Curricular Unit:			Code:
Contemporary Ethnographies			150ETCP
Year:	Level:	Course:	Credits:
1	Undergraduate	Cultural Studies	5 ects
Learning Period:		Language of Instruction:	Total Hours:
		Portuguese/English	65
Learning Outcomes of the Curricular Unit:
The European social realities shall be presented in a dichotomical manner, by outlining the understanding of the relations between Us and the Others within social universes, by referring the unity and diversity of the European cultural regions. To develop autonomy and capacities to understand the world cultures as a result of an individual historical process. To understand the dynamics of the identitarian processes while a motor of cultural individuality. Students shall develop a critical view of cultural phenomena, by implementing an attitude of both curiosity and tolerance towards cultural differences to be encountered in their professional future. Students shall develop capacities to select and interpret relevant information in order to sustain critical judgments, and to convey this information to diverse audiences in diverse scenarios. They shall, in addition, promote the ability to learn in an autonomous and continued fashion along their future life.
Syllabus:
Approaches to contemporary european social realities according to two complementary perspectives: the relation between urban and rural, and the ethnicized relation us/others. These perspectives will be pointed out according to the more striking characteristics of the selected social universes, presented whenever possible as ethnographical study-cases. General notions on the scope and the path of European Ethnography; the cultural patterns as vehicle of social cohesion; the relation between the urban and the rural in European societies; some models of social structure; the material and the immaterial for the mental attitudes and the cultural practices.
Demonstration of the Syllabus Coherence with the Curricular Unit's Objectives:
Subjects covered by the syllabus provide the student elementary knowledge on the structural framework of human communities, correlating those aspects internally to each culture, and externally to the other cultures. Syllabus outlines the importance of cultures as unifying elements of social groups, and as creators of social realities. Syllabus shows the student cultural diversity between urban and rural societies as the result of an interactive historical process, as resulting from both internal and external dynamics of social groups. Syllabus allows the student to grow an attitude of reflection and tolerance towards different perceptions of both religious phenomena and beliefs in the supernatural, that are embraced by different individuals and different cultures with whom he/she may contact in the course of life.
Teaching Methodologies (Including Evaluation):
Teaching methodology will focus on lecturing, research of specific subjects, reading and discussion of selected bibliography, as well as group debates over selected subjects. Occasionally, viewing of quality documentaries on selected subjects will support and illustrate the presentation and the discussion of both concepts and realities. Assessment will be continuous and based on a written test, an essay and a group research essay with oral presentation and work discussion. Students will also be asked to participate in theoretical and practical tasks in the classroom, and on the participation of external activities such as seminaries and conferences decurring in the University.
Demonstration of the Coherence between the Teaching Methodologies and the Learning Outcomes:
Module 1: General notions regarding the ethnographical analysis as a study method, and its value for social, material and historical studies. The pedagogical method will comprehend lectures, viewing of one documentary, and selected readings. Module 2: The understanding of cultural structures, from individual to group. The identitarian processes while bond to the social groups. For this module, lecturing will be supported by slide presentation, and students will be encouraged to oral presentation of one theme. Module 3: Brief approach to country-city differences in an historical perspective. The evolution of urban phenomenon in Europe and the historical relation between country and city from economy to demography. For this module one selected documentary will be viewed, as complementary to lecturing. Module 4: The cycle of social life and the function of family structures. Social relations of neighbourhood and the structure and use of urban common spaces. Lecturing will be complemented to short presentations by students, as a result of reading research supervised by the lecturer. Module 5: The territories of spiritual representations, and their materiality on both rituals and spaces. Here, students will view a documentary bearing relevant information on one of the module’s subjects, in order to promote group discussion, and in addition to regular lectures.
Reading:
Hjorth, Larissa; Horst, Heather; Galloway, Anne; Bell, Genevieve (edits.) (2017) The Routledge Companion to Digital Ethnography. London, Routledge . Jallinoja, Riitta; Widmer, Eric D. (edits.) (2011) Families and Kinship in Contemporary Europe. Rules and Practices of Relatedness. New York, Palgrave Macmillan. Jerolmack, Colin; Khan, Shamus (2018) Approaches to ethnography : analysis and representation in participant observation. New York, Oxford University Press. Low, Setha (2017) Spatializing Culture. The ethnography of space and place. London, Routledge. Pardo, Italo; Prato, Giuliana B. (edits.) (2018) The Palgrave Handbook of Urban Ethnography. Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan. Pink, Sarah; Horst, Heather; Postill; John; Hjorth, Larissa; Lewis, Tania; Tacchi, Jo (2016) Digital Ethnography: Principles and Practice. Los Angeles, Sage . Vigarello, Georges (2014) Le Sentiment de soi. Histoire de la perception du corps. (XVIe - XXe siècle), Paris, Éditions du Seuil.