So, I guess I could post this, now that it's like three weeks into the semester

[brigdh]

Prehistory of the Near East and Egypt: This course examines the prehistory of the ancient Near East from the early Pleistocene to the beginnings of plant and animal domestication. The topics covered include the initial human settlement of the Near East during the early Pleistocene; the Paleolithic archaeology of the Middle East; changes in settlement, subsistence, and technology at the end of the Ice Age, and the initial domestication of plants and animals.

Contemporary Archaeological Theory: Archaeologists have come a long way over the last three decades in developing innovative methodologies and up-to-date theories that compliment these techniques. Exciting and new theories are being developed as archaeologists rehash older theories and invent new ones suitable to the specific times and places they study. These changes and new ways of looking at the past will be explored in the context of five diverse cultures. They include an early hunter/gather culture in Japan (the Jomon); a major Native American city in St. Louis, Missouri (at Cahokia); an historic city in the Middle Niger, Africa; and two states, the Maya in Mesoamerica and Mesopotamia in the Middle East.
This one is being taught by my advisor.

Social and Symbolic Archaeology: The waning dominance of ecological paradigms in archaeology has been accompanied by a new theoretical and methodological concern for social and symbolic aspects of ancient cultures. Over the past two decades this newfound emphasis has revolutionized our knowledge of prehistoric social and symbolic systems around the world. In the wake of these changes, this course explores archaeology's newly emerging ability to address social and symbolic readings of prehistoric culture. Initially, three weeks of reading and discussion will emphasize theoretical and methodological concerns. These will be followed by a multi-week, comprehensive overview of the Paleolithic record for burial practices, personal adornment, and graphic/plastic representation. In addition to issues of chronological and temporal variation, there will be a definite emphasis on methodological and interpretive frontiers, and evolutionary trends. The remainder of the course will be organized into a series of rich, student-presented modules. These case studies are expected to be detailed and comprehensive and well-illustrated using Powerpoint. Cultural regions include the Americas, Sub-Saharan Africa, Australia, and Siberia/Alaska.


I'd forgotten how happy having clases makes me. Which sounds incredibly nerdy, but it's just that if I don't have something to think about, a problem to debate or a puzzle to solve, I get depressed. Having some sort of challenge makes me content.

Comments

[chiasmus.livejournal.com]

Those all sound really cool. :D

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I've been liking them!

[car-jack.livejournal.com]

Wow. These sound extremely deep. And extremely interesting. I have an amature interest in ancient Egpyt during the pharaonic periods. I've had no actual classes on the topic, however, just a personal interest to make me study further on my own. I wish I had this interest in learning, that I have now, back when I was in school.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I think it's neat how people do develop interests that they care enough about to study them on their own, though. It takes more dediciation. The pharaonic period is way, way later than this, though!