ANTHROPOLOGY FINAL PAPER!!

ANTH 386D

Anthropology of Islam

Final Paper Project

Prompt: Choose one significant theme, concept or practice that is understood by at least some of the ethnographic subjects we have read about as Islamic. This should be an idea or practice that appears in multiple readings from the course and that holds significance for the ethnographic subjects themselves.

The theme on which you focus may be represented by a single Arabic-derived word or phrase that we may have seen repeatedly (perhaps in italics) throughout our readings, but could also be a word or concept expressed in other languages (including English) spoken by Muslims. In some cases it make sense to choose a closely linked pair of terms, such as zahir/batin, rather than a single term.

In your essay, discuss the meanings and uses of this concept or practice in ways that highlight one of the following themes:

1) Variations and continuities across different Muslim groups or communities (including distinctions based on region, ideology, culture, sectarian divisions or other factors).

2) Debates, contestation or intellectual questioning among Muslims, whether within or across community lines.

3) The role of interaction and dialogue between Muslim and non-Muslim people, institutions (e.g. the media) and parts of the world in shaping life within Muslim communities.

I expect you to draw on at least 4 course readings, if not more, in making your argument (though not all need to be given equal weight in your paper).

Format: 10-12 pages, double-spaced, 12 pt, font, 1 inch margins. Paper should be organized, free of excessive errors and formal in tone. Use the AAA-preferred citation style (description here; citation formatting tool here).

Grading rubric:
5 pts.	Is the paper well- written, well organized, formal and relatively free of errors?
5 pts.	Is the argument clear? Does it make sense and is it grounded in the core ideas and facts we have encountered in the course?
5 pts.	Is the argument well supported through reference to examples and information from the course? Is supporting ethnographic data adequately contextualized (that is, presented and interpreted in light of who, what, where, when and why)?
5 pts.	Does the paper, through its argument and treatment of ethnographic data, demonstrate the author’s understanding of core ideas of the course? Does it reflect thoughtful engagement with the material? Is it intellectually insightful?