Anthropology 106
Fall 2002
Professor Varisco
e-mail me at socdmv@hofstra.edu
 
 WEB CRITIQUE

This webpage contains a variety of links related to issues discussed in class. This site is by no means exhaustive, nor is it an endorsement of the accuracy of any of the sites. I will periodically update this page. If you find interesting sites, let me know the url.

Last Update 11/6/02

Guidelines for Web Critique

Sites Relevant to Course

GUIDELINES FOR WEB CRITIQUE

BACKGROUND:

 
Follow the specific instructions for all three parts of this assignment, as noted below. As you write your critique, keep in mind the following criteria:
 
• What can you learn about the person or group that put the site together? Are you able to tell if it is a reputable person or mainstream organization? Are the identities of the writers or creators indicated and do they solicit feedback? Try to contact an email address for feedback and indicate what happens.
 
• Who is the site directed to? Is it trying to convert you to an idea? Do you think it has a commercial interest (trying to get money from you)?
 
• From your perspective, do you find any bias, misleading or erroneous information on the site? Do you find information that contradicts or confirms what you have learned in class? If so, what is the response of the site webmasters if you are able to send your comments or criticism?
 
• What do you find the most useful aspect of the site? How user-friendly is it? How persuasive is it?
 
• Find something specific on the site that relates to the course material or discussion. Discuss what you find and relate it directly to examples from the course or class discussion.
 
I suggest you look at several of the sites before you choose the best ones to critique. Select these sites carefully so you will be able to provide a critical assessment. For full credit you must communicate by e-mail with the creator of at least one of the sites. You will write a report of about 750 words (ca. 3 pages).
 
Due Date: DEC 10 (last day of class). [Note: You may hand in or e-mail to me a draft at any time through NOV 26 for comments without a grade. I will try to return my comments by the next class period.]

GRADING: 6 points

level of effort
(1) adequate (2) impressive
relates material to class readings, films and lectures
(1) adequate (2) impressive
critical assessment of site and its content
(1) adequate (2) impressive
 
INSTRUCTIONS:

 

1. Pick two of the following websites and relate them directly to the class materials.
 
• The Women's Court: The Permanent Arab Court To Resist Violence Against Women http://www.arabwomencourt.org/
 
• An Anthropologist's View of the Komachi View of the Anthropologist [D. Bradburd] http://www.aaanet.org/mes/novbrad.htm
 
• "Getting Away with Murder: The Application of Marriage Laws in Jewish Yemen" Dina Dahbany-Miraglia http://www.utoronto.ca/wjudaism/journal/vol2n1/article1_d.html
 
• "Indigenous Plant Protection in Yemen: Development Anthropology in Action" [Varisco] http://www.aiys.org/webdate/plant1.html
 
• Ataba & Zarief E-ttool (Folk tale) http://www.barghouti.com/folklore/stories/atabazar.asp
 
• "Pictures From Afar: Shooting the Middle East" [Mahmut Mutman] http://humwww.ucsc.edu/DivWeb/CultStudies/PUBS/Inscriptions/vol_6/Mutman1.html
 
• Umm Kulthum. The Star of the East The Diva of Arabic http://almashriq.hiof.no/egypt/700/780/umKoulthoum/
 
• "Yemen Geographicalized" (Varisco) http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ngmapr.html
 
2. Pick one of the following 3 options (A, B OR C) and explain how the paired sites influence your views, either positively or negatively, on the issue being presented. You are welcome to say what you personally think about the issue, but you must show how the particular sites influence your view. Try to find out who put the site out (e.g., by going back to the home page of the website). [You will not be graded on your opinion, but on your ability to show why you think the way you do.]
 
A. Islam
 
• Allah Had No Son http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0042/0042_01.asp
 
• A Guide to Missionary Tactics http://www.jamiat.org.za/g_missionary.html
 
B. Iraq-America Relations
 
• Iraqi Subliminal Terrorism: The Ultimate Domestic Threat http://www.jefflindsay.com/iraqi.shtml
 
• 10 Reasons to End the Sanctions: The Results of a Decade of Siege on Iraq http://64.26.13.239/childrenofiraq/news/9_00_ten_reasons.htm\
 
C. Stereotypes and Bias

• Political Cartoons in the Arab Media http://www.adl.org/Anti_semitism/arab/cartoon_arab_press_081302.asp

 
• The Other Anti-Semitism http://www.sojo.net/magazine/index.cfm/action/sojourners/issue/soj9811/article/981112.html
 
3. Pick two of the photo or art archive sites below and describe your reactions to at least two of the images in the selection. Find images you can relate to the course material (this does not have to be for the same geographical location). The aim here is to respond to visual images rather than read text.

 

• ArabSex.org http://www.arab-sex.org/index2a.html [WARNING: this is a porno site. I do not suggest that you actually pay to enter deeper into the site, if you choose to comment on it.]
 
• Contemporary Arab Women's Art http://www.middleeastuk.com/culture/art/dialogues/
 
• HISTOIRES INTIMES, 1900-1960 http://www.fai.org.lb/expositions/histoires/english/histoire1.htm [You have to click on the > sign near the top to scroll through the gallery of several images.]
 
• LE PROCHE ORIENT 1860-1960 http://www.fai.org.lb/expositions/procheorient/english/procheorient1.htm [You have to click on the > sign near the top to scroll through the gallery of several images.]
 
• Images of Arabia (J.-F. Troin) http://geogweb.berkeley.edu/GeoImages/TroinArabia/TroinArabia.html
 
• Kurds, Northern Iraq http://www.fotograaf.com/wessel/wesik.htm
  
SITES RELEVANT FOR COURSE

 

Search Links
1001 sites.com http://www.1001sites.com/home.htm

Arab Net http://www.arab.net/welcome.html

 
Islamic Studies Pathways http://www.lamp.ac.uk/cis/pathways/
 
MESLINKShttp://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/daniel_m_varisco/meslink.htm
 
The Middle East on the Internet http://www.hf-fak.uib.no/smi/links.html
 
Middle East Network Information Center http://menic.utexas.edu/mes.html
 
Middle East Sites on the Internet (University of Bergen) http://www.hf.uib.no/i/Midtspraak/links.htm
Basic Information
 
Atlas of the Middle East http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east.html
 
CIA World Factbook http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
 
Encyclopedia of the Orient http://i-cias.com/e.o/index.htm
 
MESNET http://www.aaanet.org/mes/index.htm
 
Middle East Research and Information Project [MERIP] http://www.merip.org/

Mideast Web Maps http://www.mideastweb.org/maps.htm

 
Semitic Languages [On-Line Dictionaries] http://www.yourdictionary.com/languages/afroasia.html#semitic
Arab Americans

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee http://www.adc.org/

 
Association of Arab-American University Graduates http://www.aaug.org/
 
Cafe Arabica http://www.cafearabica.com

Ya Habibi: An Arab Childhood (Hanania) http://www.hanania.com/yahabibi.htm

 
Egypt

 

Abdul Wahab on Family and Gender: The Challenges of Modernity in Egypt (Andrea B. Rugh ) http://www.aaanet.org/mes/janrug.htm

 al-Ayyam http://www.Al-Ayyam.com/ [Official Egyptian newspaper]

 Egypt: A Country Study (Library of Congress)http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/egtoc.html

MUSLIM SERMONS: Public Discourse in Local and Global Scenario (el-Sayed el-Aswad) http://www.aaanet.org/mes/lectasw.htm

 "REFLECTIONS ON FIELDWORK AMONG THE SINAI BEDOUIN WOMEN" (Ann Gardner) http://www.sherryart.com/women/bedouin.html

Film (Middle East)
 
Arab Americans Denounce Paramount's Racist Film "Rules of Engagement" http://www.adc.org/press/2000/11april2000.htm

Arab Media: Cinema (History of Arab films) http://www.al-bab.com/media/cinema/cinema.htm

 The 'towel-heads' take on Hollywood http://www.al-bab.com/media/cinema/rules.htm

 Videography of Middle East Videos at UC Berkeley http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/MidEastVid.html

 
Food and Recipes
ABC of Arabic Cuisine http://www.arab.net/cuisine/welcome.html
 
Best Recipes http://zawaj.com/recipes_main.html

The Egyptian Recipes Page http://touregypt.net/recipes/

 
Turkish Cuisine http://www.dominet.com.tr/turkey/recipes.html
 
Human Rights
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee http://www.adc.org/

The Arab Organization for Human Rights http://leb.net/aohr

AHBAB: Gay and Lesbian Arab Society http://www.glas.org/ahbab/home.htm
 
"Turkey's Operation Return to Life" [Murat Paker] http://www.merip.org/pins/pin42.html
Humor
 
[Notes: some of these sites contain offensive stereotypes.]
 
Iran [Satire and political cartoons] http://www.iranian.com/Times/Subs/Revolution/satire.html
 
Jokestan [Persian Jokes] http://www.jokestan.com/ 
 
Turkish Humor http://www2.egenet.com.tr/mastersj/turkish-humor.html
 
Internet
 
Defaced Pro-Israeli and Pro-Palestinian Internet Sites http://comp.uark.edu/~wtaggar/defacement.html
 
The Internet In the Middle East and North Africa http://www.hrw.org/advocacy/internet/mena/index.htm
 
SLAMMING ISLAM: PARTICIPANT WEBSERVATION WITH A WEB OF MEANINGS TO BOOT [Varisco] http://www.aaanet.org/mes/lectvar1.htm
Iraq Crisis
 
The Children of Iraq http://www.harmonies.org/childrenofiraq/index.htm
 
Iraq: A Decade of Devastation http://www.merip.org/mer/mer215/mer215.html
 
Iraq National Congress http://www.inc.org.uk/
 
Iraq: a New Approach http://www.ceip.org/files/publications/iraq/mathews.htm
Islam in Middle East
 
The Azhar Mosque on the Internet http://www.mosque.com/
 
A Brief Illusrated Guide to Understanding Islam http://www.islam-guide.com/
 
"Globalizing Politics and Religion in the Muslim World" [JON W. ANDERSON] http://www.press.umich.edu/jep/archive/Anderson.html
 
Internet Islamic History Source Book http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/islam/islamsbook.html
 
Islamic Center of Long Island http://salam.muslimsonline.com/~icli/
 
Islamic City http://islamicity.com/
[Megasite and portal for everything about islam]
 
Jannah.org http://www.jannah.org/
[Site contains a huge list of individual Muslim home pages]
 
Jesus-is-Lord http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/islam.htm
[This is a Christian fundamentalist site against Islam]
 
Jews for Allah http://www.crawl-it-all.com/~jewsforallah/
 [This is a Muslim site trying to convert Jews]
 
Online Guide to Al-Aqsa Mosque http://www.al-aqsa.com/
 
Quran translations http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/  
 
The Riddle of Ramadan: Media, Consumer Culture, and the 'Christmas-ization' of a Muslim Holiday (Walter Armbrust) http://www.aaanet.org/mes/lectarm.htm
 
What Does Islam Say about Terrorism? http://www.islam-guide.com/ch3-11.htm
 
 
Judaism and Israel

"Anthropology in Israel" [Ben-Ari, Eyal] http://www.aaanet.org/mes/janeya.htm

 
A Brief History of Iranian Jews [M. Price] http://www.persianoutpost.com/htdocs/iranianjews.html
 
THE CONTRIBUTION OF YEMENITE JEWISH WRITINGS TO YEMENITE HISTORY [Yosef Tobi] http://www.aiys.org/webdate/tobi.html
 
"Getting Away with Murder: The Application of Marriage Laws in Jewish Yemen" Dina Dahbany-Miraglia http://www.utoronto.ca/wjudaism/journal/vol2n1/article1_d.html
 
"Jews of Iraq, A Will To Survive" [Shlomo Bakhash] http://www.bjcny.org/our.htm
 
A Moroccan Henna or "Berberiska" http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/1717/Culture.html
 
Sephardic-Moroccan Page http://www.jewishglobe.com/Morocco/
Kurds
akaKurdistan http://www.akakurdistan.com/
 
Kurdish Democratic Party http://www.kdp.pp.se/
 
Kurdish Women Research Resources http://fcis.oise.utoronto.ca/~mojabweb/
 
Kurds [John M. Beierle] http://lucy.ukc.ac.uk/EthnoAtlas/Hmar/Cult_dir/Culture.7855
 
Lebanon Crisis
 
A House of Many Mansions - The History of Lebanon Reconsidered" [K. Salibi] http://almashriq.hiof.no/lebanon/900/902/Kamal-Salibi/
 
Whose Lebanon? Parallels of Arab Occupation [W. Phares] http://www.btzedek.co.il/lebanon.htm
Music and Dance

The Arabian Cyber Oasis http://www.geocities.com/Baja/2020/index2.html

Arab-esque Dance Arts Research Resources http://www.arab-esque.org/ethnography.html

Arabic Music Info Source http://members.aol.com/amisource/

Dabke: The Dance of the Lebanese Village http://www.lebanon-online.com/culture/folklore3.html

"The eternal Lady"[Andrew Hammond] http://www.cairotimes.com/content/issues/Women/umm.html

Turath http://www.turath.org/

Umm Kulthum. The Star of the East The Diva of Arabic http://almashriq.hiof.no/egypt/700/780/umKoulthoum/

Naguib Mahfouz
 
 
Midaq Alley (1998) Film http://www.hollywood.com/movies/detail/movie/162090 [Adaptation of novel in non-Arab setting]

Naguib Mahfouz (official government page) http://www.sis.gov.eg/egyptinf/culture/html/nmahfouz.htm

 
"A Nobel for the Nation" Aramco World [L/ Luxner] http://almashriq.hiof.no/egypt/900/920/naguib_mahfouz/nobel_price/
 
"RECOVERING EGYPT WRITER ASKS EXTREMISM'S DEFEAT" http://www.boston.com/globe/search/stories/nobel/1994/1994e.html
 
Palestinian Crisis

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee http://www.aipac.org/ [Pro-Israel site]

The Electronic Intifada http://electronicIntifada.net/new.html [Pro-Palestinian Site]

End the Occupation http://www.endtheoccupation.org/ [Pro-Palestinian Site]

Ha'aretz http://www.haaretzdaily.com/ [Liberal Israeli Newspaper]

The Islamic Resistance Movement "Hamas" http://www.us-israel.org/jsource/Terrorism/Hamas1.html

The Jerusalem Post http://www.jpost.com/

MERIP Primer on the Uprising in Palestine http://www.merip.org/new_uprising_primer/primer_all_text.html

The Middle East Conflict (The Nation) http://www.thenation.com/special/2002middleeast.mhtml [Liberal American viewpoints]

occupationalhazard.org http://www.occupationalhazard.org/ [Bipartisan peace apporach]

A Personal Diary of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (N. Parry) http://nigelparry.com/diary/

Welcome to Palestine http://www.palestine-net.com/

Sexuality
 
 "Homosexuality in Egyptian Film" [Garay Menicucci] http://www.merip.org/mer/mer206/egyfilm.htm
 
"An Islamic Perspective on Sexuality" http://zawaj.com/articles/sexuality_league.html
 
Power & Sexuality in the Middle East http://www.merip.org/mer/mer206/mer206.htm
 
Sudan
Sudan Home http://sudanhome.com/home.html
 
WEDDINGS OF THE RASHAAYDA PEOPLE OF SUDAN http://zawaj.com/weddingways/rashaayda.html
 
Taliban
The Other "Good War" Afghanistan One Year Later (Rahul Mahajan) http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Articles/Mahajan_Afghanistan.htm
 
RESISTING THE TALIBAN AND TALIBANISM IN AFGHANISTAN: LEGACIES OF A CENTURY OF INTERNAL COLONIALISM AND COLD WAR POLITICS IN A BUFFER STATE (M. NAZIF SHAHRANI) http://www.mfa.gov.tr/grupa/percept/V-4/shahrani.10.htm
 
The September 11 Tragedy: Anthropological Resources http://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/daniel_m_varisco/wtc.htm
 
September 11 and Beyond: An Online Resource Guide (AMIDEAST) http://www.amideast.org/news_and_events/sept11/webresources_sept11.htm
 
 
Women's Rights
Muslim Women and their Islam http://www.maryams.net/
 
Women in Islam: Muslim Women http://www.arches.uga.edu/~godlas/Islamwomen.html
Yemen
 
Convention (Ittibaa`) or Invention (Ibtidaa`)?: Islamist Cassettes and Tradition in Yemen (W. Flagg Miller ) http://www.aaanet.org/mes/lectfla.htm
 
"Getting Away with Murder: The Application of Marriage Laws in Jewish Yemen" Dina Dahbany-Miraglia http://www.utoronto.ca/wjudaism/journal/vol2n1/article1_d.html
 
"Indigenous Plant Protection in Yemen: Development Anthropology in Action" [Varisco] http://www.aiys.org/webdate/plant1.html
 
A TRADITIONAL YEMENI WEDDING http://zawaj.com/weddingways/yemeni.html
 
"Yemen Geographicalized" (Varisco) http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ngmapr.html
 
Yemen Gateway http://www.al-bab.com/yemen/
 
Yemen Times http://www.yementimes.com/
 
Yemen Webdate http://www.aiys.org/webdate/indexyem.html