About Dr. Carie Little Hersh
In no particular order, I am an anthropologist, university teaching professor, former lawyer, and mom of two, but primarily I’m an American with a weird sense of humor, who, when asked “who am I?” am most likely to burst out yelling, “Two-four-six-oh-ONE!” I may also be a complete dork. Jury’s out.
I began my love affair with Anthropology as a college freshman, taking “Language and Culture”. I was hooked, and doggedly stuck with the field even while simultaneously working my way through the panoply of middle class aspirations. At the same time that I was taking pre-med classes, surveying public health graduate programs, and then actually attending law school, I also majored in Anthropology then earned my master’s degree. After I finally realized that I did not want to be a doctor, a policy maker, or a lawyer, I succumbed to the field whole-heartedly and got my doctorate in Anthropology.
I hold degrees in Anthropology (B.A., University of Virginia; M.A., Duke University; Ph.D. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) and law (J.D., Duke University School of Law), and a graduate certificate in Women’s Studies (Duke University).
Working at the front desk of the Association for Research and Enlightenment in Virginia Beach during my doctoral ethnographic field project
Through all of my degrees, my research has focused on American cultural phenomena. My undergraduate thesis explored the Crossing the Line ritual that the U.S. Navy performed at the equator. My Master’s thesis examined the use of PMS as a defense for violence in American courts, as well as the social consequences of relying on a biological issue to explain women’s erratic behavior. Finally, for my doctoral dissertation, I lived, worked, and participated alongside two very different religious organizations in Virginia—one at the forefront of the Religious Right, the other at the forefront of eclectic New Age practices.
I currently teach cultural anthropology as a university lecturer at Northeastern University, and am writing two books, one on my field research in religion and scientific authority, the other on medical culture, all while I’m raising two small children. Needless to say, the children are growing much faster than the books. You can find out more about me and my work using the following links:
Academic Home Page (under development): http://www.northeastern.edu/cssh/faculty/carie-hersh
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/CarieLittleHersh
relevANTH and Dr. Hersh in the press:
Anthropology Blogs 2016 – Jason Antrosio http://www.anthropologyreport.com/anthropology-blogs-2016/
8 Awesome Anthropologists Advancing Public Outreach – Kristina Killgrove http://www.forbes.com/sites/kristinakillgrove/2016/03/08/8-awesome-anthropologists-advancing-public-outreach/#201c7893564f
Dr. Carie Hersh (Northeastern University) also recently launched a blog called Relevanth, where she tries to make anthropological ideas and knowledge relevant to day-to-day life. Dipping primarily into linguistics and cultural anthropology, Hersh’s recent posts have tackled differences between regional ways of talking (“Your Accent Is We-ahd“) and similarities between “The Hidden Cultural Values of Massholes and Y’all Qaeda.”
Behind the Strange and Controversial Ritual When You Cross the Equator at Sea – Cale Weissman http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/behind-the-strange-and-controversial-ritual-when-you-cross-the-equator-at-sea
An intriguing article about ongoing civilian rituals at the equator. Although the author promoted me to “professor”, he did a good job reporting on our interview and on my “Crossing the Line” article (see below).
Selected publications:
“Of Fantasy and Daughters“. Family Reading blog, The Horn Book. October 19, 2016. http://www.hbook.com/2016/10/blogs/family-reading/of-fantasy-and-daughters/#_
Losing faith in the secular: The politics of faith and knowledge at two American parachurches. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 2011. 214 pages; 3464919. http://gradworks.umi.com/34/64/3464919.html
My dissertation on how science and academic knowledge were perceived and used by two very different religious organizations. A book version has been in the works for a while…
“Fighting Science with Science at Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network,” in Handbook of Religion and the Authority of Science, James R. Lewis and Olav Hammer, eds. Brill. 2010. Pp. 514-548. https://books.google.com/books?id=OQOJJiyOyH8C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
One of the chapters of my dissertation, published in a volume featuring cross-disciplinary articles on religion and science.
PMS as a Defense for Violence: Women, Culture, and the Law. Duke University. 2002. 156 pages; 51441433. http://www.worldcat.org/title/pms-as-a-defense-for-violence-women-culture-and-the-law/oclc/51441433
My (admittedly hard-to-access) Master’s thesis, combining Law, Anthropology, and Women’s Studies.
“Crossing the Line: Sex, Power, Justice and the U.S. Navy at the Equator.” Duke Journal of Gender Law & Policy. 2002. 9:277-324. http://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1071&context=djglp
This article was a reworking of my undergraduate thesis about a since-then-greatly-altered naval ritual in which King Neptune visited the ship when it reached the equator and things got…weird.
