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1. What is anthropology? Why study it? *
2. What are cultures? *
3. Human Languages *
4. Anthropology and food *
5. Anthropology and economy *
6. Kinship and Descent *
7. Anthropology and gender *
8. Social Control *
9. Social Stratification *
10. Cultures and Change *
References: *
Glossary *
1. What is anthropology? Why study it?
Anthropology provides methods for studying societies and cultures as sciences. The essence of diversity is the study of social grouping; therefore, in order to understand social grouping it is necessary to have a basic knowledge of anthropology. Hence, learning and understanding both anthropology and diversity it is possible to create an open attitude towards diversity, cultural behaviors, diverse societies and mankind.
Diversity awareness is training which attempts to teach students not only to accept social and cultural diversity but also to value them as positive assets. While societies differ in culture throughout the world, the constant effort to achieve and maintain human values seems to be ongoing and somewhat similar in all societies. However, the methods, values and social acceptance in specific societies do differ. The three basic components of a culture are things, ideas and behavior patterns.
There are no two people exactly alike nor are there two people with nothing in common. Understanding how culture and society differ and how they are alike is a study in anthropology. Each person is a member of at least one culture and society; the study of societies and cultures are important in understanding people. Anthropology is a science that intends to analyze and document culture and societies.
Cultures are continuously changing while societies do not. In fact, no culture is absolutely static. Culture must change for society to survive. A complicating factor is that a society may exist in many cultures. Simplistically, cultures are delineated with a study of time and place.
A question for the anthropologist scientist is,"
is it possible to transport a culture?" There have been attempts to accomplish
cultural transportation in such areas as "Chinatowns" and Native American
reservations.
A culture is everything that we as people have, think or do as a member of a society. Human history has discovered that it is necessary and essential that cultures exist; societies help people adapt to the culture, thereby increasing their survival potential. It is necessary that members of any society have and maintain confidence in their society. Therefore, it is necessary for the members of a society to understand members of their society and their personal roles in that society. Conversely, when people do not understand a society they will lose confidence and a sense of well-being in that society.
Culture is acquired rather then being genetically passed. Which is to say one must learn his/her own culture; cultural knowledge is not inherited. Anthropologists use the term "enculturation" to describe the process of learning a culture. In fact, it had been discovered that people from any background could learn culture with the same efficiency as those born into that culture. However, cultures do have an effect on human usage in such areas as by use, type and preparation of food, protection, shelter and clothing.
There are two typical ways that people respond to an unfamiliar culture. An ethoncentrical response is defined as trying to adapt from a previous culture. The second is cultural relativism which is to adjust or reform within the second culture. Anthropologists generally agree with the second method as the most suitable for individuals.
Pure anthropology is the refinement of the study of discipline theory, methods and data. Applied anthropology focuses on using anthropological insights to obtain solutions to practical social problems. Until recently applied anthropology was not considered as an important a study as pure anthropology. However, things are changing and now applied anthropology is becoming a respectable science. Applied anthropology is studying and working with many subjects at home and abroad. Some specific studies include policy research, impact assessment, expert witnessing, educators and planners, and cultural brokers. Cultural anthropologists must be observers rather than interfering with social reactions. If a cultural researcher interferes with the items under study, it will invalidate any documentation. In addition, the anthropologists are cultural researchers who must be able to observe the entire behavioral spectrum.
Prior to and during World War II there were vast
opportunities for anthropologists to study primitive societies. However,
after that it became more common for cultures to mix with each other, thus
creating complex societies. The effect of a study itself can create problems
in studying a culture, in that the observer may influence or affect typical
social and cultural behavior. Therefore, the responsibility of any social
researcher is to influence the social behavior as little as possible. Other
outside influences on cultures has come from the change in governments.
Prior to World War II many isolated cultures were unaffected by world events.
However, after that period cultures and societies have changed greatly
and rapidly due to government policies and international interventions.
Language and symbols (writing) are possibly the most significant landmarks of humanity. However humans also engage in other types of communications that do not necessarily set humanity apart from other animals. As best that can be understood by scientists, humans are the only animals not confined to working in the present tense. Humans have the ability to speak and think in both the present, past and future tense. Other animals, as scientists now understand, can only conceive what they presently see and understand.
There are two essential structural elements of the human language phonological structure. The first is the Patel Hall rule of sounds that is used to project meanings. Second, each language has a grammar of its own and uses words (morphology) and arrangements of words into sentences (syntax). Despite being widely acclaimed, most languages are able to support about the same level of abstract thoughts. Languages are affected by the culture and adapt to the needs of the culture. For example, many words in some languages describe events and material in more detail than other languages. The American Eskimo language has several words to describe ice and snow.
Sapir-Worf is a study that is investigating the influence
of perception and languages; that is a study on how and if perceptions
are influenced by language. The same scientists are studying to see if
perception can relate to social conceptions throughout the entire culture.
Nevertheless, languages do not convey communications nearly as effectively
as human body language or nonverbal communications. Nonverbal communications
are a reflection of the culture in which they are used. A simple gesture
in one language may be an insult in another language.
Cultural survival is dependent on a continuous and daily supply of food that provides necessary nutritional elements. Anthropologists have defined five major food procurement categories: the most primitive is food collecting (foraging), followed by horticulture, pastoralism, agriculture and industrialization. It is obvious that the strategy used in obtaining food is dependent on the social technology. However, scientists generally accept the notion that environments simply influence rather than determine the strategy for obtaining food. In the simplest and most primitive method of obtaining food, foraging, the carrying capacity of a human is limited, therefore more time is required. In other food collecting societies, the individual may rely on availability without influence of other humans other than them all being of a single member of that society. That is to say, the individuals are responsible for their own food gathering. Food collecting has been around for approximately 10,000 years. At about the time first food collecting societies were recognized 100 percent of the people were dependent on this method; at this time only one percent of the earth's population is dependent on food collecting. In today's densely populated social environment, food collecting is not an adequate method of obtaining food.
As humanity progressed, horticulture became an important method of supplying food. Horticulture generally involves small-scale plant cultivation that relies very little on technology. Often horticulture produces very low yield and the society use exists without any surplus. With today's advanced technology and food growing methods, horticulture is not favored because it often includes slash and burn techniques.
Pastoralism was an early attempt to domesticate livestock. In the past this was often practiced in areas where cultivation was difficult. This method of obtaining food requires that the society be somewhat nomadic, as new pastures are needed for livestock.
Agriculture is the most technically advanced and direct method for obtaining food. Often, agriculture requires irrigation, fertilization and mechanical equipment and is dependent on an established economy. As a result advanced agriculture often produces a large surplus that may be stored for future use. This gives a long-term supply of food and a method of marketing. Agriculture is often associated with large stationary settlements and cities, and requires high degrees of labor specialization.
In most industrialized countries, food is a product
of marketing rather than farming. In industrialized food production, large
quantities of energy and property are often utilized. In addition, industrialized
food markets often require high technology and extremely specialized labor,
which are often associated with a complex set of markets. These markets
include mechanics, tractor sales, commercial fertilization, pest controls
and many other support activities.
Economic anthropologists investigate how items and commodities are produced and distributed throughout a market economy. In the United States this has been projected through its economic values, including the concept of property rights; in other societies, collective farming has been the focus of many social experiments. However, as a topographical study, anthropologists examine resource allocations, conversions of products into consumable commodities, and distribution methods.
Americans should note that not all the world shares the American notion of property ownership. Property ownership in America requires responsible laws and other obligations as necessary. In more primitive societies, where food collecting is common, land ownership is not typically practiced. In addition, inadequate resources (water, grazing rights, etc.) often require public access. In general, horticultural and agricultural cultures more often control access to property.
The distribution of goods and services are as important as the goods and services themselves. Goods and services are distributed according to three identifiable modes: reciprocity, redistribution and market exchange. Reciprocity is the exchange of goods and services of equal value. Redistribution, found often in societies with political bureaucracies, is a form of exchange of goods governed by an authority. Market exchange, the least personal of the methods of exchange, requires a standardization of how goods and services are bought and sold.
The market place is often the social center of the village. In addition to providing a "window to others" it provides a place and method for social greetings and interchange as well as the marketing of goods.
There are three levels and forms of reciprocity depending on how close the participants are to each other. Generosity is giving a gift without expectation of any immediate return. Balanced reciprocity is the exchange of goods and services with the reciprocity being fulfilled by a given time. Negative reciprocity is where the participants attempt to take advantage of each other.
Different societies have vivid concepts in labor
responsibility. All societies have some responsibilities based on gender.
However, in many societies where labor specialism is not prevalent, gender
based specialism is not as clear. Durkheim considered two methods for allocating
labor responsibilities: mechanical solidarity and organic cohesion. Mechanical
solidarity is prevalent where there is a relatively small amount of labor
specialists and the binding among members is often through common interest
(engineering, science, etc.). In organic societies, the members have a
mutual interdependence.
In order to understand human motivations, it is necessary to understand human bonds. Kinship is often the basis for establishing bonds, however not all humanity has the same concept of kinship.
In all societies, kinship plays an important role in bonding of individuals. However, the concepts of kinship vary among cultures. Consaquineal (blood) kinship and affinal (marriage) kinship outline two of the most common types of kinship recognized in all societies. In addition, many societies also recognize fictive kinship, which is not based on either marriage or blood. Kinship helps in establishing biological and cultural bonding. The basic concept of kinship is that it establishes an approach for groupings whether it is among blood relatives, friends or marital relationships. Kinship, generation and relationship often effect names and titles. In fact, through kinship a single person's title may vary among the social members. Which is to say, each individual in the social grouping may have a different title for an individual.
Rules of descent are important in some societies. An individual's role may change due to the individual having either patrilineal descent (descent from the father) or matrilineal (descent from the mother). In some societies, ambilineal (descent from either mother or father) is recognized with the same level of bonding. However, in human society, patrilineal kinship is typically the closest form of kinship.
There are some societies that recognize matrilineal kinship above other types of kinship and thereby recognize matrilineal lineage. In matrilineal societies, the mother's brother may be recognized as the social father of the children. Often in matrilineal societies, the marriage relationships are extremely fragile.
A unilineal society traces its linearity through only a single parental line. Such societies may recognize links in lineage and associate clans (unilineal groups claiming lineage without proof), phratries (groups of related clans), and moieties (two halves of a society related by descent).
Bilateral descent is often found among foraging and industrialized societies, which often trace linearity through both parents. Through studies of society it has been discovered that bilateral systems, which trace kinship symmetrically through both parents, typically form more permanent groups.
As can be seen, both linearity and gender play important
roles in establishing kinship and roles in society.
Gender roles are the way that members of society, according to sex, are perceived, evaluated, and expected to behave. The term behavior in this context refers not only to the physical actions but also to emotions, attitudes, understandings, etc. Margaret Mead has often been considered one of the most prominent students of roles in society based on gender. From her studies as well as others, it has been found that permissiveness is often based on gender. For example, in the Mangaians of Polynesia, permissiveness is encouraged, while it is absolutely forbidden in the Cheyenne Indians (Native Americans) of the USA.
In a broad sense many gender roles are similar throughout human society. However, each society sets its own gender roles, rules and regulations. In the past almost all societies have often allocated tasks based upon gender. Certain high standards of behavior have often been associated with the female role in the society. On the other hand, the roles of hunters and warriors have mainly been associated with men.
Gender has often been used to justify male dominance.
However, through research, it has been discovered that women often do not
perceive themselves in the same role as they are often publicly projected.
Since about 3500 B.C., governments have exercised monopolies on taxes, markets, military service and public works. Anthropologists and social theorists study why people voluntarily surrender freedoms for governmental controls. Some theorists (Children and Wittfogel) belive that protection and food production are elements in this surrender. The methods of acquiring public control varies from public elections to public opinion polls, lineage, age and other factors.
It is necessary for any society to establish social controls. These controls are necessary to resolve problems in internal and external conflicts. In addition many societies have set political levels for problem resolutions.
Bands, tribes, chiefdoms and states are generally recognized as the four political institutions. Banded societies have the least amount of political specialization; often the band leader will occupy the only political position. In addition, bands are typical within foraging societies. This may require political responsibilities that distribute food, food foraging, and trade reciprocity.
Horticulturists and pastoralists often form tribes. Often tribal societies form larger groups than bands. Tribes are often formed from more than one band. Chiefdoms is a more formal government than tribal society and is more likely to have stable or permanent officials. In chiefdom, political authority often rests with a single individual; however, chiefdoms often do have social ranks and often distribute food by feasting.
State systems are the most integrated of the political
systems. Specialized roles are defined and recognized by the political
establishment. Often there are complex layers of stratification in modern
societies. Roles in social diversity are not always apparent to the anthropologists.
Social stratification is the layering of societies. All societies have some aspect of social ranking, which is used to distribute wealth, power and prestige. However, not all societies have visible stratification; the egalitarian society is unstratified; wealth, power and prestige are nearly evenly distributed. Rank societies concentrate on the ranking for prestige but not for power or wealth. The Hindu Indian society exercises the most stratified society in the form of caste. In the Indian caste society, social boundaries are well defined and defended.
Functionalist theorists believe that stratification
brings out positive attributes by defining elevated roles for the elite.
Conflict theorists believe that stratification is simply a method for protecting
the rich and powerful. However, social mobility is hampered in socially
stratified systems, making it almost impossible for members to grow or
decrease in wealth, prestige or power.
All cultures are continuously changing. Often the changes are through inventions, protection, social demands, etc. Cultures diffuse thought concepts and ideas that cross cultural bounds from one culture to another. Cultures will influence other cultures. Urbanization has been a cultural change that continues throughout the 20th and 21st centuries.
Not all cultural changes are for the betterment of
the society, changes must be weighed as to the gain versus the loss. If
the culture will gain, then social changes are acceptable; but conversely,
if a culture will suffer, then it may be better to leave cultures and societies
as they are. The complexity of assimilating societies and cultures into
a centralized society often perplexes the most literate social scientists,
including those in America.
Best, D. (1998). Understanding, diversity and consensus. Oxford Review of Education.; Oxford. September 1998.
Bryan, J. (1998). A Strategic Business Imperative. Vital Speeches of the Day; New York; Nov. 1. 1998. ISSN 0042742X.
Greenberg, J., Baron, J. (1997). Behavior in Organizations, sixth edition. Prentice Hall. p.48.
Ferraro, G. (1998). Cultural Anthropology, An Applied Perspective, Third Edition. West/Wadsworth, An Internation Thomson Publishing Company. New York.
Flynn, G. (1998). The Harsh Reality of Diversity Programs. Workforce; Costa Mesa; December 1998.
Wade, R. (1998). Brickwalls and breakthroughs: Talking about diversity with white teacher education. Social Education,
Arlington. February 1998.
| Affinal relatives | Kinship ties that are formed from marriages (i.e. in-laws) |
| Agriculture | An advanced form of food production requiring intensive work, use of animals and often machinery. Agriculture often includes consideration for soil and water conservation and usage. |
| Ambilineal descent | Where descent is recognized from either the male or female lineage. |
| Balanced reciprocity | When items are given with the expectation that a similar gift will be given in return. |
| Band society | Typically a society that bands together for hunting and other food gathering events. Typically the bands are characterized by kinship but without permanent political structures. |
| Bilateral descent | When the kinship from both parents are recognized relatively equal. |
| Caste | Membership is established by birth with extreme layers of stratification. There can be no social mobility in a caste system. |
| Chiefdom | A political organization in which the office of chiefs are at the organizational top. |
| Civilization | Specifically a society with cities |
| Clan | A unilineal decent where more than 10 generations have claimed membership. However, direct connections to an ancestor may not be required for clan membership. |
| Class | An achieved rank within a stratified but mobile society. |
| Conflict theory | The argument stating that societies are always changing; the basic theory is that members in the higher levels of a society use their power to control lower members in the society. |
| Consanguineal relatives | Blood relatives
|
| Cultural anthropology | A scientific study of cultural contrasts |
| Culture | A grouping of societies with identifiable and documented common factors. |
| Descent | Tracking kinship through genealogy or descent |
| Division of Labor | The assignment of responsibility within a society |
| Double descent | Responsibilities and obligations are passed from both parents. |
| Economic Anthropology | The humanistic
study of economics (human economic anthropology).
|
| Economics | The science that investigates and documents distribution, consumption and productions of food and other materials. |
| Ethnic Group | A group of people with common cultural features |
| Ethnocentrism | Using ones own society to base viewpoints of other cultural and social groups. |
| Fictive kinship | Recognizing one as kinship without regards to consanguineal or affinal ties. |
| Food Collecting | Collecting foods from the natural environment |
| Gender | The expected behavior of a person based on sexuality. |
| Gender ideology | Roles in society based on sexuality. |
| Generalized Reciprocity | The giving
of a gift with the expectation of one in return
|
| Grammar | A set of articulation rules, inflections and systematic methods used to promote communication between individuals or groups. |
| Horticulture | Typically small-scale food crop cultivation, often without water or fertilization. |
| Hunting and gathering | The hunting and gathering of food from natural sources. |
| Industrialization | Typically society where large scale mechanized factory production is common. |
| Kindred | All relatives from both parents. |
| Kindred system | Typically the recognition of relatives from both lineage and marriage. |
| Matrilineal descent | A society where lineage is traced through the mother. |
| Nation | A society or group sharing common identity, history and culture. |
| Negative reciprocity | An exchange of goods without equal value (typically one party tries to take advantage of the other). |
| Nonverbal communication | Communications
between parties without the use of words.
|
| Nutritional deprivation | The lack of
nutritional foods
|
| Pastoralism | Food growing primarily from domesticated animals. |
| Patrilineal descent | A society where lineage is traced through the father. |
| Phratry | A descent group comprised from related clans. |
| Production | Where goods are obtained naturally but are altered for market consumption. |
| Ranked Society | A society without equal access to wealth, power and prestige. |
| Reciprocity | The exchange of goods with perceivable equal values |
| Sapir-Whorf hypothesis | The speculation that language influences perception. |
| Social Control | A control to constrain individuals to social norms. |
| Social Mobility | The ability to move through social stratified layers |
| Social stratification | Ranking individuals within a society by wealth, power and prestige. |
| Society | A grouping of persons within a culture. Typically, the grouping promotes and dominates social benevolence and acceptance standards. |
| Stratified societies | Societies recognized by layers of wealth, power and prestige |
| Syntax | Linguistic rules of structure. |
| Unilineal descent | Tracing lineage from a single parent. |
| Wealth | The accumulation of socially valued materials |