Seminar on Critical Theory and Anthropological Thought
Code: 101257Credits: 6
| Degree programme | Type | Course |
|---|---|---|
| Social and Cultural Anthropology | OP | 4 |
Contact lecturer
- Name :
- Laia Narciso Pedro
- Email :
- laia.narciso@uab.cat
Teaching staff
- Isabel Graupera Gargallo
- José Mansilla Lopez
Group languages
You can consult this information at the end of the document.
Prerequisites
There are no academic prerequisites. Students must be available to travel to Barcelona, as Friday classes will be held at the Museum of Ethnology and World Cultures.
Objectives
This seminar aims to introduce students to the main debates in contemporary critical theory through an anthropological approach to art, tourism, museums, and cultural heritage. In collaboration with the Ethnological and World Cultures Museum, students will work on exhibition displays, museum narratives, guided visits, and other forms of heritage mediation, and will develop proposals for their review, improvement, or transformation using the conceptual and methodological tools of anthropology. In this way, the course combines critical reflection with the application of knowledge to real situations and challenges in museum and heritage contexts, with a professional orientation.
The specific objectives of the course are:
- To understand and critically analyse the main anthropological and critical theory perspectives applied to the study of art, tourism, museums, and cultural heritage.
- To understand heritage-making processes as social, cultural, and political processes, paying attention to the power relations, conflicts, and contemporary debates that shape them.
- To understand and analyse the processes involved in the conceptualisation, production, and mediation of art exhibitions with ethnographic content, paying attention to the curatorial, narrative, and museographic decisions involved.
- To apply the concepts, perspectives, and methodological tools covered in the course to the analysis of real cases and challenges, and to develop well-founded proposals for the review, improvement, or transformation of narratives, visits, and other forms of heritage mediation.
Learning outcomes
- Identifying the transcultural variability of economic, kinship, political, symbolic and cognitive, educational and gender systems as well as their corresponding anthropological theory.
- Summarizing the characteristics of a written text in accordance to its communicative purposes.
- Applying the current ethical codes to the ethnographic fieldwork.
- Using suitable terminology when drawing up an academic text.
- Carrying out oral presentations using appropriate academic vocabulary and style.
- Recognising the ethical implications of the ethnological relationships established during the fieldwork internship.
- Relating elements and factors involved in the development of scientific processes.
- Recognising the ethical implications of the investigations aimed at basic objectives.
- Providing a context for a research related to the state of its concerning anthropological theory .
- Classifying and defining different transcultural comparison procedures.
- Critically considering and trying to avoid ethnocentric projections in theory building.
- Plan work effectively, individually or in groups, in order to fulfil the planned objectives.
- Effectively working in teams and respecting different opinions.
- Assess the reliability of sources, select important data and cross-check information.
- Weigh up the impact of any long- or short-term difficulty, harm or discrimination that could be caused to certain persons or groups by the actions or projects.
- Critically analyse the principles, values and procedures that govern the exercise of the profession.
- Explain the explicit or implicit code of practice of one's own area of knowledge.
- Identify main and secondary ideas and express them with linguistic correctness.
- Identify situations that require improvement or change.
- Weigh up the risks and opportunities of both one's own and other people's proposals for improvement.
Contents
From Critical Theory to Practice: Art, Tourism, Museums, Heritage, and Mediation
The course critically examines the processes through which certain objects, practices, spaces, and cultural expressions are selected, represented, preserved, and transformed into heritage, as well as the power relations, inequalities, and controversies that these processes may generate.
The course will combine theoretical discussion and ethnographic analysis with case studies and applied exercises linked to real situations and challenges faced by museums and heritage institutions.
The course is structured into three interconnected modules that bring together critical reflection, the analysis of exhibition-making processes, and applied work on heritage mediation practices and devices.
Module I. Critical Theory, Tourism, Heritage, and Conflict
This module introduces a critical perspective on the processes through which heritage is constructed, legitimised, and activated. Heritage will be approached as a field of social and political relations involving different actors, institutions, interests, and discourses. The module will explore the relationships between heritage, tourism, memory, identity, territory, and power, as well as the conflicts and controversies that emerge around the social uses of heritage.
Drawing on perspectives from anthropology and critical theory, the module will examine processes of heritage-making, touristification, commodification, and urban transformation, as well as disputes over the uses, meanings, and appropriation of heritage spaces and assets.
Module II. From Ethnographic Research to Exhibition: Art, Representation, and Curatorial Practice
This module examines the process of conceptualising and producing an art exhibition with ethnographic content. It will analyse the process from research and the construction of the object of study to the selection of materials, the development of the curatorial narrative, museographic decisions, and engagement with different audiences.
Through the analysis of exhibition experiences, the module will explore the possibilities and tensions arising from the dialogue between contemporary art and anthropology. Particular attention will be paid to issues such as the representation of otherness, authorship and ethnographic authority, the relationship between research, creation, and exhibition-making, curatorial decisions, and the translation of ethnographic knowledge into exhibition narratives and forms.
Module III. The Museum as a Critical Space: Narratives, Audiences, and Heritage Mediation
This module focuses on the museum as an institution that produces knowledge, represents culture, and intervenes in the public sphere. It will critically examine museum narratives, exhibition displays, and the different forms of mediation between collections, institutional discourses, and audiences.
The module will have an applied focus and will be developed in direct engagement with the museum context.
Learning activities and methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tutorials | 5 | 0.2 | 1, 5, 6, 7, 9, 12, 16, 20 |
| Preparation and presentation of essays | 50 | 2 | 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 14 |
| Master classes and conferences | 10 | 0.4 | 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 |
| Seminars (presentation of texts and discussion) | 20 | 0.8 | 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 18 |
| Debates and discussions | 15 | 0.6 | 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11, 14, 18, 19 |
| Analysis of materials and personal work | 50 | 2 | 1, 2, 7, 8, 9 |
Laboratory of Critical Theory Applied to Museums and Heritage
The course adopts a Theory Meets Practice approach, understood as the articulation of critical theoretical reflection with the analysis of real situations, problems, and challenges in museum and heritage contexts. The concepts and debates explored in the seminar will be applied to the analysis of exhibition displays, museum narratives, guided visits, and other forms of heritage mediation. Building on this work, students will undertake analytical exercises and develop proposals for review, improvement, or transformation in response to challenges arising from the museum context.
On Wednesdays, the laboratory sessions will take place in a classroom at the UAB, combining conceptual discussion with the analysis of contemporary cases. Activities will include discussions of texts and audiovisual materials, case analysis, lectures and presentations of real-world experiences, as well as supervised activities.
On Fridays, sessions will take place directly at the museum. Students will work on real situations and challenges related to guided visits, itineraries, narratives, interpretive resources, and other forms of heritage mediation. Drawing on observation, critical analysis, and the conceptual and methodological tools developed throughout the course, students will formulate well-founded proposals for review, improvement, or transformation.
Assessment
Continuous assessment activities
| Title | Weight | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Curatorial Analysis Exercise and Oral Presentation | 15% | 0 | 0 | 2, 5, 7, 9, 12, 13, 17, 18 |
| Group analysis and review challenge | 30% | 0 | 0 | 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20 |
| Participation in the laboratory activities and conferences | 20% | 0 | 0 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 17, 18 |
| Portfolio of critical analysis | 35% | 0 | 0 | 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20 |
CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT
Assessment in this course is understood as a continuous and progressive process extending throughout the teaching period. At the beginning of the course, students will be provided with a calendar of assessment activities. Specific instructions and guidelines for each activity, submission and completion formats, and detailed assessment rubrics or criteria will be published on the Virtual Campus.
Continuous assessment will consist of the following activities:
Critical Analysis Portfolio (35% of the final grade)
Students will prepare an individual portfolio containing a selection of activities, analytical exercises, and reflections developed during the course. It may include critical commentaries on readings, case analyses, observation exercises, and other activities involving the application of the concepts and perspectives explored in the laboratory.
Curatorial Analysis Exercise and Oral Presentation (15% of the final grade)
Students will undertake an exercise analysing the conceptualisation, production, and mediation of an art exhibition with ethnographic content. The activity will examine the relationships between ethnographic research, artistic creation, and curatorial practice, as well as the narrative, exhibition, and museographic decisions involved in the development of an exhibition. The exercise will include an oral presentation in which students will present and discuss the results of their analysis.
Participation and Activities in the Mediation Laboratory (20% of the final grade)
As part of the mediation laboratory, students will participate in observation, analysis, and discussion activities related to real situations and challenges in museum and heritage contexts. Activities may include the analysis of exhibition displays, museum narratives, guided visits, itineraries, interpretive resources, and other forms of heritage mediation.
Assessment will take into account students’ preparation for and completion of the proposed activities, their observation and analytical skills, their ability to apply the concepts and methodological tools developed during the course, their capacity for argumentation, and their informed participation in laboratory activities and discussions.
Group Analysis and Review Challenge (30% of the final grade)
Students will work in groups on the analysis of a specific challenge related to a museum or heritage context. The project will be based on real situations, practices, or needs and may address, among other issues, museum narratives, guided visits, itineraries, exhibition displays, interpretive resources, or other forms of heritage mediation. Drawing on the conceptual and methodological tools developed during the course, groups will produce a critical diagnosis of the challenge and a well-founded proposal for its review, improvement, or transformation.
To pass the course, students must obtain a minimum final grade of 5 out of 10, calculated as the weighted average of the different assessment activities.
REVIEW OF GRADES
At the time of each assessment activity, teaching staff will inform students, through the Virtual Campus, of the procedure and date for the review of grades.
“NOT ASSESSABLE” GRADE
Students will receive a “Not assessable” grade if they have completed or submitted assessment activities accounting for 30% or less of the final grade for the course.
REASSESSMENT
Students who have failed the course may be eligible for reassessment provided that they meet the criteria for being assessable and have obtained a minimum final grade of 3.5 out of 10.
The Critical Analysis Portfolio, the Curatorial Analysis Exercise, and the Group Analysis and Review Challenge may be reassessed. In the case of group activities or activities involving an oral presentation, reassessment may consist of an equivalent individual activity that allows students to demonstrate the corresponding learning outcomes. The characteristics and procedures of reassessment activities will be specified by the teaching staff.
Participation and activities in the Mediation Laboratory cannot be reassessed due to their continuous nature and their close connection with the development of course sessions and activities.
Assessment activities in which academic misconduct has occurred cannot be reassessed.
EXCHANGE STUDENTS
Exchange students who request to take an assessment test or activity in advance must provide the teaching staff with written documentation from their home university justifying the request.
IRREGULARITIES IN ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES
If a student commits any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded for an assessment activity, that activity will be awarded a grade of 0, irrespective of any disciplinary proceedings that may be initiated. If several irregularities occur in assessment activities within the same course, the final grade for the course will be 0.
USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
In this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is permitted exclusively for support tasks, such as bibliographic or information searches, text correction, or translation. Students must clearly identify which parts have been generated using this technology, specify the tools used, and include a critical reflection on how these tools have influenced the process and the final outcome of the activity.
Failure to disclose the use of AI in an assessment activity will be considered a breach of academic integrity and may result in a partial or total penalty on the grade for the activity, or more serious sanctions in severe cases.
Bibliography
The following bibliography constitutes a selection of basic and cross-cutting references for the course as a whole. At the beginning of each module, specific bibliography related to its contents, case studies, and activities will be provided.
Bennett, Tony. 1995. The Birth of the Museum: History, Theory, Politics. London: Routledge.ISBN 10: 0-415-05387-0 (hbk)
Brown, Nicole. 2019. “Listen to Your Gut’: A Reflexive Approach to Data Analysis.” The Qualitative Report 24 (13): 31–43.
Clifford, James. 1988. The Predicament of Culture: Twentieth-Century Ethnography, Literature, and Art. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Clifford, James. 1997. “Museums as Contact Zones.” In Routes: Travel and Translation in the Late Twentieth Century, 188–219. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
García Canclini, Néstor. 1999. “Los usos sociales del patrimonio cultural.” In Patrimonio etnológico: Nuevas perspectivas de estudio, edited by Encarnación Aguilar Criado, 16–33. Sevilla: Instituto Andaluz del Patrimonio Histórico.
Gell, Alfred. 1998. Art and Agency: An Anthropological Theory. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Haraway, Donna. 1988. “Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective.” Feminist Studies 14 (3): 575–599.
hooks, bell. 1995. Art on My Mind: Visual Politics. New York: The New Press.
Karp, Ivan, and Steven D. Lavine, eds. 1991. Exhibiting Cultures: The Poetics and Politics of Museum Display. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.
Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, Barbara. 1998. Destination Culture: Tourism, Museums, and Heritage. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Lonetree, Amy. 2012. Decolonizing Museums: Representing Native America in National and Tribal Museums. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press
Macdonald, Sharon, ed. 2006. A Companion to Museum Studies. Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Marrero-Guillamón, Isaac, and Ethiraj Gabriel Dattatreyan. "Introduction: Multimodal anthropology and the politics of invention." American Anthropologist (2019).
Prats, Llorenç. 1997. Antropología y patrimonio. Barcelona: Ariel.
Smith, Laurajane. 2006. Uses of Heritage. London: Routledge.
Snyder, Kristen M., and Elizabeth F. Turesky. 2023. “Dancing the Data: A Duo-Ethnographic Exploration Toward Dialogic Reflexivity in Qualitative Data Analysis.” Qualitative Inquiry 29 (5): 558–570.
Software
There are no specific computer programs
Course groups and languages
The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE
| Type of teaching | Group | Language | Semester | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Catalan/Spanish | second semester | afternoon |
| (SEM) Seminars | 1 | Catalan/Spanish | second semester | afternoon |