ANTH 202Social and Cultural Anthropology
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Arts
- Subject
- Anthropology
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 4 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
This course introduces students to the history and key concepts of social and cultural anthropology through the examination of classic works as well as contemporary ethnographic texts and films. Topics include anthropological approaches to understanding cultural identity and difference, social structure, kinship, politics, and exchange.
Prerequisites
None listed.
Antirequisites
None listed.
Leads to
Winter 2027 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 3212 | 0 / 60 | MW 14:30–15:50 |
| LEC 701 | 1224 | 32 / 9999 | Online or by arrangement |
Reviewed on UW Flow
87% liked it75% easy73% useful
From 30 ratings and 9 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
This course is pretty hard and I originally took it as one of the requirements for my minor. Bad choice. I am not an anthro major and this was an extremely small class with only around 15 people and most of them are in the anthro department. Aside from this, Prof Liu is a good teacher but a hard marker. In terms of assignments, the weightings and subjectivity are quite unfair that it's really difficult to earn a good mark in this course. Participation accounted for 20% of your mark, and despite that I never missed a class, and participate in discussions, I did not get a good mark. I am baffled by the subjectivity of this course and how the assignments are marked. I usually don't understand…
Dec 2015 · didn’t like it · 4 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
I feel like this class could have been a bit more organized, but it was alright overall
Apr 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Textbook was very boring, and really should just be skimmed. However, the readings and lectures were generally very interesting. With that said, some of the basics of social anthropology are quite dull. No previous ANTH knowledge necessary though! I had a small class with about 30 people so there were many opportunities for discussion. I had Prof Jennifer Liu who was great, and the final project was pretty open ended and ended up being very fun to share!
Apr 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
I took this for a breadth requirement, so social sciences are not my strong suit! However, I found this class pretty manageable and interesting! The prof was nice and chill.. well maybe a bit too chill because she gave us little to no outlines or information about the papers and midterms eek! But overall a pretty good course!
Jan 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Good bird course, mild readings and assignments. If you're interested in local anthropology this is a good course
Nov 2022 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
15 posts and comments in 13 threads mention ANTH 202, July 2015 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Fall 2023
Studying for Anth 202? 1 point, 0 comments
u/Little-Arugula-9302: “I have an Anth 202 midterm soon and honestly, I'm trying hard to take down all the information but it feels like nothing is actually going in. There's just so much written information! Anyone have any tips for studying for social science based courses?”
Winter 2023
ANTH 100 Online w/ Mark Dolson 6 points, 13 comments
“For those of you that took ANTH 100 online with Mark Dolson I was wondering if you could tell me how you felt about the class and any tips/recommendations you may have in order to do well in this …”
u/Burgerguys: “I recently took his anth 202 class and what I can say is that in that class, his lectures served to contextualize the topics we covered in our readings and expand upon them. Grading was split into a set of 6 quizzes and 2 exams. …”
Fall 2021
how to make the best bird course ever? 197 points, 75 comments
“So, I’m a prof here at UW and I want to design a fun, hopefully high-enrolment bird course. I used to be against such courses but after a few years here I can see that people need a fun, low-stakes …”
u/docmcprof: “The plan is no textbook. Online quizzes. Maybe a lab or two. Topics: ancient cannibalism, purported “vampire burials”, ancient surgery techniques, body modifications, infectious diseases like …”
u/Lil-Shiro: “Omg I knew this was gonna be anth based on this description, I’m in arts (not anth) but I’ve taken anth 202 and 242! I would totally be interested in taking this course if it’s offered before I graduate :)) I’m also assuming it’s gonna be offered in person?”
Spring 2021
Is there anyone taking Econ 391, Econ 231,Anth 202 and International studies 101? 1 point, 0 comments
u/nafisahossaim: “Same as above.”
Help: Course Descriptions 4 points, 5 comments
“Can anyone speak on their experience with any of the following courses: Soc 229 Anth 106 Anth 241 I’m looking for relatively easy (and interesting) social science courses to fill breadth …”
u/Lil-Shiro: “… I suggest you look into ANTH 202 if you haven’t taken it as well (especially if Mark Dolson is teaching). It’s social and cultural anthropology and I found it easier than 241. I took it in class tho so idk how it’s changed since then, but I found it pretty interesting as well. …”
u/wallflower890: “Thanks for your response! What were some of the topics covered in ANTH 202?”
Fall 2020
Mark Dolson, one of the best profs in AHS is basically getting fired without reason. Students have already started a petition to try to get him his job back. 87 points, 26 comments
u/ladybone666: “… PS - He is still teaching HLTH 344, HLTH 652, and ANTH 202 in Winter 2021, so please don't worry that he's just disappearing tomorrow :)”
Course selection advice for adult first timer! 156 points, 45 comments
“Hello! I have recently been accepted part-time into the Arts program and it will be my first time attending university. …”
u/Lil-Shiro: “… Some of my favourite courses that might work for you are ANTH 202 (social and cultural anthropology), ENGL 200A (British Literature), JS 114 (Intro to Jewish studies), and ENGL 292 (Rhetorical Criticism). …”
Spring 2020
Easy Social Sciences or Humanities Course 3 points, 13 comments
“What are some easy social science or humanities courses at uwaterloo?”
u/Laeriana: “… straightforward ones they recommend/mention the most seem to be: PHIL 145 ECON 101, 102 ANTH 202 Between all of those, hopefully that gives a starting point. See what subjects stick out to you, and you actually like and go from there. …”
ANTH 202 Midterm 0 points, 0 comments
u/redditor_1323: “Anyone do the ANTH 202 midterm yet? How was it?”
anth 202 quiz 0 points, 2 comments
u/Hazelloverr: “anyone who has taken the quiz can you let me know how it's like???”
Fall 2017
PSA: UWCourseLinker back up, disabled by default, call with [[course code]] 39 points, 31 comments
u/RayDWatson: “Testing all course codes 1/61: [[ACC604]] [[ACC605]] [[ACC606]] [[ACC607]] [[ACC608]] [[ACC609]] [[ACC610]] [[ACC611]] [[ACC620]] [[ACC621]] [[ACC622]] [[ACC623]] [[ACC624]] [[ACC625]] [[ACC626]] …”
u/RayDWatson: “… [[AMATH882]] [[AMATH900]] [[ANTH100]] [[ANTH101]] [[ANTH102]] [[ANTH103]] [[ANTH201]] [[ANTH202]] [[ANTH203]] [[ANTH204]] [[ANTH210]] [[ANTH221]] [[ANTH222]] [[ANTH229]] [[ANTH230]] [[ANTH233]] [[ANTH241]] [[ANTH245]] [[ANTH260]] [[ANTH261]] [[ANTH272]] [[ANTH289]] [[ANTH290]] …”
u/UWCourseLinker: “… Anthropology ANTH 103 - The Nature of Language ANTH 201 - Introduction to Archaeology ANTH 202 - Social and Cultural Anthropology ANTH 203 - The Archaeology of North America ANTH 204 - Biological Anthropology ANTH 210 - Anthropology Through Science Fiction ANTH 221 - Language …”
Any way to disable UWCourseLinker from posting? 16 points, 26 comments
“posting a reply to my comment I find the bot annoying.”
u/Jackhofmann: “PSYCH 483 PSYCH 484 PSYCH 485 PSYCH 486 PSYCH 490R PSYCH 499A PSYCH 499B PSYCH 499C PSYCH 621 PSYCH 630 PSYCH 677A PSYCH 704A PSYCH 704B PSYCH 707 PSYCH 710 PSYCH 714 PSYCH 717 PSYCH 720A PSYCH 721A …”
u/Jackhofmann: “… 731 AMATH 732 AMATH 740 AMATH 751 AMATH 871 AMATH 875 AMATH 900 ANTH 100 ANTH 100W ANTH 201 ANTH 202 ANTH 204 ANTH 222 ANTH 241 ANTH 300 ANTH 321 ANTH 355 ANTH 382 ANTH 391 ANTH 440 ANTH 499A ANTH 499B ANTH 600 ANTH 608 APPLS 205R APPLS 301 ARBUS 100 ARBUS 101 ARBUS 200 ARBUS …”
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