Download Anthropology 2A Cultural Anthropology

ANTHROPOLOGY 2A
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Fall 2011
Katherine Schaefers, Instructor
Office: 3102
OH: 10:00-10:30 T/Th
CHAPTER 1
THE ESSENCE OF ANTHROPOLOGY

Film: Intro to the Millennium Series

David Maybury-Lewis, Anthropologist
THE DEVELOPMENT OF
ANTHROPOLOGY

Anthropology (Anthropos = “Man”, Logy = “Study
of”)


The study of humankind in all times and places
The discipline of Anthropology is a European
invention, but the study of people has a long
history…
EARLY ANTHROPOLOGY
 Herodotus

Greek Historian (5th century B.C.E.)

The Histories – collections of Herodotus’ encounters
with peoples of the Mediterranean world. He often
emphasized how he faithfully recorded stories told to
him, but would often add embellishments/emphasis to
endear his Greek readers to the peoples he met
abroad.
 Napoleon

Bonaparte and Egypt
Self-proclaimed Emperor of France (17691821)
 Anthropology
Timeline:
 http://historyofanthropology.eu/

What caused this explosion in the discipline?
IN WESTERN HISTORY

European Exploration/Colonialism

Columbus, Napoleon, and…
WESTERN SOCIETY’S PAST ATTEMPTS AT
GETTING TO KNOW OTHER CULTURES
 Modernism:
Began with the Renaissance and
the Enlightenment.
A reaction to the superstition and hysteria of Europe’s “Dark Ages” (The Witch
hunt era that we will get into later).
 Rationality, objectivity, reason can discover knowledge and truth and lead to
progress.
 We can understand everybody/thing everywhere if we adhere to these principles
of logic.
 Empirical knowledge: Based on observations of the world rather than on
intuition or faith.
 Hypothesis: A tentative explanation of the relation between certain phenomena
 Theory: In science, an explanation of natural phenomena, supported by a
reliable body of data.
 People are now freed from the restraints of superstitious nonsense and can now
grow as logical, rational and evolved beings.
 This is where our modern thoughts of linearity come from. In Western Society,
time is like an arrow, experienced as breach, innovation and change – we are seen
to always improve on what came before. The Europeans of the Enlightenment saw
themselves at the pinnacle of evolution. (The era right before this also had maps
centering on Europe, and the cosmos rotating around Earth).

QUESTIONS...

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With new discoveries in science (physics, chemistry,
biology, astronomy, anatomy, anthropology!) and
cultures being found worldwide that seemed similar to
the “less evolved” European prehistoric culture, this
European laudatory attitude persisted for a good 200300 years, but then the ideology began to shift…
Questions arose:
Were Europeans really more
advanced/improved/intelligent than their ancestors?
What is Intelligence?
FOR EVERY MOVEMENT, THERE IS A
COUNTER-MOVEMENT
 Post-Modernism:
No “true” knowledge, only
subjective and objective knowledge.




1980s-Today
Knowledge as a human construction that we must
“deconstruct.”
Science is limited: it does not integrate multiple
viewpoints/truths. One must be aware of one’s own
biases.
We cannot remove our cultural lens but we can
become more aware of it.
 Both
Modernism and Post-Modernism are
Western Society’s Etic ways of viewing other
cultures.
THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
To make the strange familiar, and the familiar
strange
 Strangeness, the unfamiliar is scary and can
lead to misguided feelings of anger and hate,
which may eventually lead to warfare and
death.


Most interpersonal or inter-group conflicts are
caused by a lack of understanding.
Discovering similarities between one’s own culture
and that of others leads to more harmonious
relationships.
4 TRADITIONAL FIELDS OF
ANTHROPOLOGY

Physical

Human Biology and Evolution


Archaeology


Physical and Cultural remains
Linguistics


Origins and distribution of language
Cultural

Social organization, economics, technology, political organization,
marriage, family life.


Genetics, DNA studies, evolutionary theory, primate behavior, paleontology,
fossil record.
i.e. This Class
These 4 fields are rarely mutually exclusive & today’s
anthropology scene is very fluid, often incorporating techniques
from outside disciplines like psychology (study of the human
psyche/mind) and sociology (study of human society).
TERMS AND TECHNIQUES USED BY
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGISTS
 Participant
Observation: To truly understand
a culture, an anthropologist will usually study a
culture for an extended period of time,
sometimes taking many years. Oftentimes, the
anthropologist will live within the community
and partake in daily life and activities.
 Ethnography: A Cultural Anthropologist’s
work usually culminates into something called
an Ethnography, or a written description of the
studied society. These are usually published in
books and journals.
TERMS AND TECHNIQUES USED BY
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGISTS CONT.
 Culture
Area: This class will make use of
ethnographic material from around the world
from locations that are termed “Culture Areas”
or geographical areas where societies tend to
share many traits, either because of similar
responses to the environment or because of
cultural diffusion (sharing of culture) between
these groups.

Maps!:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/
 Awesome maps, printer friendly from National
Geographic
A QUESTION OF PERSPECTIVE:
THE FORE OF NEW GUINEA

Problem: The Fore are a group of ~14,000 horticulturalists
(cultivators of domesticated plants without the use of modern
agricultural techniques) from the Eastern Highlands of Papua
New Guinea (Melanesia Culture Area) who have had about 200 of
their members die from mysterious causes each year. The locals
call it Kuru or “to tremble with fear.” Jerking/shaking/unable to
coordinate are the main symptoms. After 9 months, the
individual is no longer able to eat or drink and soon dies. Women
and children are mainly afflicted.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x925q5_kuru-canibalismo-deamor_school


Google Map: http://www.maplandia.com/papua-new-guinea/madang/fore/
Solution? If you were asked to look into this case, what would
your first hypothesis be as to the cause of the affliction?
A HOLISTIC PERSPECTIVE SOLVES IT

We must look to all aspects of the Fore’s society for the
answer, specifically, their religious and funerary
practices…

Kuru is caused by an infectious agent that is ingested
by family members when they consume the remains of
their dead loved ones. To the Fore, the holiest, most
sacred resting place for the deceased is within the
bodies of their loved ones. The deceased’s remains
would be cooked and distributed amongst family as a
form of utmost respect. Women and children, having
lower social status, were more likely to ingest the
brain (the seat of the infectious agent).
ETIC/EMIC ANALYSIS

Etic Analysis: Viewing and labeling a culture with our own words and
terms.
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
Advantages: Finding patterns that the studied group may be unaware of. Applying
an Etic Analysis to all cultures that you study makes it easier to identify Human
Universals. Terms and categories can be made for new information to be nicely
organized. Etic Analysis is mainly used in Anthropological studies.
Etic Analysis: Kuru is caused by a virus in the afflicted’s bloodstream that is later
ingested by family members.
But what are bacteria, germs, diseases, a virus to the Fore? These are
not only foreign words, but also foreign ideas.
Emic Analysis: Viewing a culture through the eyes of the people being
studied.


Advantages: Better understanding of the studied culture, but much, much harder to
attain. Argument: is it even possible to see through the eyes of another culture? To
undo and place aside one’s own worldview and wholly adopt another?
Emic Analysis: Kuru is caused by Sorcery. The Sorcerer will obtain a personal
belonging of the individual’s, combine it in a bundle with leaves, bark and stones
and bury it in the cold muddy earth. The Sorcerer will then recite a spell and let
the bundle rot. The individual then develops Kuru.
CULTURAL RELATIVISM

Cannibalism. Right/Wrong? Does context matter?
Who gets to make up the rules?
CULTURAL RELATIVISM CONT.
 The
norms and values we grow up with seem
right and correct
 We use our own society as a base for judging
others
 Thinking of others as simple, primitive,
immoral, less-than-human or somehow
fundamentally “wrong” is how wars start and
propaganda is spread.
Exploration: Americans activity and stereotypes
(handout)
For Tuesday
 Prepare
for Chapter 1 Vocabulary Quiz
(boldfaced words in Chapter)
 Write a 1 paragraph analytical response
each for DeVita chapters 2, 13 & 27 (Look
in your syllabus under Homework
Policy for tips on what you should be
writing about)