Document Type

Syllabus

Publication Date

Fall 2024

Course Description

Have you ever wondered what video games can teach us about ourselves and the culture we live in? In this course, we will examine video games as complex cultural artifacts that reflect and shape the societies that produce them. Video games are much more than just entertainment, and through an anthropological lens, this course explores how video games encode cultural values, beliefs, identities, and practices. Key questions include: How do video games act as spaces for identity formation, community building, ritual, and meaning-making? How are race, gender, class and other cultural categories constructed and negotiated through gameplay? This course takes an experiential approach - students will actively play games and make connections with key concepts in anthropology. Students will also learn the ethnographic method of digital participant-observation as well as practice taking field notes to research video game culture. The goal is to understand how video games can provide a window into contemporary digital life and enrich our comprehension of culture. No previous knowledge of anthropology or gaming is required.

Student Outcomes

In this Anthropology FYS class, students will be able to: Understand the concept of culture and analytically apply the ideas of ethnocentrism and cultural relativism. Engage with cultural differences by developing an awareness of how people with different cultural backgrounds make meaning of the world differently. Develop an ability to appreciate diverse worldwide perspectives through the examination of video games as material culture, all while contemplating their own personal values and traditions.

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