Anthropology Commons^™

King, Diane E. Kurdistan On The Global Stage: Kinship, Land, And Community In Iraq. New Brunswick, New Jersey, And London: Rutgers University Press, 2013., Farhan Hanif Siddiqi Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Ringmar, Erik. Liberal Barbarism: The European Destruction Of The Palace Of The Emperor Of China By Erik Ringmar, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013., Irmy Schweiger Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Middle East Research Institute. Iran: Meri Report. Middle East Research Institute Routledge Revivals. New York: Routledge, 2015., Maryam Kamali

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Allison, A. Precarious Japan. Durham, Nc: Duke University Press, 2013., Wayne E. Arnold Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

The Tragedy Of The Search For Security, Charmaine Misalucha-Willoughby

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review on:

• Francois Debrix and Alexander D. Barder. Beyond Biopolitics: Theory, Violence, and Horror in World Politics. London and New York: Routledge, 2012.
• Vivienne Jabri. The Postcolonial Subject: Claiming Politics/Governing Others in Late Modernity. London and New York: Routledge, 2013.
• Daniel Rothbart, Karina V. Korostelina, and Mohammed D. Cherkaoui, eds. Civilians and Modern War: Armed Conflict and the Ideology of Violence. London and New York: Routledge, 2012.

Hunt, Michael H. & Levine, Steven I. Arc Of Empire: America’S Wars In Asia From The Philippines To Vietnam. Chapel Hill: The University Of North Carolina Press, 2012., Hsiang-Wang Liu Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Dickson, H. R. P. The Arab Of The Desert: A Glimpse Into Bedawin Life In Kuwait And Saudi Arabia. London: Routledge, 2015., Daniel Martin Varisco Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Casavantes Bradford, A. The Revolution Is For The Children: The Politics Of Childhood In Havana And Miami, 1959-1962. Chapel Hill: The University Of North Carolina Press, 2014., Maximiliano E. Korstanje

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Alizadeh, P. & Hassan Hakimian (Eds.). Iran And The Global Economy: Petro Populism, Islam And Economic Sanctions. London And New York: Routledge, 2014., Sina Ansari Eshlaghi, Ariane Sadjed Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Hussein, C. The Re-Emergence Of The Single State Solution In Palestine/Israel. London And New York: Routledge, 2015., Muhammad Yaseen Gada Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Bahramitash, R. & Hooglund, E. (Eds.). Gender In Contemporary Iran: Pushing The Boundaries. New York And London: Routledge, 2011., Kathleen Foody Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Middle East Research Institute. Kuwait: Meri Report. Middle East Research Institute Routledge Revivals. New York: Routledge, 2015., Fadi Ragheb

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

Muborakshoeva, M. Routledge Contemporary South Asia Series: Islam And Higher Education. New York: Routledge Press, 2009., Ryan Guffey Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.

The Effects Of Wealth On Male Reproduction Among Monogamous Hunter-Fisher-Trappers In Northern Siberia, John P. Ziker, David A. Nolin, Joellie Rasmussen

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Variability in men’s reproductive success (RS) is partly attributable to the ability of successful men to influence resource flows relevant to the mate choice and reproduction of women. This study explores the effects of variability in resource flows on men’s RS in an indigenous foraging/mixed-economy community in northern Siberia where monogamous marriage norms predominate. A series of material, embodied, and relational wealth indicators are tested as predictors of men’s age-adjusted RS and age at first birth. Material wealth related to hunting, embodied wealth as represented by hunting skill, and relational wealth as represented by numbers of kin are the most …

Suzhi At The Margins: Minority Politics And Identity Among The Mosuo, Graham Link

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This anthropological study explores the socio-political discourse of suzhi among the Mosuo minority, occupying the Yongning Basin region between Yunnan and Sichuan. The concept of suzhi, translating roughly as ‘quality’, first appeared during the 1980s in the context of ‘population quality’ (renkou suzhi), which refers variously to the educational attainment, material development, or more abstract moral quality of a people (see Jacka, 2009). In terms of ethnicity in China, numerous other studies have already shown how discourses like suzhi have been deployed to construct ‘Han modernity’ vis-a-vis its ‘Other’, the ‘primitive’ minority (see Zukosky, 2011, also Jacka, 2009; Gladney, 1994). …

The Autonomy Of Chinese Migrants Despite Structural And Social Determinants, Helen Yu

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

China is currently undergoing one of the largest domestic migration movements in its history, as hundreds of millions of its citizens move out of their countryside homes into urban areas to seek work in the wake of the nation’s rapid globalization. This paper examines the lives of these migrants – how much agency they have over their decisions and their destinies while simultaneously subject to overarching controls set onto them by economic circumstance, government laws, and cultural traditions. It explores how they subvert tradition and former government policies by leaving home, and how they respond when confronted with discrimination in …

Reconciliation As A Form Of Cultural Catharsis: The Role Of Theater In Revitalizing Kosovo-Serbian Relations, Sarah Edwards

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The current state of Kosovo-Serbian relations is one of frozen conflict; Serbia does not recognize Kosovo independence and relations between the two communities are relatively stagnant in spite of the ongoing EU mediated political dialogue in Brussels. Thus, this paper aims to re-imagine traditional processes of reconciliation and conflict transformation between the two entities by situating it within the cultural realm of society and viewing theater as a transformative practice. In doing this, I ask in what ways theater can effectively engage with and foster processes of reconciliation between Kosovo and Serbia, while specifically analyzing two joint productions between Prishtina …

Uso, Impacto Y Futuro Del Mapudungun En La Comunidad De Chapod, Tierney Marey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study analyzes and investigates the current vitality and use of mapudungun, the endangered indigenous language of the Mapuche people, in the small rural community of Chapod in Southern Chile. This research then looks at a particular context within a larger global frame of mass language decline and extinction. With increasing numbers of languages becoming extinct linguists and other invested bodies are examining in more detail the state of the world’s languages and the impact of their decline, particularly in terms of cultural identity. As such this study specifically investigates the level of use and knowledge of the language within …

Instead Of Silence: Chinese Nicaraguans And The Formation Of Identity Across Two Cultures, Lisa Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project studies the ways in which Chinese Nicaraguans have developed their identity while living in a country that is not their motherland. It investigates the divided history and experiences between the Chinese Nicaraguans that lived in the Atlantic coast and those that lived in the Pacific side. Also, it researches how the experiences of Taiwanese immigrants differed from those of the Chinese Nicaraguans who came from mainland China. By examining interviews done with Chinese Nicaraguans today, the essay will compile the long and unknown history of the Chinese Nicaraguans, as well as their many experiences of belonging and displacement …

Hanoians’ Experience: Suspending Moral Bias To Recognize Human Dimensions Of War, Maggie Norsworthy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Talking about, and learning lessons from The American War in Vietnam can be a process whose genuine engagement requires a suspension—even if temporary—of moral and cultural biases that are embedded in the Western mindset. This research project is one that composes military strategy, government rhetoric, and very human accounts of war in Vietnam in order to understand how people in Hanoi experience and talk about war, with an ultimate aim of making some of these stories and lessons digestible to a Western audience.

My findings discuss some key components of the North Vietnamese mindset towards the American War in Vietnam: …

The Political Participation, Engagement, And Perceptions Of President Magufuli Among Students At The College Of African Wildlife Management, Carolyn Del Vecchio

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In 2015, John Pombe Magufuli won the Tanzanian presidential election, continuing on the 54-year reign of CCM, the political party founded by the country’s “father,” Julius Nyerere. Before the end of his political career, Nyerere had massive influence in selecting the future candidates of the CCM party that would take the presidential office. However, 2015 was the first election in which the CCM candidate was not selected, influenced, or supported by Nyerere. While CCM has been in power since independence, opposition parties have been steadily increasing in support. For this reason, the 2015 election was critical in determining whether Tanzanians …

Navigating Cape Town: A Poetic Cartography, Sam Lin-Sommer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Cape Town has long been the site of conflicts over urban space. This study explored the potentials of a place-based poetry workshop as a tool for critically engaging with the urban environment. With the assistance of a well-established local poet, the researcher facilitated a poetry workshop that brought three young and emerging poets to contested public spaces including District Six, Company Gardens, and Church Square. After the workshop, poets submitted their writing to the researcher, who compiled and narrated a poem that showcased the voices of these poets while drawing attention to salient ideas evoked by the poets’ work. The …

The Vibrant Traditions Of Masaya: El Mestizaje As A Culture, A Process, And A State Of Being, Isabelle Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

“The only constant in life is change.” What this old adage leaves out is that the processes that catalyze these changes can occur in vastly different ways which impact the product. In the case of the history of Masaya, Nicaragua, today’s dominant culture of mestizaje is the result of the arrival of the Spaniards to the Americas and the process of racial and cultural blend that followed between Spanish, indigenous and African peoples. But in this mixing process, Spaniards held disproportionate power: most of the changes they imposed were made through violent and deceptive imposition. Yet indigenous and African people …

The Annapurna Road: Development And Tourism On The Annapurna Circuit, Benjamin Skach

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Annapurna Circuit has oft been called one of the best treks in the world. Its popularity has brought countless trekkers to the region, resulting in a strong local dependence on tourism. In recent years, plan to develop rural regions of Nepal have resulted in extensive road networks being built along the route of the circuit. These roads have helped some locals and hurt others. This study investigates the implementation of the roads in Annapurna Conservation Area and the effects on both trekkers and locals. Further, it examines the New Alternative Trekking Trails that have been implemented along sections of …

Kompa As A Lesson In Value Or A Semi-Voyeristic Appreciation Of The Bamboo Basket In Dolpa, Maxwell Shaw-Jones

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This “study” explores two central topics: 1.) The logistics and details of basket weaving as both a skill and a business in Dolpa and 2.) The cultural value of the woven bamboo basket, also in Dolpa. My fieldwork started in lower Dolpa, (Dunai and Bysagar), peregrinated north into the Tarap Valley, and then returned back down to Dunai. From my research I attempt to provide an insight into the way people, of all walks of life in Dolpa, think and relate to this tool (kompa), and then attempt to derive larger moral implications from what I have observed. …

The Pedophile Prophet? Breathing A Culturally Relative Point Of View Into A Controversial Cultural Debate, Samuel S. Thompson

What All Americans Should Know About Women in the Muslim World

This work focuses on a controversial topic within women studies of the Islamic world, the very young marriage of Mohammad's second wife Aisha. The work attempts to meet the issue on level ground and explain that while this may seem as a spark on conflict between non-Muslim cultures and the Islamic world this marriage was not altogether that uncommon for the time.

The Myth Of “Sharia” And Child Marriage, Megan S. Luckenbaugh

What All Americans Should Know About Women in the Muslim World

In American media, the term "sharia law" is repetitively used as a reason behind practices and actions linked to Islam which would be considered counter to Western morals. The term "sharia" is first clarified as having many definitions, but in legal terms each Islamic nation has their own version of "sharia." Child marriage is one of many topics often blamed on "sharia" and this essay attempts to debunk the Western portrayal of "sharia" by exploring the reality of child marriage in some Islamic nations. The examples depict both situations in which the people, despite the laws, are actively keeping this …

Entrapment As A Threat To Community Peace In The Global War On Terror: An Analysis Of Discourse In Local Press, Priya Kapoor Ph.D., Adam Testerman, Alex Brehm

Journal of International and Global Studies

Our study tries to understand the phenomenon of Entrapment, which is an outcome of (a) security discourses that prioritize pre-emptive community strategies; (b) the ongoing military initiative of the Global War of Terror (GWOT); and (c) and the increased budgetary convergence of state agencies of the National Security Agency (NSA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the military, impacting the legal and court processes that indict “homegrown” terrorists. We offer a critical discourse analysis of the events that led to the arrest and trial of Mohamed Osman Mohamud, covered in local newspapers The Oregonian and The Willamette Week, after …

Saudi Arabia’S Raison D’Etre: A Challenge To The Authority Of The House Of Saud, Nima Baghdadi

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review on:

• Niblock, T. State, Society and Economy in Saudi Arabia. New York: Routledge, 2015.
• Helms, C. M. The Cohesion of Saudi Arabia. New York: Routledge, 2015.

Fung, Edmund S.K. & Steven Drakeley, (Eds.). Democracy In Eastern Asia: Issues, Problems, And Challenges In A Region Of Diversity. London And New York: Routledge, 2014., Sharon R. Wesocky Ph.D.

Journal of International and Global Studies

Book review.