anthropology 101 exam 3

Lee, "The Hunters Scarce Resources in the Kalahari"

Previous assumptions about foraging-Many anthropologists previously believed that hunter-gatherers were primarily dependent on hunting game animals, with meat being an essential part of their diet. They also assumed that their way of life was generally precarious and an arduous struggle for existence, barely managing to find enough food.
Lee's findings about foraging: Lee's research on the !Kung Bushmen in the Kalahari showed a radically different picture. He found that they relied more on gathering vegetable foods than hunting, with plants comprising 60-80% of their diet by weight. He also demonstrated that their lifestyle was stable and efficient, requiring only 12-19 hours of work per week to meet their needs. Lee concluded that the !Kung lived well and did not face a precarious, hand-to-mouth existence

.Baka People of the Forest (film)

This film depicts the lifestyle of the Baka people, who rely on hunting, gathering, and fishing for their survival. Men hunt using bows, arrows, and traps for animals like antelope and also engage in honey collection. Women gather fruits, nuts, and other edible plants and also fish. The Baka have contact with the Konabembe people with whom they trade metal goods, clothing, and other items for meat or labor. Baka society is structured around kinship and gender roles, with men hunting and women gathering and caring for children. Elders are respected for their knowledge

.Modes of subsistence

The social relationships and practices necessary for procuring, producing, and distributing food. People often employ mixed strategies.
Way of Procuring Food: Societies use various strategies like foraging, horticulture, pastoralism, and agriculture. The Baka rely on hunting, gathering, and fishing, while the !Kung focus on gathering plant foods and some hunting.
Population Density It Supports:Subsistence methods influence population density. Foraging supports small, mobile bands (<100 people). Horticulture also supports low densities. Intensive agriculture allows for higher, more stable populations.
Degree of Social Stratification:Foraging societies are typically egalitarian with minimal hierarchy. Horticultural groups show some stratification, with leadership roles and gendered labor. Chiefdoms and states have centralized authority and more social inequality.
Typical Forms of Exchange:Foragers emphasize reciprocity and sharing. The !Kung share food within camps. The Baka trade forest products with neighboring groups like the Konabembe. Redistribution appears in chiefdoms, while market exchange dominates in agricultural and state societies.
Relationship to Land:Foragers are generally mobile and non-territorial, like the !Kung, who use land near waterholes without defending it. Horticulture involves cultivating small fields. Pastoralists use large grazing areas, often moving seasonally. Agriculture involves permanent land use and often private or state ownership.
Social Organization:Foraging groups have flexible, egalitarian bands with cooperation and shared responsibilities. The Baka show gender-specific roles (men hunt, women gather) and respect for elders. Traditional Dakota society was organized around kinship, which guided behavior and maintained social control

.Foraging

The search for edible plant and animal foods without domesticating them. It relies on food naturally available. Foraging societies typically have low population density (bands of <100), a lack of territoriality (nomadic, mobile), and are egalitarian (little hierarchy). They exhibit little food storage, flux in band composition, and emphasize cooperation and sharing. The !Kung are an example of a foraging society

.Horticulture

Small-scale subsistence agriculture, the cultivation of gardens or small fields to meet basic household needs. It uses simple technologies (hoes, axes, machetes), is subsistence-oriented, often involves shifting cultivation and periods of fallow. It can be part of a mixed subsistence strategy

.Fallow

Periods when cultivated fields are allowed to rest and regenerate. This is a common practice in horticulture to restore soil fertility.
Shifting cultivation: A form of agriculture in which fields are cultivated for a relatively short time, followed by longer periods of fallow. This allows the natural vegetation to regrow and restore soil nutrients

.Slash-and-burn/swidden

A technique used in shifting cultivation where fields are cleared by felling the trees and burning the brush, which returns nutrients to the soil

.Pastoralism

The raising of animal herds (breeding, care, and use of domesticated herding animals) like cattle, camels, goats, llamas, reindeer, and yaks. Animals are used as tools, for food (meat, milk, blood), and for other resources like home construction (dung) and hair/wool/fur. It is an adaptation to environments not suited to agriculture

.Pastoral nomadism

A form of pastoralism where the whole social group moves with the herds in search of pasture

.Transhumance

A form of pastoralism where herd animals are moved regularly throughout the year to different areas as pasture becomes available, but there is a permanent home base

.Intensive agriculture

Large-scale, often commercial farming characterized by single crop specialization for market commodities. It is often associated with permanent settlements and can support high population densities

.Economic system

Structured patterns and relationships through which people exchange goods and services. It addresses what people value and how they get it

.Value

The relative worth of an object or service that makes it desirable. It is influenced by factors like supply and demand and scarcity. Value is not always monetary and can include wealth, leisure time, generosity, and prestige

.Market principle

An exchange principle characterized by the maximization of material gain and profit. It is associated with capitalism, private ownership, and prices set by the market. Prestige can be associated with consumption and maximization. Exchanges tend to be fast and impersonal

.Redistribution

An exchange principle where goods are collected to a central point and then distributed to members of a group. It is common in chiefdoms and involves
mechanisms like taxation, tithing, and ceremonial feasting. The potlatch of the Pacific Northwest is an example. Exs. Taxation, tithing, ceremonial feasting, Potlatch

.Reciprocity

The mutual give-and-take among people of relatively equal status. It is often associated with egalitarian societies and foraging. The form of reciprocity is connected to the closeness of social relationships, the speed of exchange, and the expectation of return. Counts' experiences in Kandoka illustrate the importance of reciprocity and gift-giving.

• Generalized: Giving freely without expectation of return; typically occurs among close kin. Examples include parental care and sharing among foragers.
• Balanced: Giving and receiving of goods of nearly equal value, with the expectation of return within a specified time limit. It can help start or build relationships.
• Delayed: A long time lag between giving and receiving. The Kula ring is an example where necklaces and bracelets are exchanged over long periods, also building respect and trade relationships.
• Negative: Exchange conducted for the purpose of material advantage; characterized by social distance. Examples include stealing and bargaining.
  Reciprocity, intimacy/relationships, speed of return: The form of reciprocity used in an exchange is closely linked to the social relationship between the individuals or groups involved. Closer relationships tend to involve generalized reciprocity with no immediate expectation of return. Balanced reciprocity is common in more distant relationships where a return of roughly equal value is expected within a specific timeframe. Delayed reciprocitycan build long-term relationships. Negative reciprocity occurs in situations of social distance or opposition where individuals seek to maximize their own gain

.Potlatch

A competitive ceremonial feasting tradition of the Pacific Northwest where massive amounts of food and valuable goods are consumed, given away, and destroyed to earn prestige (social honor or respect). It can also be an adaptation to fluctuating plenty and famine

.Kula ring

A system of delayed reciprocity in the Trobriand Islands involving the exchange of necklaces and bracelets between individuals on different islands. While material gain is not the primary motive, the exchange fosters respect and strengthens trade relationships

.Counts, Too Many Bananas (gift-giving rules in Kandoka)

Counts' experiences in Kandoka village in New Britain, Papua New Guinea, highlight several important lessons about gift exchange and reciprocity, you may not buy food with money in a society where it is shared or gifted. Never refuse a gift, and never fail to return a gift; if you cannot use it, you can give it away. You cannot demand a gift, just as you cannot refuse a request where reciprocity is the rule. His interactions with the villagers demonstrated the social obligations and expectations associated with giving and receiving

.Politics

Those relationships and processes of cooperation, conflict, and power that are fundamental aspects of human life

.Political power

The ability to make people think or act in certain ways. This can be achieved through physical coercion or symbolic means and often requires legitimacy. It is frequently tied to control over material, human, and symbolic resources

.Ideal types + associations

Band - Small, nomadic, self-sufficient groups of 25-150 people with face-to-face social ties. Associated with foraging, egalitarianism, and reciprocity. Decisions are made communally by consensus; leadership is informal and situational. Norms are enforced through informal means.

Tribe - Pastoral or horticultural societies with populations in the hundreds or thousands. Leadership is stable but usually egalitarian. Social ties rely on reciprocal exchange and trade. Unilineal kin groups (lineage/clan) often matter. Leaders like village heads or "big men" gain influence through achievement and persuasion, not inheritance. Informal mechanisms handle deviance. Ongka's Big Moka illustrates a "big man" system.

Chiefdom - Political systems with a hereditary leader and ranked society. Populations often in the tens of thousands, supported by intensive agriculture and some specialization. Chiefs have central authority, manage economic redistribution, and are backed by high-ranking elites. Informal laws and simple judicial systems guide behavior, with specified punishments. Chiefs resolve conflicts and may use limited coercion; power is tied to resources, rewards, and sometimes spiritual authority.

State - Political organization tied to intensive agriculture, centralized authority, and high social stratification. Economies are market-based with redistribution via taxation. States have formal laws, a sovereign leader, bureaucracy, and control over physical force. Land can be privately or state-owned. Societies are class-based and unequal, with formal systems to enforce norms and maintain order

.Law

Sets of rules established by a formal authority. In state societies, these are often written and enforced by institutions like the police and courts. In non-state societies, norms are enforced through informal mechanisms

.Office

Formal, permanent political positions within a centralized political system like a chiefdom or state. These positions often have specific roles and responsibilities

.Village head/headman

A leader in a tribe or band who attains their position through influence and persuasionrather than formal office or inheritance. Their authority is often precarious and depends on their ability to lead through example and consensus

.Big man

A leader in a tribe who gains power and authority through achievements, generosity, and persuasion, rather than inherited office. Their position is also precarious and relies on their ability to mobilize support. Ongka is described as a "big man"

.Forms of conflict resolution

The ways in which societies manage and resolve disputes. Non-state societies often use informal mechanisms like ridicule, gossip, bullying, supernatural beliefs, avoidance/shunning, adjudication, negotiation, and mediation. Chiefdoms and states have more formalized systems, potentially involving chiefs or judicial systems. The Dakota kinship system served as a mechanism for social control and returning the community to harmony after conflict

.Mechanisms of social control (formal and informal)

The ways in which societies regulate behavior and ensure conformity to norms. Informal mechanisms include gossip, ridicule, shunning, and supernatural beliefs, common in bands and tribes. Formal mechanisms involve established laws, police, courts, and other institutions with the authority to enforce rules and punish deviance, typical of state societies. The Dakota kinship system acted as a powerful informal mechanism of social control

.Egalitarian society

A society with little hierarchy and few social distinctions between people. Status is often based on age or individual achievement, not inherited privilege. Foraging bands are typically egalitarian

.Ranked society

A society characterized by social distinctions and hierarchy, often with hereditary leaders and a class of high-ranking elites, but without significant differences in access to basic resources. Chiefdoms are examples of ranked societies

.Stratified society

A society with significant social inequality and social classes with differential access to resources, power, and prestige. State societies are highly stratified

.Rite of Passage

Any life-cycle rite that marks a person's or group's transition from one social state to another. It involves a transformation in state or social status and is described as "a becoming". Victor Turner, drawing on Arnold Van Gennep, identified three phases in rites of passage Separation, Liminal Phase, and Aggregation/Reincorporation

.Separation

The first phase of a rite of passage, involving separation from one status in society to another. This removal can be symbolic and/or physical

.Liminal Phase

The second phase of a rite of passage, where the individuals undergoing the rite are in a state of "betwixt and between", meaning they lack a defined social category. This is often an unusual period characterized by

• Lack of gender, name, social status
• Symbolism/behaviors relating to death (motionless, corpse-like, silent)
• Seclusion
• Being considered dangerous, unclean, polluting, and thus avoided by others
• Vulnerability
• Equality within the group, but with the authority of leaders/guides
• Communitas - a sense of bonding and community
• Secrets, access to new knowledge
• Particular adornments, study of ritual objects
• Tasks, challenges, lessons
• Discomfort due to lack of recognized position

Reincorporation/Aggregation

The third phase of a rite of passage, where the individuals are welcomed back into the community in their new status/category. This often involves a public incorporation ceremony, and the individuals may receive new respect, new rights, new duties, and sometimes a new name

.Communitas

A feeling of bonding and a sense of community experienced by individuals during the liminal phase of a rite of passage. The pandemic lockdown has been considered by some as a liminal period where a sense of communitas emerged

.Marriage

Anthropologists view marriage as something that cultivates political and economic relationships between families, forming bonds and extending alliances. Along with systems of defining gender, families, and kinship, it also serves functions such as

• Regulating sexual access between males and females, potentially giving spouses a sexual monopoly over each other.
• Assigning responsibility for the care of children, establishing legal parentage and potentially joint funds.
• Providing for the transfer of property and social position through generations (inheritance).
• Organizing an individual's rights and responsibilities to other people. There is great variation in how marriage is organized and who is considered suitable for marriage. In some cultures, like in Guinea, West Africa, marriage confers new responsibilities and importance, and without it, individuals may not achieve full adult status regardless of other achievements

.Incest Taboo

A prohibition on sexual relations between close family members. However, which relatives are considered "close" varies across societies, indicating that the incest taboo is socially constructed rather than purely biologically determined. Almost every society bans sex between parents and children and between brothers and sisters, while some ban sex between certain kinds of cousins, and others prefer marriage between specific types of cousins. Alliance theory is a likely explanation for incest taboos, suggesting they function to expand social networks through exogamy

.Parallel Cousins

Children of one's mother's sister or father's brother

.Cross Cousins

Children of one's mother's brother or father's sister

.Exogamy

Customs that involve marrying outside of a particular group, which can help to expand social networks

.Endogamy

Rules that prescribe that a person must marry within a particular group, often to keep control of resources

.Sororate

The custom whereby a woman marries the widower of a deceased sister. This can allow the marriage to continue, maintaining alliances and fulfilling the marriage contract despite a partner's death

.Levirate

The custom whereby a man marries the widow of a deceased brother. Similar to the sororate, this custom allows the marriage to survive the death of a partner without ending alliances and the fulfillment of the marriage contract

.Monogamy

A marriage pattern where each individual can only be married to one spouse at a time

.Serial Monogamy

A form of monogamy where individuals have more than one spouse throughout their lifetime, but only one at any given time

.Polygamy

Plural marriage, a rule allowing an individual to have more than one spouse.

• Polygyny: A form of polygamy where a man is simultaneously married to more than one woman. This is often found in societies where women are economically important, and multiple wives can increase a man's wealth and social position.
• Polyandry: A form of polygamy where a woman is simultaneously married to more than one man. This is mainly found in regions like Tibet and Nepal and can be related to a shortage of land or when men leave home for long periods

.Bridewealth

An exchange of gifts or money from the groom's family to the bride's family to compensate them for the loss of one of their women along with her productive and reproductive abilities in marriage. It also entitles the husband to certain rights and confers rights on the wife, and may be returned if the marriage ends

.Kinship

The social system that organizes people in families based on descent and marriage. It determines responsibilities and rights, sets expectations and obligations, and forms, maintains, and extends alliances, creating corporate groups working towards common goals. While in industrial societies citizenship determines many rights, kinship remains important for inheritance, rituals, and social bonds. The Dakota people's way of life in the past was fundamentally organized through kinship, which provided rules for conduct, civility, and conflict resolution

.Corporate Group

Groups of people who work towards common goals. Kinship can form the basis of such groups

.Descent

Culturally established affiliations between children and one or both parents

.Clan

Relatives who are descendants (or believe they are descendants) of a common ancestor

.Lineage

Descent groups composed of relatives who are directly descended from known ancestors.

• Patrilineage: A lineage where membership is based on descent from a common male ancestor. The typical residence pattern associated with patrilineages is patrilocality.
• Matrilineage: A lineage where membership is based on descent from a common female ancestor. The typical residence pattern is matrilocality. In matrilineal systems, the mother's brother often has a father-like role, while biological fathers may be more playful

.Cognatic/Bilateral Descent

A system where descent can be traced through either the mother's or the father's side. This system is flexible, allowing individuals to change or have multiple affiliations

.Nuclear Family

A domestic family group formed by a couple and their children. The typical residence pattern in nuclear families is neolocality, where the couple establishes a new residence apart from both sets of parents. The "family tree" is often seen as an allegory representing the nuclear family ideal based on heterosexual reproduction

.Extended Family Household

Larger groups of relatives beyond the nuclear family, often living in the same household. Patrilocality is a common residence pattern for extended family households

.Kinship Calculation

The process of evaluating who we consider a relative and who we do not, as well as the closeness of those relationships. Kin terms provide clues to these relationships, indicating different obligations and expectations.

• Kin Terms and Relationships: The specific words used to refer to different relatives (e.g., mother, brother, aunt). These terms often reflect the nature of the relationship, associated obligations, and expected behaviors. Among the Dakota, using the correct kinship term was crucial for showing courtesy and establishing proper relationships, even in prayer (wacekiya). The Dakota kinship system extends beyond immediate family, with many secondary fathers and mothers (father's brothers/cousins and mother's sisters/cousins, respectively) and consequently numerous extended siblings and cousins. Relationships through marriage also extend widely.
• Genealogical Amnesia: The phenomenon where socially unimportant kin are forgotten over time

."Family tree" vs "grafted tree"

The "family tree" is viewed as an allegory about kinship, reproduction, and belonging that often reaffirms "traditional" families connected biologically through heterosexual reproduction and can be exclusive, rendering some families illegitimate. The "grafted tree" is presented as an inclusive alternative that emphasizes family-making rather than solely biological ties

.Case Study Dakota Kinship, Ella Deloria

Kinship was central to all phases of social life for the Dakota people, with relentless and exact demands that were nonetheless pleasant and desirable for those who conformed. The ultimate aim of Dakota life was to obey kinship rules and be a good relative, with other considerations being secondary. Kinship held the Dakota people together in a great, theoretically all-inclusive relationship. It was a means of social control and enforcing norms. The kinship system provided rules for proper conduct and civility, and it was the primary way of achieving harmony and resolving conflict within the community. Even strangers could typically find a connection through mutual relatives, and establishing a kinship term was a crucial first step in any interaction to ensure trust and define reciprocal obligations. The proper mental attitude and behavior prescribed by kinship were as important as using the correct term. The compelling force of kinship could even be used to resolve serious issues like quarrels and murder, sometimes through adoption to create kinship ties with an offender and ensure enduring loyalty. While an ideal picture, deviating from kinship rules classified individuals as socially irresponsible. The kinship system was potentially all-inclusive, allowing any Dakota to find their way to any other

.Sex

Refers to the reproductive forms and functions of the body

.Biological determinism

The idea that differences in behaviors, temperaments, aptitudes, etc., are biologically driven. Margaret Mead challenged this view

.Margaret Mead, 3 cases

Margaret Mead conducted cross-cultural comparisons studying the Arapesh, Mundugumor, and Tchambuli societies. Her conclusion was that social conditioning is central in how children grow up to express their gender

.Gender

The complex and fluid intersections of biological sex, internal senses of self, outward expressions of identity, and cultural expectations about how to perform that identity in appropriate ways

.Gender/sex system

The ideas and social patterns a society uses to organize males, females, and those who do not fit either category. The sources emphasize that the male/female dichotomy is inadequate

.Gender as performance

Gender is enacted and established through social performance. This includes wearing certain clothes, speaking and moving in certain ways, and performing certain social roles and occupations. These performances relate to ideals of femininity and masculinity

.Intersex

Refers to individuals who exhibit sexual organs and functions somewhere between male and female elements, often including elements of both

.Masculinity

Involves physical presentation and expected behaviors and ways of being. Ideals of masculine body types change over time

.Femininity

Involves physical presentation and expected behaviors and ways of being. Ideals of feminine body types change over time and space.

• Case study: Efik of Nigeria: They have rites of passage involving "fattening" which are associated with good health, prosperity, allure, and fertility

.Gender stratification

Often involves men being associated with power and prestige. It can be linked to a public/private dichotomy

.Nature/culture divide

In the context of gender stratification, women are often associated with nature(childbearing, childrearing, household) and lower status, while men are associated with culture (politics, trade, warfare) and higher status. This is noted as potentially changing

.Public/private dichotomy

In the context of gender stratification, women are often associated with the private sphere (home), and men with the public sphere (politics, economy)

.Gender variance

Refers to expressions of sex and gender that diverge from the male and female norms that dominate most societies

.Hijra (India)

Individuals male or intersex at birth but dress and talk like women, and sometimes remove their genitals. They have a connection to a mother goddess and ritual functions, but have faced recent stigmatization

.Five genders of the Bugis (Indonesia)

This society recognizes more than two genders. They were revered until the rise of Islam and Christianity, after which they are now persecuted

.Margaret Robinson, "Two-Spirit Identity"

Two-Spirit Identity - A term created in the 1990s by Indigenous gender and sexual minorities to reclaim traditional gender roles. It emphasizes cultural roles within one's Indigenous nation over Settler LGBTQ+ categories. The term comes from Anishinaabemowin: neizh ("two") and manitoog ("spirit").
Colonization - Settler colonialism disrupted Indigenous gender systems through genocide, assimilation, and the residential school system. These schools suppressed traditional gender roles, imposed binary gender norms, and destroyed Indigenous languages. Settlers used Indigenous gender diversity as justification for colonial violence, labeling it immoral.
Language - Over 168 Indigenous languages in the U.S. have words for people outside the male/female binary. Indigenous language helps people express gender in culturally grounded ways. Some two-spirit individuals were multilingual, and colonial suppression of language disrupted these roles. Reclaiming two-spirit identities supports cultural and epistemological decolonization.
Gender Variance - Many Indigenous nations recognized suprabinary genders. Settlers used the now-rejected term berdache, which carried negative connotations and erased cultural differences. Indigenous terms include lhamana (Zuni), wíŋtke (Lakȟóta), nádleehí (Diné), and agokwe/agowinini (Ojibwe). "Two-spirit" unites diverse Indigenous gender systems and centers cultural identity. Rather than "coming out," two-spirit people often describe their journey as "coming in" to community, culture, and identity.