Department of Anthropology
Dr. Michele Rivkin-Fish
Office hours: T 1-3 and by appt.
Phone: 962-3353
Email: mrfish@unc.edu
Ant 499:001:
Health and Gender After Socialism
M W F 1-1:50
Alumni
Hall 207
Fall 2006
When the
What can an anthropological analysis of public health
and gender reveal about the complex processes of building new
political-economic systems based on democracy and market reforms? As health
indicators continued to decline over the last 15 years, scores of analyses have
been published to try and explain the post-Soviet health crisis, and numerous
international and domestic projects have been implemented to try and reverse
its various aspects. At stake in these efforts are representations of the
socialist system and process of democratization, the workings of global and
local health development programs, as well as the political-economic interests
of a variety of competing actors.
This course examines
the experiences of post-socialist countries as a means of understanding the
relationship between political-economic, social, and cultural transitions, on
the one hand, and challenges in public health and gender relations, on the
other. Our focus is on Eastern Europe, but select case studies from
There is 1 required book and 1 suggested book for
the course.
Required: Rivkin-Fish,
Michele 2005. Women’s Health in Post-Soviet
Suggested
(we will read several articles from this text and it will be a good resource
for your review essays) Gal, Susan, and Kligman, Gail. 2000. Reproducing
Gender: Politics, Publics, and Everyday Life after Socialism.
In addition, articles will be available on reserve in the library or at
a convenient site in Alumni Hall.
Course Requirements:
1) Consistent attendance and active participation is required. Thoughtful participation based on the course readings counts for 15% of your grade.
Three (3) unexcused absences will result in the loss of 10% of your final grade. The following are acceptable reasons for excused absences: 1) serious illness; 2) illness or death of a family member; 3) University related trips. For any of these absences you need to provide me with written document stating the date of and reason for the absence, signed by a doctor or other official, with a contact phone number where I can reach them. Additionally, you may be excused for major religious holidays that the University has not officially recognized.
2) Leading Class
Discussions: Once during each of our four themes, you will be responsible
for leading class discussion of the readings. Your responsibilities include
preparing a list of 5-7 written questions on the readings that are designed to
elicit the main issues in the texts, key debates they involve, and/or critiques
you may have of the article. In addition to these questions, you should prepare
a brief introductory discussion of links between the week’s articles,
comparisons/contrasts with other course readings, and other issues of
disciplinary or thematic concern.
These 4 exercises count for 10%
each or a total of 40% of your grade.
3) Three preliminary
literature review essays & presentations on a topic of your
choice that is related to the latter 3 class themes (reproduction, sexuality,
masculinities). Instructions for these assignments (written and oral
components) are below. These essays/presentations count for 15% each or
45% of your grade.
Instructions for Research Papers:
Preliminary Literature
Reviews and Concept Papers: This is
your opportunity to explore an area of personal interest regarding gender and
health after socialism. You will undertake preliminary literature reviews on
topics of your choice that are broadly related to each of the 3 themes of our
class (reproduction, sexuality, and masculinity and men’s health). You must
use at least three scholarly articles (or one entire book) for each research
paper.
Please organize your
research paper in the following way:
1) Introduction:
Describe the topic of the study both empirically and theoretically and justify
its importance.
2) Review the existing
literature on the subject by summarizing the findings of the articles
you’ve found, discussing their disciplinary approaches (theory and method), and
the broader debates they are partaking in.
3) Compare and contrast
the findings of your research with the readings we have done in class. Refer
specifically to our readings.
4) Develop an anthropological critique
of the issue, either by raising concerns about the assumptions and blind spots
of the existing literature, and/or by re-conceptualizing how an anthropological
study of the topic might proceed.
5) Conclude by
describing your personal reaction to the articles and topics.
Instructions for Oral Presentations
Students
will make oral presentations on their research projects this semester.
Presentations should be interesting, involving, and informative to the
class. The research projects are intended to offer you an opportunity to
explore issues of your personal interest, and I hope the oral presentations
will stimulate interesting discussions on these topics. Oral presentations
should be conducted in the following way:
1) Introduction: Begin
with the research question, problem, or paradox that captured your interest in
the issue being examined. Capture your audience’s interest from the beginning!
2) Summarize the literature review you undertook, highlighting the
most interesting, unexpected, and/or problematic aspects of the studies you’ve
read.
3) Compare/ contrast your findings with those in the course readings
and with the anthropological approach being developed in class.
4) Conclusion:
Summarize your main points again and offer some comments on what further issues
you would be interested in exploring, what new questions were raised for you in
this study, and what problems you found with the material you examined. Your
presentation can be critical of the data available, and can suggest new sets of
questions that need to be examined! You may also describe your personal
reactions to the material.
5) Question and Answer
Period: Ask for questions from the audience and engage the class in
discussion.
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Course Schedule: (Subject to Revision)
Introduction
Wed Aug 23- Fri. Aug. 25
Introduction
Wk 1 Aug 28-30-Sept.1
Introductory Departures:
Conceptualizing Health and the Aftermath of Socialism
Shlapentokh,
Tikhonova, Nataliia E. 2004.
“Social Exclusion in Russian Society” Sociological Research vol. 43,
no.3, pp.31-53.
Wk 2 NO CLASS Monday Sept. 4 LABOR DAY
Sept 6-8
Introductory Departures:
Conceptualizing Anthropological Approaches to Health
Kleinman, Arthur, and Adriana
Petryna, 2001. “Health, Anthropological Aspects” International Encyclopedia of
the Social and Behavioral Sciences.
Nguyen, Vinh-Kim, and Karine
Peschard 2003. “Anthropology, Inequality, and Disease: A Review” Annual Review
of Anthropology 32:447-74.
Wk 3
Sept.
Baranskaya, Natalya. 1974.”A Week Like Any Other
Week,” The
pp. 657-703.
Snitow, Ann. 1999. “Cautionary Tales” Proceedings of the
93rd Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law March 24-27, pp.35-42.
Wk 4
Sept 18-20-22
Introductory Departures:
Coping and Creating Gendered Identities in a Market Society
Marody and Giza-Poleszczuk,
2000. “Changing Images of Identity in
Kovacs,
Katalin and Monika Varadi, “Women’s Life Trajectories and Class Formation in
Burowoy, Michael, Tatiana
Lytkina, et al. “Involution and Destitution in Capitalist Russia” Ethnography
vol.1 No. 1, pp.43-65.
Theme 1: Reproduction
Wk 5
Sept. 25-27-29
Reproductive Politics after the Cold War
Rivkin-Fish,
Michele 2005. Women’s Health in Post-Soviet Russia: The Politics of
Intervention. Chapter 1
Zielinska,
Eleonora, 2000. “Between Ideology, Politics, and Common Sense: The Discourse of
Reproductive Rights in
Wolchik,
Sharon. “Reproductive Policies in the Czech and
Wk 6 October 2
No Class Yom Kippur
Oct 4-6
Reproductive Health Services and the Reproduction of Cultural
Strategies
Chapters
4, 5, & 6.
Farquar, Judith. 1996.
“Market Magic: Getting Rich and Getting Personal in Medicine after Mao.” American Ethnologist 23(2): 239-257.
Wk 7
Oct
Reproduction and Totalitarian Aftermaths: The Case of
Kligman,
Gail. 1998. The Politics of Duplicity: Controlling Reproduction in
Ceausescu’s Romania.
Baban, Adriana 2000. “Women’s Sexuality and Reproductive Behavior in
Post-Ceausescu Romania: A Psychological Approach” in Reproducing Gender,
eds. Gal and Kligman pp. 225-255.
Wk 8
Oct 16 ------No Class Wed- Fri. Oct. 18-20 Fall Break
Domestic Violence and Gender Politics: Struggles for a
Voice, Struggles for Change
Zakirova,
Venera 2005. “War Against the Family: Domestic Violence and Human Rights in
Mrsevic,
Zorica, “
Hemment,
Julie. 2004. “Global Civil Society and the Local Costs of Belonging: Defining
Violence Against Women in
Theme 2: Sexuality
Wk 9
Oct 23-25-27
Sex and the Policing of Morality
Kon, Igor, 1995. The Sexual Revolution in
Optional:
Farquar, Judith 2002 Appetites: Food and Sex in Post-Socialist
(Research Papers and Oral Presentations on
Reproduction Theme Due Monday; First Session of Oral Presentations – Monday).
Wk 10
Oct.30-Nov.1-3
Sexually Transmitted Infections, Social Control and
Cultural Meanings
Goodwin,
et.al, 2003 “Social Representations of HIV/AIDS in Central and
Hyde, Sandra. 2002 “The
Cultural Politics of HIV/AIDS and the
Hyde, Sandra.
2000 “Selling Sex and Side-stepping the State: Prostitutes, Condoms, and
HIV/AIDS Prevention in
Theme 3 Masculinities and the Crisis in Male Mortality
Wk 12
Nov
Conceptualizing the Causes, Representing the Problems
Eberstadt, “
http://policyreview.org/jun99/eberstadt_print.html
Watson, Peggy 1995.
“Explaining Rising Mortality Among Men in
(Research Papers Due; Second Session of Oral
Presentations – Monday).
Wk 12
Nov 13-15-17
Reconstructing Masculinity after Socialism
Kukhterin, Sergei “Fathers
and Patriarchs in Communist and Post-Communist Russia” In Sarah Ashwin, ed. Gender,
State and Society in Soviet and Post-Soviet
Borenstein, Eliot 2006.
“Selling
Hashamova, Yana 2006.
Castrated Patriarchy, Violence, and Gender Hierarchies in Post-Soviet Film” in Gender and National Identity in Twentieth
Century Russian Culture. H. Goscilo and A. Lanoux, eds. pp.196-224.
Wk 13
Nov 20 (No school Thanksgiving Nov. 22-24)
Segal, Boris. 1991. “Soviet
Drinking Behavior” From The Drunken Society: Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in
the
Polowy, “Russian Women
Writing Alcoholism: The Sixties to the Present” in Postcommunism and the Body Politic, Ed.
Ellen E. Berry, NY: New York University Press, pp.267-295.
Pesmen, Dale 2000. “Standing Bottles, Washing Deals,
and Drinking for the Soul” in
Wk 14
Nov. 27-29-Dec. 1
TB, Prisons, and War: Class Marginality
Koch,
Paxson, Margaret. 2001. “The Ghosts of
War:
Wk 15
Dec.4-6
Discussions (Research
Papers Due; 3rd Session/Oral Presentations, wrap-up Wednesday.)