SOSANT2270 – Contemporary Studies in Kinship and Gender
Schedule, syllabus and examination date
Course content
Gender and kinship are key issues in anthropology. Whereas kinship has to a certain extent framed the discipline of anthropology, gender studies first gained momentum in the 1970s, fomenting a critical perspective on the discipline as a whole, including kinship.
As analytical concepts, kinship and gender initially converged around the debates on natural differences, biological givens, and the ethnocentric bias of the use of these concepts in anthropology: that kinship and gender studies have been based on a western folk model of human reproduction and that the (sexual) difference between men and women have been seen as pre-social.
Within contemporary anthropology, kinship and gender are viewed as mutually constitutive; one cannot be properly grasped without paying due attention to the other. Both kinship and gender are about relational practices, articulating different forms of relatedness.
Moreover, there is a general recognition that not only are there cross-cultural variations in the way kinship and gender are perceived and practiced but that also within any one society there may be different elaborations of kinship and gender. This course will focus on the nature of such elaborations, both practices and processes, as these are productive of social inequalities and notions of difference more generally.
Drawing on a cross-cultural perspective, and with a view to critical reflection, the course aims to explore the kinds of contemporary phenomena that kinship and gender help to elucidate and how these two core modes of relatedness come together. As this course will demonstrate, both kinship and gender are central to our understandings of contemporary societies.
Learning outcome
Knowledge
- General understanding of the relevance of kinship and gender theories
- Analytical perspectives on gender and kinship
- Insight into the mutually constitutive role of kinship and gender
- Significance of kinship/gender for grasping contemporary phenomena and processes
- Appreciate the significance of comparative analysis
Skills
- Increased analytical competence and critical reflection
- Ability to read texts with a view to kinship and gender, both empirically and theoretically
- Familiarity with key approaches to gender and kinship studies
- Ability to develop an argument based on academic sources
- Critically examine links between theoretical, analytical and empirical arguments
Competencies
- Achieve an independent critical mind
- The ability to express arguments both written and verbally
- Achieve basic knowledge of academic integrity, including the correct use of references/sources
Admission to the course
Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.
Recommended previous knowledge
Basic knowledge of Social Anthropology.
Teaching
The course consists of 10 two-hour blocks. Each session consists of a mixture of lectures, seminars and interactive exercises.
Students are expected to have read assigned readings before each session and be prepared to participate in discussions.
During the semester, there will be a number of hand-in exercises to support students to work through readings and course concepts, and apply the analytical tools to ethnographic cases.
Examination
Take-home exam. The exam paper must be minimum 2 900 words and maximum 4 400 words including cover page and foot- or endnotes.
Examination support material
All exam support materials are allowed during this exam. Generating all or part of the exam answer using AI tools such as Chat GPT or similar is not allowed
Language of examination
You may write your examination paper in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English.
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
Resit an examination
If you are sick or have another valid reason for not attending the regular exam, we offer a postponed exam later in the same semester.
See also our information about resitting an exam.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.