254: Blood, Sweat and Tears: the anthropology of work
Spring, 2026: Tu/Th 1:30
Professor Jane Nadel-Klein 9she/her)
Office hours by appointment
In this course, we consider the meaning of “work,” not just as a set of tasks or as a source of income, but as activity that gives us a sense of who we are in the world. We look at different kinds of work in their cultural., social, historical economic and political contexts – in other words, holistically. Western and capitalist ideas of how work and personhood intersect have infused the work lives of peoples around the globe. Experiences of and attitudes towards work cannot be separated from who we are in the world, so we also consider how race, class, nationality, political power, gender, age, and other dimensions of social life affect our relationships to the work we do.
I strongly encourage lively class discussion and civil disagreement.
Required Texts:
Gershon, World of Work
Harrison, Buoyancy on the Bayou
Kwon, Anthropologies of Unemployment
Tsing, The Mushroom on the End of the World
Course Requirements
Class participation 10%
First quiz 5%
Second quiz 10%
Midterm Exam 25%
Paper 25%
Final Exam 25%
No Cell phones or computers in class, please, unless you have a documented accommodation
If you need help with writing, please use the Writing Center; AI in any form is not permitted for your paper.
Jan. 20 Introduction to the class and to each other.
22 Discussion: what do we mean by “work?” Read Gershon, pp. 1-9
Work as a Way of Life: “It’s no fish ye’re buying. It’s men’s lives.” – Sir Walter Scott,
The Antiquary
27 Harrison, pp. 1-41
29 Harrison, pp. 42-88
Feb. 03 Harrison, pp. 89-142
05 Harrison, pp. 143-156 and Lien and Law, “What You Need to Know to be a Fish Farmer in West Norway” in Gershon.
10 Video, “Trawlermen’s Lives” (a documentary about North Sea fishermen).
Precarity: Working on the Edge of Capitalism
12 Murphy, “the Riser of the Precariat” in Kwon and Lane
17 Lane, “the Limits of Liminality,” in Kwon and Lane
19 No Class: Trinity Day
24 short quiz; Kingsolver, “Zones of In/Visibility” in Kwon and Lane
26 Video on sweatshops
Mar. 03 Karjanen, “Limits to Quantitative Thinking” in Kwon and Lane
05 Perelman, “Contesting Unemployment” in Kwon and Lane
10 Midterm Exam
12 discussion
SPRING BREAK
24 Tsing, The Mushroom at the End of the World, pp. 1-52
26 Tsing, pp. 57-94
31 Tsing, pp. 97-135
Apr. 02 Tsing, pp. 241-282
The Experience of Learning to Work
07 Lynch and Chamberlain, “Reflections from a Life on the Line,” in Gershon
09 Kruse, “Being a Crime Scene Tech in Sweden,” in Gershon
14 Quiz
16 Lane, “How to be a Professional Organizer in the United States,” in Gershon
21 Kemble, Kobak, Bell and Kuipers,” How to be Cell Phone Repair Technician,” in Gershon
23 Jones with Marquet, “How to be a Magician in Parison, Gershon; Demain, “Being a Village Court Magistrate in Papua New Guinea,” in Gershon.
- Teacher: Jane Nadel-Klein