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India: Power and Performance - ANTH301

In this unit a succession of lectures introduce you to India with a power/performance focus in mind. Many lectures will focus on religion as a field of power and performance. We will look at broad cultural themes such as experiences of divinity in different strands of Hinduism, caste and its performance as well as its forms of contestation in pre-modern India as well as in modern India, and the syncretic popular traditions of Islam which historically drew strength from local practices rather than simply seeking to displace them. A special lecture on food traces pleasure and performance of power. We examine Indian cinema in relation not only to 'Bollywood' but a hundred year old history through which we can trace phases of nation building and the workings of gender. The course emphasises bodily experience for students, through the use of visits to temples, to little India for a food experience, and basic lessons in dance moves.

Credit Points: 3
When Offered:

S2 Day - Session 2, North Ryde, Day

Staff Contact(s): Associate Professor Kalpana Ram
Prerequisites:

(39cp at 100 level or above) or admission to GDipArts  Prerequisite Information

Corequisites:

NCCW(s): ANTH360
Unit Designation(s):

Science

Unit Type:
Assessed As: Graded
Offered By:

Department of Anthropology

Faculty of Arts

Course structures, including unit offerings, are subject to change.
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