ANTH 101 Museum Visit and Essay

Due in class, December 5, 2002

The Smithsonian museums on the Mall offer a variety of exhibits and performances in which to use concepts and findings of the anthropology that you are learning this semester. The written assignment is to visit ONE of the following exhibits or performances. Then write a five-page, double-spaced, typed (no smaller than 12 pt. font) essay in which you use a concept or concepts that you have learned this semester to think about the exhibit or performance, to criticize it, or to relate it to something else you know.

In the National Museum of American History:

1. "From Field to Factory" (African-American migration from the rural South to the urban North, 1915-1940)
2. "A More Perfect Union" (Japanese-American experiences in internment camps during World War II) website -- http://americanhistory.si.edu/perfectunion 
3. "A Collector’s Vision of Puerto Rico" (Everyday, religious, and ritual objects from one man’s rich collection; there is also a virtual exhibition on the Smithsonian’s web site – http://americanhistory.si.edu/vidal – for you to get a preview)

In the National Museum of African Art: Click here for schedule and locations.

    Films:
    1.   "La Gènese" (Genesis)
    2.   "Black Indians: An American Story"
    3.   "Tableau Ferraille"

    Exhibits:
    1.   "The Art of the Personal Object"
    2.   "Images of Power and Identity"

    Music:
    1.   "Mbira Music of Zimbabwe"
    2.   "Diabate Family Ensemble"

    Discussion:
    1.   "The Black-Indian Connection"

In the National Museum of Natural History:

1. "Agayuliyararput: Our Way of Praying" (Yup’ik masks)
2. "Crossroads of Continents" at the web site of the Smithsonian’s Arctic Studies Center (www.nmnh.si.edu/arctic/features/croads/ to view)
3. "African Voices" is a brand new exhibit hall on African cultures. Preview it at http://www.mnh.si.edu/africanvoices .

In the National Anthropological Archives

      1. Three on-line exhibits: "Canela Body Adornment," "Tichkematse: A Cheyenne at the Smithsonian," and "Kiowa Drawings."  See them at www.nmnh.si.edu/naa/exhibits .

In the Library of Congress

    1.   "Margaret Mead" on the 100th anniversary of her birth.  See a preview at http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/mead.  Read a news story about the exhibit at http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20011215/us/margaret_mead_1.html.

I will announce in class other Smithsonian programs scheduled this semester.  You may choose to attend and write about one of these.  If you have an idea for some other exhibit (say, one out-of-town), see me first.

Essays must not be reports on the exhibit which just describe what is there or which extensively quote or paraphrase material from the exhibit or the exhibit literature. If you do quote (briefly) from the exhibit, use quotation marks and footnotes to show your sources; if you quote from the textbook(s), similarly cite each source and use quotation marks. Do (1) state your thesis, (2) define your terms, (3) describe the particular part(s) of the exhibit that is (are) pertinent to your theme, and (4) discuss and develop each point of your thesis. Be reflective and critical! I encourage you to see the exhibits with classmates and discuss what you see and are going to write about; but each person’s essay must be his/her own. Use the Writing Center (phone 319-5018 for an appointment) to get a critique of your essay.

Staple your essay in the upper left-hand corner.  No loose pages, folders, or plastic covers will be accepted.  Late papers will be penalized.