Social and Cultural Anthropology subject report · November 2013

November 2013 extended essay reports Page 1 SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY Overall grade boundaries Grade: E D C B A Mark range: 0 - 7 8 - 15 16 - 22 23 - 28 29 - 36 General comments The range and suitability of the work submitted Many candidates were successful in framing their argu ments by referring to anthropological concepts, readings or sources and applying appropriate methodologies. Framing a precise research question which lends itself to investigation in the subject is of paramount importance to accomplish this. This positive trend can be interpreted as probably showing that schools - or schools’ coordinators - are noting past advice from subject reports, about discouraging candidates who are not enrolled in Social and Cultural Anthropology as a Diploma subject to write essays in the subject. The most successful candidates presented well informed topics, solidly grounded in anthropological theory. Some examples of successful essays dealt with relevant politi cal issues such as the analysis - from an interactionist perspective - of group identity in a postcolonial state; the analysis of the Burundian conflict between property inheritance, land reform and gender issues from agency and cohesion approaches or the examination of political rituals from a Geertzian approach. Contemporary issues were explored, such as ethnographically grounded investigations on beauty stereotypes and plastic surgeries, or the study of the reconfiguration of kin connections with new reproductive technologies or the analysis of transnational migrant worke rs. Also, informed and reflective essays were presented on ethnocentrism in everyday life; the ethical issues regarding the ethnographic encounter or a critical examination of environmentalist theories. These essays were successful not because they simply poured ethnographic content into established theoretical moulds, but because they showed initiative in demonstrating how topics of interest to candidates might be approached anthropologically. Also, these candidates were successful because they produced balanced, nuanced arguments, bringing critical perspectives to bear. The least successful