A warm welcome to the course MINT268 Comparative Humanitarianisms: Anthropological Perspectives by Professor Till Mostowlansky and Professor Julie Billaud.
This course offers ethnographically grounded understandings of humanitarianism, including the multifaceted encounters of vulnerable local contexts and international expert cultures and governance regimes. Its main objectives are to provide students with the theoretical tools (1) to think critically about diverse humanitarian responses to ‘crises’ and ‘suffering’; (2) to analyze the culture of humanitarianism in ways similar to how one would analyze the culture of a specific geographic location. It identifies the historical developments via which humanitarianism came to replace the colonial mission in the second half of the 20th century as a dominant form of international engagement. It unpacks the moral economy that guides humanitarian reason, notably the religious logics of assistance conceived by anthropologists as ‘the humanitarian gift’. It introduces students to key theoretical texts on governmentality. The course further examines the (anti-)politics of intervention and its relation to state sovereignty. It explores how the world has crossed into new humanitarian frontiers of ethical, logistical and legal problematics by analyzing the overlap between humanitarianism, militarism, the techno-legal designs of humanitarian aid, the emergence of cultures of expertise as well as the links between neoliberalism, the politics of security and relief. Finally, the course endeavors to revisit ‘aid’ from a Global South perspective by examining the experiences, knowledge, and values about care from other parts of the world.
Wednesdays 12.15 – 14.00 | Room:
Further information on the course and details on assignments and evaluation methods can be found in the course's syllabus below.
PROFESSORS
Julie Billaud
julie.billaud@graduateinstitute.ch
Office hours: Appoinments via email
TEACHING ASSISTANT
Danishwara Nathaniel
nathaniel.danishwara@graduateinstitute.ch
Office hours: Appointment by email
- Teacher: Julie Billaud
- Teacher: Nathaniel Danishwara
- Teacher: Till Mostowlansky