Cities and Urban Lives (L6076)
Cities and Urban Lives
Module L6076
Module details for 2021/22.
15 credits
FHEQ Level 5
Module Outline
The module introduces students to literature and debates in the fields of urban anthropology and anthropology of the city. It explores historical processes of urbanization, focusing on the spatial, cultural, political and social characteristics of the modern cities, as well as on the experiences of everyday urban life in cities across the world. A comparative analysis of the diversity of urban forms and experiences based on specific case studies is deployed to engage with theories ascribing universal characteristics to modern urban society and culture.
Topics covered in this module include:
Urban Anthropology and Anthropology of the City: methodological and epistemological challenges
From Nomadism to Modern City: the long march of urbanization
Pre-modern cities: spiritual economies and cosmopolitan spaces
The Colonial and the Colonised City: the spatialization of hierarchies
Capitalism, (de)industrialization and the modern city: urban economies
Modern Urban Cultures: from street corner society to urban gangs
Modern Urban Politics: revolutions, revolts and protests
Globalisation, neo-liberalism and the city: the (re)making of class privilege and exclusion
Post-modern cityscapes: skyscrapers, shopping malls and slums
Materialities of urban life-worlds: crowds, traffic, leisure, etc.
Module learning outcomes
To demonstrate knowledge/understanding of anthropological approaches to understanding cities and urban lives.
To analyse/evaluate/assess main theoretical debates in the fields of urban anthropology and anthropology of the city, and have an awareness of the history of these debates and how specific theoretical trends have developed over time.
To relate theory to specific ethnographic contexts in the analysis of the spatial, cultural, political and social characteristics of the modern cities.
To evaluate/compare strengths and weaknesses of anthropological theories developed and deployed to understand urban spaces and urban lives.
| Type | Timing | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Essay (3000 words) | Semester 2 Assessment Week 2 Tue 16:00 | 100.00% |
Timing
Submission deadlines may vary for different types of assignment/groups of students.
Weighting
Coursework components (if listed) total 100% of the overall coursework weighting value.
| Term | Method | Duration | Week pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Semester | Lecture | 2 hours | 11111111111 |
| Spring Semester | Seminar | 1 hour | 11111111111 |
How to read the week pattern
The numbers indicate the weeks of the term and how many events take place each week.
Miss Susan Chater
Assess convenor
/profiles/336740
Mx Emilia Moscardini-Powers
Assess convenor
/profiles/214700
Dr Stuart Cartland
Assess convenor, Convenor
/profiles/460557
Dr James McMurray
Assess convenor
/profiles/244445
Miss Camila Supervielle
Assess convenor
/profiles/535431
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