THESE ARE OLD INSTRUCTIONS. See main page.

Instructions for all ethnographic sections and the history are below (page down to the bottom for specific instructions)

Other assignment instructions:
Poster / Sim-Rules
Culture Video
Sim Video & Sim History

How to create your ethnographic section:

1. Sign up for the wiki.
2. Sign on.
3. Go to your group page. (Find the link here) (See bottom of this page for specific instructions for your section)
   
4. Click "add a new page" from the menu on the left.
5. Name your page "(name of yourculture) + (name of your section)"
6. Click "EasyEdit" at the top of the page.
   
7. Write your report (or paste it from a Word document).
8. Save it and review how it looks. Sometimes it does not format correctly if you pasted it from another program. Edit it so it looks good.
9. Go back to your group's main page and add a link to your report.
   

Grading criteria for individual sections:
(Grading criteria for poster, sim-history, and videographers are different and will be posted later)

Please NOTE: You should be writing/presenting about your culture *as of the year 1450*. This will take considerable effort to do well. In some cases, there will be no information about your culture as of the year 1450. In these cases, go as far back as you can. If you are writing about an indigenous culture, try to write about them as they were prior to colonization or extensive contact with other cultures.

Each student will be required to write a 500 word report and give an engaging 10 minute presentation on one particular aspect of the culture, with particular attention to how it is integrated with other aspects of their culture. Each student will do a different aspect of the culture so that when they are all put together it will form a full ethnography of the culture. As a group you need to make sure that all aspects are covered.

You will be responsible for the section you sign up for. Your paper & presentation should include 2 elements.
1. Thorough description of the aspect of culture to be described (multiple paragraphs).
2. One final paragraph briefly describing how the aspect you have described is integrated with other aspects of the culture.
(This is to demonstrate that you understand the model of culture:



At the end of class, your classmates will grade your presentation.
I'll use student grades & comments along with my assessment of the written report to assign the final grade.

The assignment is worth 100 points (10% of your final grade) and will be carefully graded with the following criteria:

50 points Research. Your description should be thorough and accurate. You should demonstrate that you have read some quality books and articles on the subject (not just Wikipedia). Make sure you cite your sources and make a list of your sources at the end of the report.

30 points Integration of culture. You need to demonstrate that you understand how the aspect of culture you are describing is integrated with other aspects of culture. (In other words, you should be able to use the model of culture to demonstrate how the infrastructure, social structure, and superstructure are inter-related.)

20 points Creativity and Insight. This is the something extra you add by thinking about the material in-depth and tapping into your own creativity.

Please note that your contribution should be well-written and well-presented. If you have troubles with writing I highly encourage you to use the Writing Center
(English/Counseling Services Room 122D). It is one of the best and must underused resources at KSU. For more info go to: http://www.ksu.edu/english/writingcenter/

Do not copy and paste from Wikipedia or any other source. Click here for more information on plagiarism and proper citation.

More specific instructions for each section:


Language

• Describe the language(s) spoken in your culture
• What language family is the language in?
  
• Describe the language's key characteristics? (Is it tonal? click? unique grammar? etc.?)
• Describe any notable rituals of communication? (special handshakes, gestures, etc.?)
  
• Can anybody and everybody speak to anybody and everybody anytime, or are there rules about who can say what, to whom, etc.? (any gender or status differences in communication?)
  
• Describe any special communication technologies other than the human voice? (smoke signals, writing, mail couriers, etc.?)
  
• Describe any special forms of communication, such as special types of speech for ritual or political purposes? Any special entertainment styles of communication (such as poetry)?

Gender

• a description of the different genders in the culture and their main characteristics (note that some cultures will have more than 2 genders!)
  
• describe the different roles of different genders (who does what?)
  
• describe specific cultural events or rituals that express or create these genders (e.g. initiation rituals, sporting events, other ceremonies, etc.)
  
• Which gender (if any) has political power? spiritual power? domestic power?
  
• Who raises the children? Are there notable aspects of the way children are raised that create the genders? (For example, in the US boys are encouraged to play sports, while girls are encouraged to play with dolls, etc.)

Economy

• What do you eat and how do you get it? Who is getting/growing/hunting these things? How often do you work? When? How?
• What tools and technologies do you have available?
• What mode(s) of exchange will operate in your culture?
• What do you exchange & trade? With who?
• In your exchanges, do you emphasize social prestige and building relationships, maximizing profit, or both? In what contexts or events?
  

Family

• How will your culture reproduce? What sexual taboos or restrictions will there be? (gender, time, age, incest)
• What form of marriage will be most common? Monogamy, Polygyny, Polyandry, Group, Same-Sex, Cousin? Why?
• What form of marriage will be most preferred? Why?
• What rights and obligations will marriage establish? Sex? Labor? Property? Child rearing? Exchange?
• Will you practice arranged marriage or love marriage?
• Will you practice brideprice, dowry, or neither?
• What do your households like? Nuclear, extended, polygamous?
• What do your houses look like? What is it made out of? What is the layout? How does the layout reflect other aspects of your culture?
  

Society

• What is your residence pattern (after marriage)?
• What is your kinship terminology system?
• How does all this fit with the rest of your culture?
• Do you have descent groups? What kind? What do they do? (land, help, war allies, inheritance, etc.
• Are there any special associations or common-interest groups in your culture? Would it be useful to have one or some of the members of your group act on behalf of this association or common-interest group in the world simulation? (Note: Remember that these should be realistic as of 500+ years ago. New associations and political movements will hopefully occur naturally through the actual simulation. (I suppose you could plan to “simulate” these ahead of time if you want.) Smaller scale cultures might consider age sets as important to social organization (see text))
• Is your culture stratified or egalitarian? Describe and Explain.
• If your culture is stratified, is there social mobility? How does it work?
• How are your answers above integrated with the rest of your culture?
• To what extent do your answers above represent your culture’s “ideology” and what is the true reality of your culture. You should distinguish these in the ethnography.

Politics

• Broadly speaking, is your political organization centralized or uncentralized?
• Does your culture have leaders with “power” or “influence”? How do they attain their position? What role(s) do they serve?
• How are major decisions made? (consensus, council, authority makes the decision?)
• Is there a bureaucracy? If so, outline how it is organized.
• How are disputes settled? (informal/formal? Negotiation/mediation/adjudication?)
• Are there formal sanctions (laws)? If so, how are they enforced?
  
• What informal sanctions (if any) are present (examples include: gossip, ridicule, ostracism, accusations/fear of witchcraft, other supernatural or religious factors)?
• What is your cultural stance towards foreigners? (accepting? engaging? reclusive?)

Religion

• Would you describe your culture’s religion as animist, monotheist, polytheist, pantheist, ancestral, other, or some combination of these? Describe and explain.
• What are some of the core moral values that your culture’s religious ideas express, explain, and legitimize?
• How do your religious ideas express, reflect, explain, and legitimize the socio-political order?
• What sorts of religious practices are performed in your culture? (worship, prayer, rituals, séances, dances, etc.)
• When somebody in your culture dies, what happens? (you can answer in both spiritual and “real-world” terms).
• How do people in your culture explain the unexplained? (God? Luck? Spirits?)
• What happens when somebody becomes seriously ill? What kinds of explanations emerge? (this usually taps into people's core beliefs about how the world works)

Art

• What are some of the primary art forms in your culture? (Consider both visual and auditory (music) forms)
  
• What cultural values are expressed in your culture's art?
• How do these cultural values affect art in your culture? (For example, cultures who do not emphasize individualism might place higher value on the best copy rather than the most innovative art)
• What everyday items/events in your culture might be considered artistic? Describe them.
• What religious items/rituals/songs in your culture might be considered artistic? Describe them.

History

• Make sure you cover the major events since the year 1450. You can go over 500 words if necessary.
  
• Don't just cover *military* history, document how the entire "barrel" of culture has changed over time (economics, family structure, social structure, politics, values, art, religion)
• If you are documenting an indigenous culture, you may need to find a recent ethnographic book or article(s) (use JSTOR or another library database for recent articles).
• Start soon so that Professor Wesch can help you find resources if needed.