Anthropology Minor
I've always loved learning about what makes us human. Anthropology, the study of humans, was a natural minor choice for me. Throughout my studies I learned more about what connects us all together, as well as how to interact and study a culture respectfully. I gained insights into the fields of linguistics and cultural anthropology; experimented with visual storytelling; and oberved with online communities. I truly enjoyed all my anthropology classes, and I look forward to continuing to learn on my own time.
Digital Anthropology ​
One of the most important parts of digital media is understanding how people interact with each other in the digital space. In contemporary American society the internet is more than just a tool that people use to communicate, it's literally a virtual reality space that operates in tandem with the physical reality space.
Other topics this class covered include digital media ethics, online curation of self and digital archaeology (both using tech for real-world archaeology and conducting archaeological research of digital properties).
Cultural Anthropology
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Of all the things that make cultural anthropology so nebulous, the most crucial is that it's simply too hard to define culture as a concept. This course was invaluable for me as a communicator because it helped me understand all the cultural nuances that a public relations professional has to understand and work with for campaigns. The concepts that I studied in this class also opened my eyes to the idea that there is no “normal” way to live -- all cultures may be different, but they're all equally valid and important.
Visual Anthropology
Essentially an experimental visual storytelling class, this course taught me how to utilize visual materials to tell the story that you want to tell. A large component of this anthropology class was watching experimental, innovative and otherwise fascinating movies to study how the pure visuals came together to tell the stories.
The end-of-semester project had me going out and collecting images of personal laptop decorations as a study of how people present themselves to the world. Overall, this class was extremely valuable for self-reflecting on how I use my visual materials to enhance my storytelling.
Language & Culture
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The study of language from an anthropologist's perspective is absolutely fascinating. This class covered the basics of language documentation and revitalization; language and class, gender, race and ethnicity; and language evolution and history.
Linguistic anthropology is a topic that continues to enthrall me. I can see how the subject plays into my personal experiences, and enjoy seeing how it integrates into general contemporary social trends. How someone's language impacts how they think as well as interact with others and the physical world is a topic that I love to continue learning about, even several years after this class.
Global Humankind
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What things unite all cultures? What everyday activities and rituals do we express that we might not think twice about? How do relationships impact others in ways we may not perceive?
This class explored how people evolve to deal with living in our ever-changing world. With a focus on bio-social concerns like food culture, establishing security and dealing with unwanted waste, this course looked at problems that every individual face in broader terms. For my final project, I conducted ethnographic observation in local coffee shops to see how people make use of and occupy public space.
Overall, I truly think that this specialization deepened my understanding of humans and culture. These classes taught me how to interact with unfamiliar cultures respectfully and thoughtfully. This, in addition to my greater appreciation for human culture, provides valuable insights for me as I develop and produce campaigns as a public relations professional. Through class projects, I did real ethnographic observation and research, and connected my findings to social trends that are taking place. Mostly, I think a key takeaway from these classes is that I enjoyed learning about these topics. I discovered a great passion for the overarching themes of anthropology and the linguistic and cultural sub-fields.