ANTH3787: Capitalism in Ruins

• ANTH2051 Politics and Economics

• None

• None

• To develop an understanding of contemporary forms of capitalism through a variety of different topical perspectives, including the guiding themes of ruins and ruinification.
• To deepen and newly apply learning outcomes from political and economic anthropology modules in Y2 and Y1.
• To explore diverse, but related bodies of literature in order to establish a critical analysis of current political and economic processes.

• Contemporary approaches to capitalism, neoliberalism and contemporary political economies
• Theories of affect, emotions and the body.
• Theories of space, materiality and ruinification.
• Theories of time, the future and temporal politics.
• Contemporary topics in urban anthropology.
• Contemporary topics in the anthropology of the postindustrial era.
• Theories of energy, climate change and the Anthropocene.
• Theories of power, agency and activism.
• Contemporary topics in environmental and political anthropology.

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• At the end of the module, students will be able to:
• analyse capitalism in the postindustrial era by combining diverse theoretical, analytic and topical approaches.
• demonstrate advanced levels of current knowledge and intensive understanding of several different topical bodies of literature, in social anthropology and other social sciences.
• deploy analytical skills specific to the study of contemporary social, political and economic phenomena, with an emphasis on spatio-temporal, material, post-human and affective theoretical approaches.
• In depth empirical and theoretical knowledge of contemporary forms of capitalism, with an emphasis on interpretation and comprehensive understanding of ethnographic data and the development of a diverse analytical tool-kit.

Subject-specific Skills:

• Applying key skills (see below) to core concepts and debates pertaining to current debates surrounding contemporary capitalism.

Key Skills:

• Preparation and effective communication of research methods, data, interpretation and arguments in written and oral form.
• Critical analysis of primary and secondary data
• Self-reflection on knowledge and skills acquired and developed
• Accessing library resources
• Undertaking independent study and research
• Preparation and effective communication of interpretations and arguments in written form
• Analysis and interpretation of visual material

• Lectures will provide students with an outline of key knowledge and debates in the topic area, discuss the literature that students should explore, and provide relevant examples and cases studies.
• Seminars will develop topics introduced in lectures and required reading to analyse aspects or case studies in greater depth and to prepare students for their summative assignment. These also include student presentations on extra seminar reading.
• Interactive components will provide students with opportunities to develop and communicate their own thoughts and ideas.
• Student preparation and reading time will allow engagement with specific references in advance of the classes and the written assignments.

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