Fall

 2017  

CONTEMPORARY  AFRICA  
ANTH  36  /  AAAS  44  
MWF  10:10-­‐11:15  
x  hour:  TH  12:15-­‐1:05  
Reed  108  
 
Professor  Sabrina  Billings  
Silsby  404  
Office  hours:  Wednesdays  and  Fridays  2-­‐3  and  by  appointment    
Email:  Sabrina.J.Billings@dartmouth.edu  
 
COURSE  OVERVIEW    
With  54  countries,  about  3000  languages,  and  a  population  of  a  billion  or  so,  Africa  is  an  
immensely  huge  and  diverse  continent.  With  units  such  as  Ethnicity,  Conservation,  &  Tourism,  
and  Health,  Bodies,  and  the  Ethics  of  Intervention,  this  class  will  crisscross  the  continent  in  order  
to  give  depth  and  breadth  students’  understanding  of  contemporary  life  and  culture  in  Africa  
while  introducing  them  to  key  debates  and  concerns  in  the  anthropology  of  Africa  today.    
Students  will  also  explore  African  arts  –  primarily  through  literature  and  film  –  and  analyze  
portrayals  of  Africa  and  Africans  in  the  media.    Students  will  learn  from  one  another  through  
collaborative  and  individual  activities  regarding  current  events  in  Africa.      
 
COURSE  GOALS  
1) To   gain   a   basic   knowledge   of   the   tremendous   cultural,   linguistic,   and   geographic  
diversity  that  exists  across  Africa.    
2) To  acquire  a  command  of  the  conceptual  and  theoretical  tools  used  in  anthropology  to  
understand  cultural  phenomena  in  Africa.      
3) To   become   familiar   with   contemporary   events   in   Africa   and   to   assess   the   reporting   of  
these  events  for  bias.  
4) To  analyze  the  linkages  between  small-­‐scale,  directly  observable  practices,  like  shopping  
at  the  market,  with  larger-­‐scale  processes  such  as  neoliberalism  and  transnationalism.      
5) To  engage  in  productive  and  respectful  ways  with  uncomfortable,  new,  and  challenging  
ideas.      
 
REQUIRED  BOOKS  
Ferguson,  James.    2006.  Global  Shadows:  Africa  in  the  Neoliberal  World  Order.    Duke.    
Holloway,  Kris.    2006.    Monique  and  the  Mango  Rains.    Waveland  Press.    
Huchu,  Tendai.    2010.    The  Hairdresser  of  Harare.    Ohio  University  Press.    
Spronk,  Rachel.    2012.    Ambiguous  Pleasures:  Sexuality  &  Middle  Class  Self-­‐Perceptions  In  
Nairobi.    Berghahn.    
 
Additional  readings  and  films  will  be  made  available  on  Canvas  and/or  through  library  reserve.      
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
COURSE  REQUIREMENTS  
Pop  quizzes:  25%  
There  will  be  pop  quizzes  throughout  the  quarter.    You  may  drop  the  lowest  score.    The  
purpose  of  these  quizzes  is  to  encourage  you  to  stay  on  top  of  the  readings  and  to  attend  class;  
no  makeup  quizzes  will  be  given.        
 
Map  of  Africa  quiz:  5%  
You  will  be  tested  on  the  contemporary  geopolitical  map  of  Africa  quiz.      A  link  to  an  up-­‐to-­‐date  
map  will  be  available  on  Canvas.      
 
Africa  in  the  News  analysis:  40%,  in  3  parts  
Students  will  choose  a  topic  related  to  African  culture  to  explore  in  terms  of  its  coverage  in  
mainstream  US  media.    More  information  will  be  provided  in  class.    
  Part  1:  Presentation,  in  themed  groups  (10%)  
  Part  2:  You  will  be  asked  to  write  TWO  brief  written  responses  to  two  separate  days  of  
  presentations,  other  than  your  own    (5%)  
  Part  3:  Written  analysis  of  your  own  project  (25%)  
 
At-­‐home  final  essay  exam:  30%  
There  will  be  an  at-­‐home  final  essay  exam,  to  be  submitted  via  Canvas.          
 
NOTE:  All  submitted  assignments  should  be  typed  in  12-­‐point  TIMES  font,  double-­‐  spaced  and  
normal  headings  and  margins.    Late  assignments  will  be  penalized  by  3%  per  day  late,  barring  
approved  excuse  (e.g.,  for  serious  illness,  death  in  the  family,  etc.).      
 
OTHER  MATTERS  
You  are  expected  to  come  to  class  prepared  and  ready  to  participate.      You  are  also  expected  
to  arrive  on  time  and  stay  the  entire  class  period.  You  should  arrive  having  completed  the  
assignment  for  the  day,  ready  to  share  your  thoughts  with  the  class  and  in  small  groups.        
 
Respect  in  academic  discourse  is  critical  in  this  class,  where  you  will  likely  encounter  ideas  that  
you  find  surprising  or  uncomfortable.    This  is  a  good  thing.    You  should  feel  free  to  express  
yourself,  respectfully;  at  the  same  time,  you  should  also  feel  free  –  again,  respectfully  -­‐  to  
challenge  ideas  with  which  you  disagree.      You  are  always  welcome  to  come  talk  with  me  during  
office  hours  if  you  have  any  concerns.  
 
Cell  phones,  tablets,  and  laptops  shouldn’t  be  used  in  class  unless  warranted  by  SAS.    
 
Uphold  Dartmouth’s  Principles  of  the  Community  http://student-­‐
affairs.dartmouth.edu/policy/principles-­‐community  -­‐  principle.    
 
Give  credit  where  credit  is  due.    https://students.dartmouth.edu/judicial-­‐
affairs/policy/academic-­‐honor-­‐principleand  http://writing-­‐
speech.dartmouth.edu/learning/materials/sources-­‐  and-­‐citations-­‐  dartmouth    
 
If  you  have  a  religious  observance  that  conflicts  with  your  participation  in  the  course,  please  
see  me  before  the  end  of  the  second  week  of  the  term  to  discuss  appropriate  accommodations.  

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Students  with  disabilities  who  may  need  disability-­‐related  academic  adjustments  and  services  
are  encouraged  to  see  me  privately  as  early  in  the  term  as  possible.  Students  requiring  disability-­‐
related  academic  adjustments  and  services  must  consult  the  Student  Accessibility  Services  office  
(205  Collis  Student  Center,  646-­‐9900).  Once  SAS  has  authorized  services,  students  must  show  
me  the  originally  signed  SAS  Services  and  Consent  Form  and/or  a  letter  on  SAS  letterhead.  As  a  
first  step,  if  you  have  questions  about  whether  you  qualify  to  receive  academic  adjustments  and  
services,  you  should  contact  the  SAS  office.  All  inquiries  and  discussions  will  remain  confidential.  
 
Please  be  patient  with  e-­‐mail.    I  try  to  respond  within  24  hours,  though  please  do  not  expect  a  
response  over  the  weekend.  
 
 
SCHEDULE  (subject  to  change)  
A  note  about  the  course  schedule:  The  schedule  posted  on  the  syllabus  is  TENTATIVE,  by  
design.    This  allows  some  flexibility  to  respond  to  student  interests,  current  events,  and  
other   influences,   so   that   our   readings   may   expand,   contract,   or   morph   on   any   given   class  
period.    The  final  word  for  what  is  due  will  come  directly  FROM  ME,  during  the  previous  
class   period,   and   should   also   be   reflected   on   Canvas.     If   you   are   not   sure   of   the  
assignment,  please  contact  a  classmate  for  this  information.      

WEEK  1  Introduction  to  the  Course  

Sept  11  
Guiding  questions:    
 How  do  we  go  about  studying  such  a  vast  and  diverse  continent,  responsibly?  What  knowledge  
and  questions  do  students  have  as  a  baseline  for  the  course?  What  are  the  goals  of  the  class,  
and  how  might  these  goals  stretch  beyond  Africa?      
 
Sept  13:  Looking  at  Africa  today  
Assignment:    
Wainaina  (2005)  
Lutz  &  Collins  (2003)  
Ferguson  (Introduction)  
 
Guiding  questions:    
What  vocabularies  and  frameworks  do  we  in  the  West  employ  when  talking  and  thinking  about  
Africa?    Where  do  these  vocabularies  come  from,  and  how  do  they  skew  portrayals  and  
understanding  of  African  lives?    Why  is  it  important  to  reflect  on  the  assumptions  that  they  
entail?      
   
Sept  15:  Imperial  encounters  (and  why  they  still  matter!)  
Assignment:    
Beoku-­‐Betts  (2005)  
Watch:  Africa  Episode  6  
 
Guiding  questions:    
What  were  some  of  the  types  of  people  who  went  to  Africa  during  the  Imperial  era,  and  why  did  
they  go?    How  did  the  type  of  person  travelling  to  the  continent  SHAPE  the  kinds  of  information  

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and  knowledge  that  came  out  of  those  travels?    What  role  did  gender  play?  What  kinds  of  
lasting  reverberations  did  these  early  encounters  have  on  anthropological,  scientific,  and  
popular  understandings  of  Africans  by  Westerners?    How  might  this  history  still  matter  today?    
 
WEEK  2  The  sociopolitics  and  anthropology  of  love  and  sexuality    
Sept  18:  Hairdresser  of  Harare:  The  past  in  the  present  
Assignment  
Huchu  (through  Ch.  14)  
Ferguson  (Ch.1)    
 
Guiding  questions  
How  are  colonialism  and  post-­‐colonial  politics  present  in  the  moment?    
     
Sept  20:  Hairdresser  of  Harare:  Love  and  sex  in  Africa,  and  in  anthropology    
Assignment    
Huchu  (Chapters  15-­‐28)  
Spronk  (Intro.  &  Ch.  1)  
Thomas  &  Cole  (optional)      
 
Guiding  questions:    
How  has  anthropology  framed  the  study  of  sexuality  in  Africa?    How  are  experiences  of  love  and  
sexuality  connected  with  the  broader  social,  political,  and  economic  environment?    
 
Sept  22:  Hairdresser  of  Harare  –  Homosexuality    
Assignment    
Huchu  (to  the  end)  
Msibi  (2011)  
Shoko  (2010)  
WATCH:  Woubi  Cheri  or  Stories  of  our  Lives  (pending  availability)  
 
Guiding  questions:    
What  is  the  difference  between  sexual  desire  and  sexual  identity?    How  is  the  notion  of  ‘coming  
out  of  the  closet’  based  on  culturally  specific  assumptions  and  circumstances?    What  currently  is  
being  done  in  Zimbabwe  and  elsewhere  to  protect  those  with  non-­‐conforming  sexualities?    
 
WEEK  3    HIV  TODAY  
Sept  25:  Trajectories  
Assignment  
Hunter  (2002)    
Spronk  Ch.  3  
 
Guiding  questions    
Why  has  HIV  been  so  devastating  to  certain  parts  of  the  continent,  and  to  certain  populations?    
How  are  cultural  practices  of  courtship,  sex,  work,  and  marriage  related  to  the  spread  of  the  
disease?          
 
 

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Sept  27:  Local  control  
Assignment  
Vincent  (2008)  
LeClerc-­‐Madlala  (2001)  
Watch:  Yesterday    
 
Guiding  questions    
How  have  local  populations  attempted  to  control  the  spread  of  the  disease?    How  are  these  
efforts  understood  to  be  connected  with  the  past?    Who  do  these  practices  benefit/harm?  How  
do  they  perpetuate  or  destabilize  the  status  quo?  How  do  they  coexist  with  other,  biomedical  
approaches  to  the  control  of  the  disease?    
 
Sept  29:  Africa  in  the  News  Presentations  
 
WEEK  4  Monique  and  the  Mango  Rains:  Health,  bodies,  and  the  ethics  of  intervention  
Oct  2:  Public  health    
Assignment  
Holloway,  through  pg.  102  
 
Guiding  questions    
What  are  some  of  the  health  challenges  facing  community  members  in  Monique’s  village?    How  
are  these  challenges  distributed  across  generation  and  gender?    What  mechanisms  are  in  place  
for  promoting  health?      
 
àMap  of  Africa  quiz  TODAY  
 
Oct  4:  Female  circumcision  
Assignment  
Holloway  (pages  103-­‐122)    
Gosselin  (2000)    
Watch:  Moolade    
 
Guiding  questions    
What  is  female  circumcision?    Can  we  draw  parallels  with  male  circumcision?    What  role  does  it  
play  in  cultural  and  social  life  in  Monique’s  village?    How  are  Western  discourses  about  female  
circumcision  reflective  on  Western  values  and  patterns  of  interactions  with  Africans?    
 
Oct  5  (x-­‐hour):    Biomedicine  and  ethical  engagements  
Assignment      
Holloway  (finish)  
Holten  &  Richters  (2011)  
 
Guiding  questions  
What  assumptions  are  often  in  play  when  the  West  intervenes  in  matters  of  health  in  Africa?    
What  are  the  effects  of  inserting  interventions  into  local  practices  and  beliefs?    Are  there  
responsible,  ethical  ways  to  help?    
 

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Oct  6  –  NO  CLASS  
 
WEEK  5  Ethnicity,  Conservation,  and  Tourism    
Oct  9:    Commodification  of  ethnicity  
Assignment    
Comaroff  &  Comaroff  Ch.  1  
Bruner  (2001)  
Watch:  Milking  the  Rhino  
 
Guiding  questions  
What  is  a  commodity?  How  is  ethnicity  framed  and  reshaped  for  the  purposes  of  claiming  
tourism  market  share?    How  do  such  conceptions  vary  and  even  clash  according  to  the  
stakeholders?    What  kinds  of  power  structures  are  involved  in  determining  which  conceptions  
win?  Who  loses?    
     
Oct  11:  Becoming  international,  becoming  indigenous  
Assignment  
Robins  (2001)  
Hodgson  (2011)  
 
Guiding  questions  
How  and  why  do  local  ethnic  groups  participate  in  international  groups?  How  does  such  
involvement  reframe  identities  as  indigenous?  Why  do  local  norms  undergo  shifts  on  the  
international  scale?    
   
Oct  13:  Community  impact  and  participation  
Assignment  
Igoe  (2006)    
Snyder  &  Sulle  (2011)    
 
Guiding  questions  
How  are  individual  communities,  and  particular  members  of  these  communities,  affected  
differentially  by  tourism?  Whose  voices  are  heard  above  others’,  and  why?    
 
Week  6:  Food    
Oct  16:  Food  and  power  
Assignment  
Holtzman  (2002)      
Gale  (2007)    
 
Guiding  questions  
How  are  the  production,  procurement,  preparation,  and  distribution  of  food  connected  with  
power  relations?  How  do  people  exercise  agency  to  alter  their  lives,  through  their  foodways?    
Oct  18:  Food,  pleasure  &  identity    
Assignment:    
Trapp  (2016)  
Olutayo  (2009)  

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Guiding  questions  
How  has  the  field  of  anthropology  tended  to  frame  its  study  of  food  in  Africa?      How  do  
preferences  in  food  reflect  and  construct  group  boundaries?    
 
Oct  19  (x-­‐hour):  Africa  in  the  News  Presentations  
 
Oct  20:  Vulnerability  and  resilience  
Assignment  
Tambwe  (2011)  
Baro  &  Deubel  (2006)  
Stambach  (2016)  
 
Guiding  questions:      
How  have  local  groups  shown  adaptability  in  managing  food  scarcity?    What  approaches  have  
international  organizations  taken  in  efforts  to  help?    
 
     
WEEK  7:  Urban  (Aspiring?)  Middle  Classes      
Oct  23:  Youth,  generation  &  economic  realities  
Assignment  
Cole  (2004)    
Spronk  Ch.  2  
 
Guiding  questions  
What  does  middle  class  mean?  How  do  generational  differences  play  a  part  in  how  lifestyles  are  
imagined,  realized,  and  contested?  How  have  international  and  domestic  economic  projects  
shaped  livelihoods  and  possibilities?  What  rites  of  passage  are  involved  in  becoming  adult?  
   
àDue  
Response  1  for  Africa  in  the  News  project.    Due  on  Canvas  by  11:59  PM.    
 
Oct  25:  Sexuality  &  career      
Assignment  
Spronk  Chapters  4  &  5  
 
Guiding  questions  
How  are  sexual  practices  deeply  entwined  with  middle  class  lifestyles  and  values  among  
Nairobi’s  young  middle  class?    How  are  understandings  of  sexuality  also  gendered?    
 
Oct  26  (x-­‐hour):  Africa  in  the  News  Presentations  
   
Oct  27:  Crisis  of  masculinity?  
Assignment  
Mains  (2007)  
Listen  to:  http://www.npr.org/2017/08/30/547078656/love-­‐in-­‐a-­‐time-­‐of-­‐urbanization-­‐the-­‐
twofold-­‐vulnerability-­‐of-­‐an-­‐east-­‐african-­‐pop    

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Check  out:  https://blogs.imf.org/2017/08/08/chart-­‐of-­‐the-­‐week-­‐the-­‐potential-­‐for-­‐growth-­‐and-­‐
africas-­‐informal-­‐economy/  
Watch:  Tsotsi  
 
Guiding  questions  
How  are  economic  realities  being  felt  and  dealt  with  by  young  men?    How  are  generation  and  
gender  central  to  how    lifestyles  are  imagined  and  constructed?    What  is  at  stake  for  young  men  
when  it  comes  to  employment,  or  lack  thereof?  What  options  are  there  in  the  absence  of  work?    
 
WEEK  8:  Education      
Oct  30:  Africa  in  the  News  Presentations    
 
Nov  1:  Education  and  religion  
Assignment  
Moore  (2006)  
Stambach  (2004)    
 
Guiding  questions  
How  are  religious  and  academic  educations  linked?  How  do  pedagogies  reflect  values  and  
construct  personhoods?        
 
Nov  3:    Education,  prosperity,  and  identity  in  Tanzania      
Assignment  
Billings  (2011)  
Stambach  (1998)  
 
Guiding  questions    
How  do  parents,  students,  teachers,  governments,  and  other  organizations  imagine  education  
as  a  ‘panacea’?    How  is  education  linked  with  identities  and  imaginaries?  What  realities  do  
students  face  –  in  school  and  outside  of  school  –  in  achieving  their  dreams?    
 
àDue  
Response  2  for  Africa  in  the  News  project.    Due  on  Canvas  by  11:59  PM.    
 
 
 
WEEK  9    The  Global  in  the  Local    
Nov  6:  Movements  and  Reconfigurations  of  values,  ideas,  and  beliefs  
Assignment  
Spronk  Ch.  6  
Ferguson  Ch.  6  
Watch:    Les  maitres  fous  -­‐  segments  
 
Guiding  questions  
How  do  the  characteristic  movements  of  globalization  (of  ideas,  people,  commodities,  money,  
etc.)  get  made  sense  of  in  local  contexts?    How  do  histories  and  current  inequalities  play  a  role  
in  how  these  ‘flows’  are  interpreted?  What  is  mimesis,  and  how  is  it  relevant  to  our  discussion?    

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Nov  8:  Movements  of  commodities    
Assignment  
Hansen  (1999)    
Meintjes  (2001)  
 
Guiding  questions  
How  do  global  processes  get  played  out  through  the  ‘lives’  of  things?    How  do  commodities  such  
as  clothing  take  on  new  meanings  as  they  move  across  time  and  space?    How  are  social  
difference  and  belonging  constructed  through  the  commodities  we  choose?  
   
Nov  10:  Movements  of  people    
Assignment  
Salazar  (2006)  
Billings  (2013,  Ch.  7)  
 
Guiding  questions  
How  can  contact  between  people  who  do  not  normally  come  in  contact  with  one  another  
highlight  inequalities?    How  do  such  moments  provide  opportunity  for  reimagining  oneself  and  
one’s  place  in  the  world?    What  role  does  language  play  in  revealing  and  constructing  social  
difference?    How  are  these  differences  patterned  on  local  and  global  levels?    
 
àDue  
Written  analysis.    Africa  in  the  News  project.    Must  be  uploaded  to  Canvas  by  11:59  PM.      
 
   
WEEK  10  LAST  WEEK  
Nov  13  Wrapping  things  up  
Assignment  
Ferguson  Ch.  8  
 
 
 
Nov  21  
àDue    
Final  exam.    Must  be  uploaded  to  Canvas  by  11:59  PM.      
 
 
 
 
 
 

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