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

A pesar del apretón que tiene el sistema capitalista en la implementación educativa de hoy, la tensión de cultura y poder se manifestó tanto en el aula como en el gobierno. En Chile, con un trasfondo de fuerzas de globalización y neoliberalismo, esto especialmente se ve en el intento político de reconciliar la gente indígena y la gente no indígena por el uso del sistema educativo. Con un marco teórico compuesto de las ideas de Freire, Gramsci y Bourdieu, este estudio desea aplaudir y criticar los educadores chilenos en sus esfuerzos de mantener y promover las culturas indígenas en un …

“Resistencia Es Permanencia”: Concepciones De Resistencia, Territorio Y Recuperaciones De Tierra En Dos Comunidades Mapuche, August Williams-Eynon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In recent decades the world has seen a backlash of resistance, especially among First Nations and indigenous populations, to what some characterize as new forms of colonization: the development of globalization, and the spread of neoliberal economic institutions and their guiding principles (Vanden 2007). This work locates the social movements of the Mapuche (an indigenous nation conquered by the Chilean army in 1883), and especially their pursuance of land recovery and territorial sovereignty, among the many such mobilizations occurring in Latin America, including the Zapatista movement in Mexico, the organizing of indigenous groups in Bolivia and the CONAIE (Confederación de …

Envisioning Community: The Promise Of Teacher Leadership For Career Sustainability, Spencer L. Jones , '13

Senior Theses, Projects, and Awards

This thesis explores the sustainability of the teaching profession by examining teachers’ professional identities and goals and their work conditions. The author concludes that most teachers, while committed to their classrooms, cannot remain teachers in public schools for many years because there are too many structural conditions that compromise their morale and energy. The author further explores teachers’ visions for their careers—primarily opportunities for professional community and collaboration and teacher leadership. Stronger professional communities and more access and opportunities for teacher leadership in the realms of curriculum development, professional development, assessment, and teacher evaluation will benefit schools and student achievement. …

Kachin Sound Instruments Within The Context Of The Kachin Baptist Convention Of Northern Burma: History, Classification, And Uses, Walter Brath

Masters Theses

This organology identifies and describes the Kachin's sound instruments, classifies them according to the Hornbostel-Sachs' system, and considers evidence of an indigenous classification scheme. Very little research exists to date on the music of the Kachin peoples of Northern Burma. This paper cites the only known indigenous organology and is the first English language study to extrapolate evidence into an emergent classification system. This qualitative study is based on ethnographic interviews, the minimal literature available on the topic, and participant observation drawn from fieldwork conducted in the Kachin State of Northern Burma (modern day Myanmar) during the months of May …

Neoliberal Ideologies And Cultural Models Of Work Among Young French And American Business Students And Professionals: A Study In Institutional Change And Cultural Meaning, Nolan Y. Ferar

Pomona Senior Theses

In this thesis I analyze semi-structured interviews I conducted with fifteen young French and American business students and professionals in order to uncover cultural models relating to work, while paying particular attention to the acceptance or rejection of neoliberal ideas. To contextualize the analysis, I first review the history of neoliberal ideology along with its arrival and political and institutional influence in both countries. In the U.S., the neoliberal transition was rapid and dramatic under the Reagan administration, which constitutes a critical institutional juncture and a shift in the dominant paradigm of governance. In France, in contrast, neoliberal policies have …

Migration For Education: Haitian University Students In The Dominican Republic, Jenny Miner

Pomona Senior Theses

Haitian university students represent a part of the increasing diversity of Haitian migrants in the Dominican Republic. Using an ethnographic approach, I explore university students’ motivations for studying in the Dominican Republic, their experiences at Dominican universities and in Dominican society, Haitian student organizations, and their future plans. Additionally, I focus on Haitian students’ experiences with discrimination and how they relate to other Haitian migrants in the Dominican Republic. I find that most students come to the Dominican Republic due to the difficulty of gaining entrance to affordable Haitian universities and logistical convenience. The university is a unique setting where …

New Hampshire College's World War I Training Camp: An Archaeological Investigation, Jillian M. Price

Honors Theses and Capstones

In May 1918, New Hampshire College received the first of five detachments of World War I draftees to their newly-established training camp. Under a War Department program that converted colleges to vocational training centers, these men trained as army carpenters, engineers, electricians, and mechanics. During their stay on campus, these men built two barracks to serve as their own housing. In the summer of 2012, and archaeological investigation uncovered the remains of these barracks, recovering architectural materials and evidence of soldiers' leisure activities. This paper discusses the history of the vocational training camp program, analyzes its impact on local communities …

Bicultural Living: Maria Luisa Mainou’S Experience With Immigration And Cultural Change, Alicia Gummess '13

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

This essay provides a brief glimpse into the life of Maria Luisa Zamudio Mainou, a Mexican immigrant living in the U.S. as a legal permanent resident (LPR). Maria Luisa lives in an American home in the Midwest. She works at Illinois State University in the bicultural-bilingual studies department, a career that puts her into frequent contact with Latino students and other people interested in important issues relating to the Latino community. Her work gives her particular reason to want to be involved in this study, and her story offers rich insights into the ways in which a bicultural perspective can …

The Long Road To Becoming American: One Kenyan’S Immigration Journey Filled With Perseverance, Discrimination, And Student Visa Restrictions, Katelyn Eichinger '14

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

This study focuses on the story of one immigrant, Mid-hat Abdulrehman, and how he came to America and the problems he encountered along the way. Mid-hat is a Kenyan immigrant from the town of Lamu on the East African coast.

An American Who Emigrated From Poland: The Significance Of Education And Family Support In The Acculturation Process, Stephanie Pierson '13

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

Through part of the “Becoming American” project, I collaborated with Justyna (Koscielniak) Gano, who is a senior at Illinois Wesleyan University. This collaborative research focuses on Justyna’s acculturation process, detailing her journey to America and the challenges she and her family have faced as immigrants. It also emphasizes the importance of family support in Justyna’s search for success in America.

A Nation In Its Prime: A Pentadic Study Of Walt Disney World's Main Street, U.S.A., Casey Guise

Masters Theses

The purpose of this paper is to consider the entrance to Walt Disney World, Main Street, U.S.A., as a rhetorical text and apply Kenneth Burke's dramatistic pentad. Background is provided on rhetorical theory and The Disney Company. Meanings are derived from messages interpreted using semiotics and symbolic interaction within the location. The significance of Main Street, U.S.A., as a replica of historic architecture and an illustration of revival architecture in creating emotive messages is discussed. Further discussion includes the implications of this study on corporations and the field of rhetorical studies in addition to suggestions for further research.

Between Drama And Danger: The Effects Of Latino Second Graders' Identities On Gendered Patterns In School Success, Sam Panepinto , '13

Senior Theses, Projects, and Awards

In this study, I used participant observation in a second-grade Sheltered English Immersion classroom to investigate how race and gender identities in elementary school may be affecting the gendered achievement gap among Latino students in high school. I spent two weeks working closely with the teacher in this classroom, and gathered data on standardized test scores, discipline in the classroom, and achievement in the classroom as they related to gender.

I found that, while boys and girls acted out at about an equal rate, boys who acted out did so frequently and severely, while nearly all girls acted out, but …

The Age Of Consumption: A Study Of Consumer (And Producer) Behavior And The Household, Stephen A. Damm

Masters Theses

While anthropologists have often emphasized the importance of factors such as the household's age, lifecycle, and kinship within the context of the wider community, archaeologists have paid less attention to these factors. Using data from the excavations of eighteen farms in the Finger Lakes National Forest, occupied from the 19th century into the 1930s, I examine how household age influenced the consumer choices made by a sample of households and how aspects of production and consumption were prioritized within this context. By examining broad patterns in the archaeological and historic data, an age-based analysis as a young/old categorization is juxtaposed …

American Beisbol: How Cultural Differences Help Explain Different Approaches To Game Playing, Derek Jackson

Masters Theses

The purpose of this thesis project is to examine the effect of culturally derived game strategies on the success level of players in the game of baseball. Specifically, I look at both the influence of how various Latin American cultures teach the game in order to better ensure success of players at the MLB level versus how the game is taught in the United States and Japan. In this way I develop a feedback model in which these game strategies perpetuate a cycle of enculturation that further reinforces cultural/ethnic identities. In order to accomplish this goal I look at the …

Experimentation In Sling Weaponry: Effectiveness Of And Archaeological Implications For A World-Wide Primitive Technology, Eric T. Skov

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

The sling is a simple, cheap and effective weapon that was widely distributed among prehistoric and historic populations. Well-known archaeological and textual evidence attests to its widespread military usage in Europe, South America, andCentral America. However, ethnographic and archaeological evidence also suggest that the sling was widely distributed among Native American populations. Experimentation presented herein suggests that previous scholarship and experimental efforts have significantly underestimated potential velocity, range and potential damage to target organisms. Given the world-wide distribution of sling technology, revision of basic assumptions of weapon capability can have a profound effect on interpretation of archaeological problems internationally and …

News - Georgia State University - Gsu Library Receives $210,000 Neh Grant, Christian J. Steinmetz

Georgia Library Quarterly

Georgia State University Library recently received a $210,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for “Planning Atlanta: A New City in the Making, 1930s – 1990s”, submitted by librarian Joe Hurley (Principal Investigator) and history professor Kate Wilson (co-PI).

Global Futures And Government Towns: Phosphates And The Production Of Western Sahara As A Space Of Contention, Mark Drury

Publications and Research

The study of natural resources lends itself to theorizing the politics of nature and the politics of time. The space of Western Sahara, where both remain highly contested, provides an opportunity to consider the ramifications of resources in political conflict at different historical moments. Drawing from environmental histories of North Africa and the Sahara, as well as the anthropology of time, the author focuses on two historical moments. The first, from 1945 to 1972, concerns the discovery of phosphate deposits during the Spanish colonial period and the implications of this discovery for political authority in the Sahara more broadly. The …

Folklorist In The Parks - Natural Bridge State Resort Park (Fa 605), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 605. Project conducted in Powell, Wolfe and Lee Counties and Natural Bridge State Resort Park to identify and utilize local folk artists and performers. Materials include fieldnotes, promotional materials, and audio interviews on cassette tapes with traditional artists.