Download Anthropology

The Social Sciences:
Anthropology
The Social Sciences
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Anthropology
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Sociology
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Study human life throughout history
Examines biological and cultural diversity
Comparative and holistic
Study of the groups and societies humans build and the
way social relationships affect behavior
Focuses on groups and social institutions
Psychology
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Study of behavior and mental processes in contexts
Focuses on individuals
General Anthropology
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Study of the whole of human existence:
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Past, present, future
Biology, society, language, culture
General Anthropology
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Study of the whole of human existence:
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Past, present, future
Biology, society, language, culture
Organized life in groups
General Anthropology
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Study of the whole of human existence:
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Past, present, future
Biology, society, language, culture
Traditions and customs that
govern beliefs and behaviors
Transmitted through learning
General Anthropology
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Study of the whole of human existence:
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Past, present, future
Biology, society, language, culture
Grew during the late 19th century
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Influenced by:
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Evolutionary theory
Reports from travelers to non-Western societies
Discoveries in biology and geology
General Anthropology
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Subdisciplines:
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Cultural (sociocultural)
Archeological
Biological
Linguistic
Common theme: Humans are biological
and cultural beings evolving through time
Cultural Anthropology
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Study society and culture
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Explain cultural similarities and differences
What aspects of culture are universal? Generalized?
Particular?
Culture is:
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Learned (often unconsciously)
Based on symbols
Shared and integrated
Both stable and changing
Forms subcultures
Is exceedingly complex
Cultural Anthropology
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Ethnography
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Based largely on fieldwork
Ethnopicture: an in-depth examination of a
particular culture or society
Cultural Anthropology
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Ethnology
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Based on cross-cultural comparison
Uses data gathered by ethnographers and
archaeologists to identify and explain cultural
differences and similarities
Archaeological Anthropology
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Reconstructs behavior and cultural patterns
by examining material remains
Traditional archaeology focused on
discovering grand sites
Some archaeologists
‘going local’ to
look at daily life
Archaeological Anthropology
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Not always glamorous!
Archaeological Anthropology
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Not always glamorous!
Archaeological Anthropology
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Must infer cultural patterns from artifacts
and ruins
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Non-native materials indicate trade
Buildings give clues about the living conditions
Mt. Vernon Distillery Dig
Biological Anthropology
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Seek to understand human adaptation,
variation, and change
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Primatology
Biological Anthropology
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Seek to understand human adaptation,
variation, and change
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Primatology
Forensics
Biological Anthropology
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Seek to understand human adaptation,
variation, and change
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Primatology
Forensics
Genetics
Biological Anthropology
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Seek to understand human adaptation,
variation, and change
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Primatology
Forensics
Genetics
Sociobiology
Linguistic Anthropology
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Initially documented unwritten,
‘disappearing’ languages
Now those languages have been recorded or
lost—very few left
Linguistic Anthropology
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Language is constantly changing
Now broadens view to many types of
communication
Applied Anthropology
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Using anthropological knowledge to solve
practical problems
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Forensic anthropology
Linguists
Globalization
Garbology