Loved this class! Professor Handler is incredibly knowledgeable about the topics covered and will undoubtedly open your eyes to the various ways of understanding society and the world. The class is graded out of 100 points. The three essay exams are each worth 20 points and the lowest is dropped. Participation in the discussion section is worth 25, and the final is worth 35. Professor H's lectures cover the readings very thoroughly, so take notes! This will save you time and allow you to contribute to the discussion without having to do much of the reading if you are short on time. All in all, I highly recommend this class! #tCF2020

Took this class online during COVID, but it was sooo easy. Grades consist of 3 essays (one gets dropped), a final (which is take-home and open-note), and discussions. There are readings, but Handler covers the important topics during class, so you don't need to do them. Handler is interesting, but only if you're liberal, otherwise def don't take the class; you won't like what he has to say. I had Eniola for discussions and she was pretty chill, just make sure you do the discussion posts and speak once during class. Overall, the class is an easy A even if you don't like Anth. I found it very interesting and Handler tried to make it relevant to modern society (but kinda comes off as very political).

Really eye-opening course that is a great introduction to anthropology. It is a lecture course that assigns about 2-3 readings per week, which isn't too bad and has a discussion section. The readings are sometimes pretty complex, but Handler explains them during lecture that further clarifies them. Exams are essays based on the readings that are pretty open-ended questions. Highly recommend this course. #tCF2020

I really liked Richard Handler, he is a quirky, interesting guy and his lectures were super interesting. I did not like the structuring of the discussion sections as my TA never showed up on time and was incredibly disorganized. However, he makes your grades based on three written essays and the final being two essays. He usually gives you three prompts to choose from and they grade them fairly. I would say take thorough notes during his lectures so you can make a good argument in your essays. The discussion section makes up 10% of your grade so I would attend as much as possible. I also advise to keep an open mind during his lectures because he can make rather bold comments.

I took this course to fulfill the non-western requirement. It is a very interesting class, Prof Handler shows you a very different perspective of the world. If you pay attention in lecture you don't have to do any reading. The grades come from take home essays and you can write them entirely based off what he says in class. Overall, I enjoyed this class a lot and would recommend to anyone who needs an easy A or something to fulfill the non-western requirement.

Tbh this class was pretty easy -- it had 3 papers (3-5 pages) and handler constantly extended the deadline. they are take home and he gives you about two days to write. the final is basically two take home exams and he gives you like 2 weeks. he drops lowest exam grade and from what I can tell, you basically have to get lucky on who grades your exam. I had TAs grade my 3 take home, 87, 90, 100 and Handler graded my final. He gave me a 84 and an 86 or so. So thats why i ended with a B+ (still mad about it cause I really tried lmao) but tbh this class was minimal effort, i never did the readings, i just took notes during lecture and it was enough for me to write my essays on. I also never read the assigned books. Handler is pretty funny sometimes, I also got away with sleeping in class a lot and just recording the lecture.

This class wasn't very difficult. When I took it, there were 3 writing assignments, as well as a written essay final. Each of our writing assignments, including the final were graded by different TAs too ensure fairness, and Handler himself would also do some grading. Our lowest of those first 3 writing assignments would be dropped. I didn't really do the readings, besides some skimming so I could say a couple things in the discussion section if necessary, and for the relevant portions of a paper. Walked away with an A+ without doing a crazy amount of work. Would recommend taking it with Handler, as the class isn't set up to be overly difficult, in my opinion.

Great class! A very easy intro course and interesting readings/materials. Prof Handler is a very interesting man and extremely knowledgeable. Didn't really have to do many of the readings to do well.

Interesting course, but you MUST have an open mind coming into the course. I hated Handler and the course for the entire first half of the semester b/c he does come off a bit strong and can at times sound arrogant and dismissive of other opinions. Lectures are highly recommended. I never really got more than 2 sentences worth of notes out of them but it's worth going to just listen to the interesting things he has to say. Readings are fairly optional. Grade is somewhat unforgivingly comprised of 4 essays, so strong writing skills are critical. Overall, an easy B+ class that was reasonably interesting.

This was one of my favorite classes taken at UVA. Handler is a really interesting man with very provocative opinions that make you think and reevaluate how you approach the world. I think I gravitate towards anthropology as a discipline itself rather than this specific class, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. At times Handler can be very opinionated to the point that he doesn't consider others viewpoints. This is easily remediated in the discussion sections where the TAs are very helpful and let the students take charge. Take Michelle as your TA if you can! Not too much reading and take-home exams/final. The reading can be dense.