Anthropology

The Anthropology of Kinship and Relatedness

Module code: L6069
Level 4
15 credits in spring semester
Teaching method: Lecture, Seminar
Assessment modes: Essay

On this module, you’ll explore how societies conceptualise, organise and experience human relationships across different cultures. You’ll investigate what makes us related and examine how kinship has been a central topic in the history of social anthropology.

The module tracks changes in anthropological thought about kinship over time, demonstrating broader shifts in the discipline. You’ll analyse how human relationships are shaped by structures of power, technologies and economic exchange. Additionally, you’ll examine the experiential ways humans are connected to place and each other through bodily experience and emotion.

Module learning outcomes

• Demonstrate knowledge of the evolution of kinship theory in anthropology
• Demonstrate an understanding of debates about kinship as biologically or culturally constructed
• Demonstrate an ability to use anthropological methods in the analysis of kinship and other forms of relatedness
• Show an appreciation of the ways in which concepts of kinship, family and relatedness relate to changing structures of power, politics and economic exchange