Sociology and Anthropology (SOA)

This course is designed to explore and analyze the social contexts of health, illness, and the body. We will investigate how anthropologists and sociologists approach health and disease from a bio-cultural understanding. For instance, how do sociocultural systems shape perceptions of the body, disease patterns and notions of healing? How do healing systems vary across cultures? How are infectious diseases shaped by political and economic factors? Analysis of how Western medical sciences influence our understanding of the body will also be studied.