INQ-271 | Cultural Difference-Global

Full Title: Cultural Difference

Topic Description:

This section of INQ 271 explores the representation of difference in ethnography (a branch of anthropology dealing with the study and description of specific cultures) and fiction. How does one attempt to understand and represent people from different cultures around the globe? This is a question that fiction writers and anthropologists grapple with in different ways. In this course, we will examine how difference is performed in a variety of 20th century texts ranging from ethnographic studies to science fiction. By juxtaposing fiction with ethnography, we will examine the claims that different texts make to represent reality and the “Other.” We will also explore how these claims are linked to writing styles.

Counts as Global? Yes

Topic Approved: December 2012