Grad conference call for papers "Is Boas Dead?! Four-Field Anthropology in the 21st Century"

[Puninder Singh Jaitla]

Call for papers for a graduate student conference:

Is Boas Dead?! Four-Field Anthropology in the 21st Century


March 27, 2010
Department of Anthropology
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Deadline for Abstract Submission: February 5, 2010

Franz Boas pioneered the first American school of anthropology and had  
an enormous impact on the conceptualization of the discipline and the  
practice of ethnography through most of the twentieth century. Among  
Boas' contributions was the establishment of a 'four-field' approach  
to anthropological inquiry, comprised of archaeological, biological,  
linguistic, and (socio) cultural anthropology.

Anthropology, as a holistic and comparative study of human biological  
and cultural diversity, was engaged in interdisciplinary research  
before the concept came into vogue in academia. However, as we enter  
an era of progressive specialization in the social sciences, the  
legacy of anthropology as a four-field discipline is increasingly  
fragmented; conversations and collaborative projects across the  
sub-disciplines appear to be on the wane. The purpose of this  
conference is to examine the vitality of four-field anthropology from  
our own place in time. Is four-field anthropology still viable and  
productive? Are conversations across the sub-disciplines still  
possible and desirable? What is the future of four-field anthropology  
as both a research methodology and pedagogy for classroom instruction?

To this end, the University of Michigan's Anthropology Graduate  
Student Association (MAGA) invites abstracts for a graduate student  
conference to be held on March 27, 2010 at the University of Michigan:  
Is Boas Dead?! Four-Field Anthropology in the 21st Century. The  
conference aims to generate substantive conversations about the place  
of four-field anthropology by approaching several topics using  
methodological and theoretical approaches from each of the  
sub-disciplines.

Papers for this year's conference can either take an interdisciplinary  
approach utilizing multiple sub-disciplines within anthropology or,  
alternatively, use any one of the four fields. Papers that use the  
approach of a single sub-discipline will be presented on panels with  
graduate students working on the same or similar topic from different  
sub-disciplines. While this list is not exhaustive and other  
innovative topics are certainly welcome, some suggestions for topics  
include:

·      Kinship, Gender, and Genomes

·      Activism and Advocacy

·      Interaction, Ideology, and Material Culture

·      Technology and Media

·      Sentiment, Memory, and Knowledge Transmission

·      Poverty, Nutrition, and Environment

·      Sexuality and Race

·      Art, Performance, and the Body

·      Disease, Death, and Destruction


Works in progress and creative approaches are encouraged. This  
conference is an ideal opportunity to workshop research ideas and  
exploratory methodologies.





Although travel stipends will not be available for this conference,  
accommodations (with Michigan anthropology graduate students) for  
Friday and/or Saturday night(s) will be arranged upon request.  
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be provided on the day of the  
conference.


Abstracts of no longer than 300 words should be submitted by February  
5, 2010. Please go here to register for the conference and submit  
abstracts. Explore this site to obtain further information. All other  
inquiries can be directed to: BoasConference at umich.edu.




Michigan Anthropology Graduate Student Association