All societies experience violence in some form, and this course considers violence as a social phenomenon across a range of historical and contemporary settings. Key questions include: is there such a thing as violent culture? Is group identity always violent? In approaching violence from an anthropological perspective, the course emphasises concerns of meaning, representation and symbolism. A central theme concerns the role violence plays in establishing, maintaining and transforming social order. To this end, students will examine subtle forms of violence perpetrated by national and global institutions alongside explicit acts of bodily harm occurring in violent conflicts. A vital aspect of the course involves theorising the relation of the modern state to practices of violence and identity. Students will also consider the position of the researcher in witnessing and writing about violence, and the challenges, ethical dilemmas, dangers and responsibilities involved in such research.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
Students will consider cross-cultural understandings of violence and examine the use of violence by state and non-state agents. Students will consider various attempts to make peace in the light of these understandings of why violence occurs.Indicative Assessment
Two 500 word tutorial reading response papers (20%), 1,000 word critical book review (25%), 2,200 word research essay (40%) and participation (15%).
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
2 hours of lectures and one hour of tutorial per week
Requisite and Incompatibility
Majors
Minors
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 1
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2017 | $2856 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2017 | $4080 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7012 | 24 Jul 2017 | 31 Jul 2017 | 31 Aug 2017 | 27 Oct 2017 | In Person | N/A |
