For those with interests in law and politics, anthropology provides an understanding of the origins and nature of governance as well as how the problem of order has been treated across cultures from prehistory to the present. A key question animating this approach is how societies have developed systems of rules and conflict resolution processes to conciliate the tension between collective and individual needs, desires, and rights. More broadly, anthropology asks how peoples across the globe constitute the political. Courses in Law & Politics provide students with an excellent grounding for pursuing law as a career, be it in academia or in professional practice, as it enhances one’s understanding of the law’s sociocultural grounding and the complexities inherent in regulating human behavior.
Courses of interest in Law and Politics Pathway:
- ANTHR 2310 Natural History of Chimpanzees & the Origins of Politics
- ANTHR 2430 Rise and Fall of Civilization
- ANTHR 2433 Anthropology of Law & Politics
- ANTHR 3465 Anthropology of the Body