Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

The course is built on the assumption that cultural anthropology, on the one hand, is a discipline that defines itself based on its research subjects (cultures outside of Europe) while, on the other hand, it can be regarded as an approach that is commonly used to analyse various social structures and cultural situations. The aim is to demonstrate the potential application of the cultural anthropological approach in social research; what cultural anthropology can communicate as “unusual” or unique. The objective of the course is to familiarise students with the defining nature of cultural anthropology, its trends, specific methods, and cultural anthropological theories developed in relation to culture in general and its elements, to help students recognise the world’s cultural diversity in order to develop sensitivity towards other cultures, and to prepare them to be able to identify and understand those.

Conceptual Tools of Sociology

This is an introductory course not requiring any previous knowledge. It acquaints students with essential forms of analysis and explanation used by sociologists, and it gives them conceptual tools for unpacking complex phenomena around them in sociological terms.