Brandeis University

    ANTH 163B: Economies and Culture

    Instructor: Yura Yokoyama
    Prerequisites: ANTH 1a, ECON 2a, ECON 10a, or permission of the instructor.
    Course Description: We learn about the “economy” and “the market” as self-contained units that obey complex natural laws that in an ideal world operate free from things like culture, religion,and politics, even though they rarely do in practice. This course foregrounds the aspects of economic activity that other perspectives often place in the background. We will see how economies are infused all the way through by culture and examine the cultural assumptions of the very idea of things like “efficient markets” and “natural prices.” We’ll do this in two ways – through the work of anthropologists on economies that operate according to very different premises, and through cultural analyses of capitalist market-based economic worlds.</br></br>Learning Goals: Students will learn about the relationship between economies and culture as studied in the field of “economic anthropology”. Students will examine the premises of economic ideas such as the application of scarce means to alternative ends as a guiding principle of all economic activity. Students will learn about economies in diverse cultural contexts. Students will productively and respectfully debate different approaches to economic activity. Students will write short critical analyses and reflections of ethnographic and historical texts. Students will master basic concepts in economic anthropology and will be tested on these in a midterm exam.
    </br></br>Expected Workload:Success in this 4-credit course is based on the assumption that you will spend an average minimum of 9 hours outside of class on readings, class preparation and assignments.</br></br>Course Requirements: Attendance and participation 20%</br>Participation includes discussion postings: Please post a brief quotation from the readings with a question or comment. The content will not be graded, but I will draw on the questions and comments to shape the next day’s discussion. 3 short papers (3-5 pages) 20% each </br>Midterm 20%
    Session: Session I
    Day: M, T, Th
    Time: 8:30am - 11:00am
    Credit Hours: 4 Credits
    Course Format: Remote Learning Course for Summer 2026
    Brandeis Graduation Requirement Fulfilled: DJW, NW, SS
    Enrollment Limit:
    Course Classification: Undergraduate Level Course
    Course Tuition: $3,825
    Course Fees: None
    Open to High School Students: No
    Course Syllabus