This course explores the concept of civilization and its opposite, the primitive or savage, from anthropology's unique cross-cultural perspective. We will examine how these paired concepts figure prominently in the origin and development of anthropology, and how anthropology ultimately challenges the validity of both. This intellectual history touches upon the ideologies and social consequences of progressivism, romanticism, colonialism, neocolonialism, environmentalism, indigenism, the New Age, neoconservativism, and traditionalist social movements. The course is lecture based and includes several writing assignments. Offered irregularly.