INTS 380/ANTH 330 : People, Culture and Globalization in Oceania

This course engages students in an examination of how indigenous peoples of Oceania have been deeply engaged in global cultural, political, and economic processes since the time of their earliest encounters with representatives of the West. This class incorporates classic and contemporary studies from Anthropology and Pacific History together with the voices and views from islander writers and artists. Social science perspectives are helpful for understanding natural and cultural environments, cultural history and change, language issues, and current socioeconomic and educational issues facing the Islands today. Writers and artists can show how islanders are active in shaping their views of themselves, and the larger political-economic processes in which they participate. By combining these two points of view, the class will examine the tensions between cultural traditions and globalization and how we, as outsiders and as islanders, come to know and empathize with the peoples of Oceania.