Download Famous Anthropologists

FAMOUS
ANTHROPOLOGISTS
February 2013
Expectations:
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evaluate the major contributions to our understanding of
the idea of self in relation to others made by at least
one of the leading practitioners in each of anthropology
(e.g., Franz Boas, Margaret Mead, Ruth Benedict),
psychology (e.g., Sigmund Freud, Jean Piaget, Karen
Horney), and sociology (e.g., George Herbert Mead,
Irving Goffman).
describe some differences and similarities in the
approaches taken by anthropology, psychology, and
sociology to the concept of self in relation to others;
Main Focus of Today
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Who are the main practitioners in Anthropology and
what are their major contributions to the discipline.
Disclaimer – this is a BRIEF introduction to some famous
anthropologist. You will be learning more in-depth
about these individuals in the upcoming units.
Source: Bain, C. M., & Colyer, J. S. (2001). The Human
Way: Introducing Anthropology, Psychology, and
Sociology (2nd ed.). Don Mills, Canada: Oxford
University Press.
RECAP
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Anthropology is the scientific study of the
development of the human species and of the
various cultures that make up humanity.
Anthropology
Cultural Anthro
-Analyzes cultures
of living people
Social Anthro
-analyzes social
organizations of
living people
Physical Anthro
-analyzes human
evolutionary and
genetic
development
Recap
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Of the three social sciences,
the youngest is anthropology,
which originated as a
discipline in the 20th century.
Its development differed from
sociology and psychology in
two significant ways: many of
its founders were American,
and many were female.
Margaret Mead (American)
1901-1978
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Cultural anthropologist – studied
Samoan culture compared to
American culture
She looked at adolescents in
both places and found that teens
did not experience the same
conflict as in America
Mead concluded that our
Cooperation (Samoa) vs.
competition (United States)
Studied gender roles
personalities are largely influenced
by the society in which we live.
Americans were raised to compete
against each other, while Samoans
were taught to co-operate.
Margaret Mead
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Margaret Mead Biography
Watch a 10 minute clip on Mead’s research in
Soma
Ruth Benedict (American)
1887-1948
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Cultural anthropologist – studied
the role of religion in shaping
personality, studied native
societies
Wrote Patterns of Culture –
believed that culture is a sum of
all personality types
Studied Japanese culture during
World War II and brought
respect to anthropology
Benedict, like Mead,
concluded that there is a
strong link between the
characteristics of a culture
and it’s peoples personality
types.
Raymond Dart (Australian)
1893-1988
 Physical anthropologist
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In 1924 he found a skull in
South Africa in which he named
it Australopithecus.
His discovery of the skull, represented a
transitional stage between ages and
humans.
Leakey Family (Louis, Mary, and Richard)
(British)
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Physical anthropologists
Believed that people originated in
Africa – found fossils of
Australopithecus and homo habilis
Experimented with stone age tools
to find out how ancestors hunted
Louis Leakey got women started in
primatology (Fossey, Goodall,
Galdikas)
Rejected the ideas that
human origin was in Asia
but Africa instead. In
order to understand our
ancestors’ lives we should
study other primates.
Mary Leakey on Google!
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Mary Leaky on Google!
Meave Leakey - Ted Talks
Jane Goodall (British)
1934 
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Primatologist – studied chimpanzees
Became part of group and was able to
make new observations (eg. – chimps
used tools – i.e stick in an ant hole,
Her work has given
chimps were not strictly vegetarians –
social scientists
sometimes they killed another chimp and insights into the
ate the meat from the carcass)
Most significant discovery is that chimps
have highly developed social structure
(eg. – alpha males and mating with
other females)
human kingdom –
social structure,
cooperation,
competition in
hunting, diet.
Birute Galdikas (Canadian)
1945 
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Primatologist – studied
orangutans (shares 98% genetic
material with humans)
Worked in Borneo and was a
“foster parent” to a young
orangutan. She lived with
primates.
“Looking into the calm, unblinking
eyes of an orangutan, we
see…the image of our own
creation…We recognize that
there is no separation between
ourselves and nature. We are
allowed to see the eyes of God.”
Found that orangutans live in highly
structured social communities. Violence
is ever-present, lurking just beneath the
surface. Although largely vegetarian,
orangutans, too, occasionally kill one of
their community for meat.
Agreed with the Leakey's that humans
can learn much about their early
ancestors from the study of primates.
Dian Fossey (American)
1938-1985
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Primatologist – studied mountain
gorillas in Rwanda
Lived with gorillas. Learned how to
imitate their habits and sounds, and She discovered much
information about gorillas
thus gained acceptance into their
(eg – affection to families,
society.
aggression to outsiders;
She had a passion for protecting
highly structured social
gorillas from poachers.
system).
She was murdered in 1985 by an She argued, liked Goodall,
unknown person – much of her work that gorillas share much in
remained unfinished.
common with out earliest
ancestors.
The Challenge….
VS.