Cultural Anthropology Exam #1 - Dr John Hartigan - ANT 302

Anthropology

The study of humans

What are the four fields of Anthropology?

Biological, Cultural, Archaeology, Linguistic

Biological Anthropology

the study of humans from a biological perspective, particularly focused on human evolution

Cultural Anthropology

the study of people's communities, behaviors, beliefs, and institutions, including how people make meaning as they live, work, and play together

Archaeology

examines the past history of cultures through their material remains

Linguistic Anthropology

the study of language and the relationship between language and culture

Fieldwork

the term anthropologists use for on-location research

participant observation

Heart of Fieldwork

a key anthropological research strategy involving both participation in and observation of the daily life of the people being studied

Signified

The mental concept associated with the word

Comparative Approach

compares society with society; tradition with tradition &identifies similarities and differences

cultural relativism

idea that each culture is unique and distinctive but no one culture is superior

Ethnocentrism

belief that one's culture represents the best way to do things

Culture

refers to the human behavior, symbols, beliefs, ideas, and the material objects humans. "way of life" of a people

...

object of knowledge; condition of human identity and social relations.

E.B. Tylor

talked about culture as a complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society

What are aspects of American Culture?

Friendly, nice, working

Evolutionary Psychology

the study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection

Cultural Evolution

conceptualized universal stages of development through which all societies have progressed... simple societies become more complex

CHANGE THROUGH LEARNED BEHAVIORS

Cultural Ecology

Geographic approach that emphasizes human-environment relationships.

Leslie White and Julian Steward (Cultural Ecology)

Neoevolutionism

anthropologists who analyzed how environment, technology, and energy requirements led to the evolution of societies

Ideology

a system of ideas and ideals, especially one that forms the basis of economic or political theory and policy.

Armchair Anthropology

Anthropology through the study of secondhand reports from people such as travelers and missionaries.

Anthropocene

refers to the period in which human cultural behavior had significant impact on the ecology and geology of the earth

Ethnography

translation of fieldwork observations into a written narrative form

Franz Boas

father of modern American anthropology; argued for cultural relativism and historical particularism

cultural relativism

idea that each culture is unique and distinctive but no one culture is superior

Historical Particularism

The idea, attributed to Franz Boas, that cultures develop in specific ways because of their unique histories.

Bronislaw Malinowski

British anthropologist (born in Poland) who introduced the technique of the participant observer (1884-1942)

"Father of fieldwork... functionalism in anthropology"

Margaret Mead

United States anthropologist noted for her claims about adolescence and sexual behavior in Polynesian cultures (1901-1978)

What are the 5 Ethnographic methods?

1. Participant observation

2. Individual/Expert/Group interviews

3. Physical Traces/Behavioral mapping

4. Transect walks

5. Historical and archival documents

Individual/Expert/Group Interviews

Questions you'd ask for this ethnographic method:

Who to talk to?

What to listen for?

When to interview?

Where?

Physical trace maps

Ethnographic method

what items in a local mark the lingering presence of people who move through that space? (images& sounds, too)

Behavioral mapping

Ethnographic method

recording people and their activities in time & space. Who's there and why; who's not? What are they doing?

Transect walks

Ethnographic method

a local "expert" (community members, etc.) guides you through a location; possible collaborative dimension. Answers the question, "what am I seeing here?"

Types of ritual (4)

Rites of Passage

Rites of Intensification

Rites of Inversion

Hortatory Rituals

Rites of passage

occurs in relation to life-cycle events and organize the passage of individuals from one state/identity into another

Rites of Intensification

(Cyclic events) Perform/display community values and key symbols

Rites of Inversion

reversals of everyday moral and political orders; specially marked moments when people break, or 'humorously play with,' their own cultural rules

hortatory rituals

Rituals that consist of exhortations to the supernatural to perform some act

Examples of Rites of Passage

Childhood into adulthood

Driving

Sweet 16

Graduation

Marriage

Death

Examples of Rites of Intensification

Thanksgiving

Church

Christmas

Fourth of July

Birthdays

Examples of Rites of Inversion

Halloween

April Fools

Powderpuff

Animistic

The belief that inanimate objects have lifelike qualities, such as thoughts, wishes, feelings, and intentions

Shamanism

enactment of a convincing, theatrical-style performance, before an audience that needs to be convinced; focus on efficacy—how well the rite works

imagistic

episodes of intense physical experience (pain, fear)

Lithurgy

doing things in the correct sequence, in a setting where everyone participates.

Doctrinal

sacred/secular instruction; requires "semantic memory"

Totemism

the belief that people are related to particular animals, plants, or natural objects by virtue of descent from common ancestral spirits

Morpheme

in a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or a part of a word (such as a prefix)

Phoneme

in language, the smallest distinctive sound unit

Grammar

the complete description of a language

Ethnosemantics

the study of the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences in particular cultural contexts

linguistic relativity

all languages are equally complex and share the same functions and basic structures

Linguistic imperialism

the transfer of a dominant language to other people

Gender

Culture-specific sets of behavioral, ideological, and socially constructed meanings for understand biology

Sexuality

erotic desires & practices, along a spectrum

Gender roles

tasks and activities that a culture assigns to sexes. Must be viewed in relation to each other, because they are mutually informing

Sex

physical differentiation based on anatomy (genitalia) and secondary sex characteristics

Age grade

age-related status; phases of life/cycles, categories: infancy, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle and old age. Recognized in all societies, but the names, lengths, perceived attributes, and expected behavior of those stages varies among societies

Age sets

generations or cohorts (social group, consisting of people of similar age), posits a common identity maintain over a prolonged period, and together pass through a series of age-related statuses. Ex. Baby boomers. Millennials, Gen Z

Gender stratification

the unequal distribution of rewards (socially valued resources, power, prestige, and personal freedom) between men and women reflecting their different positions in the social hierarchy

Self

living organisms maintaining homeostasis in relation to englobing environment

Social self

(face) asserted, maintained, and challenged in relation to others; requires aligning bodily functions with social expectations ("I'm not myself today")

Person

bearer of rights and obligations, belonging to a social collective

Clifford Geertz

"Culural analysis is intrinsically incomplete."; thick description- all behavior has more than one meaning;

Symbol

Something that stands for something else.

- Culture is based on this.

- We react to the meanings rather than the "things".

(examples: middle finger, thumbs up)

Relationship between language and culture.

- Both language and culture are part of symbolic thought.

- Language influences culture (talking about someone before meeting them).

- Culture influences language (70 words to decribe beer in Germany).

Markedness vs. unmarkedness

Distinguishing something with an additional descriptor (black friend, male nurse, white rapper)

With gender: it is seen as 'present' in women, but not in men (stewardess, actress)

With race: it is seen as 'present' in "people of color", but absent with whites.

Rituals

the daily or weekly planned routines that occur in an organization

conventions (rules, norms) +meanings—narratives, stories,stories, images

discourse

verbal expression or exchange; conversation

discussions that help people understand and reason out social reality

Includes

relationships with other people, structure, notions of power

A: Take out the trash

B: Nah I'm in the shower

A: Ok I'll do it

myth

A traditional story about gods, ancestors, or heroes, told to explain the natural world or the customs and beliefs of a society.

Metonym

a word, name, or expression used as a substitute for something else with which it is closely associated

Metaphor

a kind of symbol, an important analytical concept used by anthropologists in the study of symbolic systems

An idea that stands for another set of ideas

symbolic anthropology

the study of symbols in their social and cultural context

langue vs. parole

abstract language system vs. concrete act of speaking

Myth VS Legend VS Folktale

Myth: deal with remote past, often with the time of the origin of things both natural and cultural- how the world and its people were created... how fired was discovered and cooking began... associated with sacred, ancient, small-scale societies

Legend: though to have some basis in historical fact

Folktale: Involves a trickster, standard opening "Once upon a time", indeterminate time

Signifiers

the culturally constructed arbitrary words or symbols that people use to refer to something else

the physical existence

Signifier + Signified =

Sign

Band vs. Tribe

Band: Sharing is important

Loose (people go in and out)

Always on the move

Hunter gatherers

Egalitarian

Concentrated around wise elders

Tribe:

Violent

More permanent

Less egalitarian

Chiefs, leaders

Network of network

Theoretical Approaches of Myth

Freudian approach

Malinowskian Approach

Levi Strauss Approach

Freudian approach

Theoretical Approach

KEY WORDS: UNCONSCIOUS, ANXIETY, FEARS, MASCULINITY, PENIS ENVY

Individuals express unconscious fears and anxieties in symbolic form through dreams. Myths are seen as reflecting the collective anxieties of society, and giving culturally expression to these anxieties. an interpretation of the Wogeo myth would see the flutes as masculine objects, clearly phallic symbols. Myth signifies penis envy on the parts of women, and anxiety about castration on the part of men.

Malinowskian approach

Theoretical Approach

Key words:

BEHAVIORAL, CULTURAL, SOCIAL

In this approach, it saw the necessity of analyzing a myth in relation to its social and cultural context. Myths were charters for how and what people should believe, act, and feel. A body of myths lays out ideals that guide the behavior of members of a culture

Levi Strauss Approach

Theoretical Approach

Myths provide explanations for contradictions present in a culture that cannot be resolved. Wogeo myth attempts to resolve the contradiction between the ideal of keeping males and females apart and the need for them to come together to reproduce society through sexual intercourse. Fail to provide a permanent solution to this contradiction

Theories of Religion

Max Weber

Sigmund Freud

Emile Durkheim

Science vs. Magic vs. Religion

They are all ways of understanding and influencing the natural world

Magic and religion differ from science in that what is unexplained by science in the natural world is explained in magic and religion by recourse to the concept of the supernatural

Magic and science are similar in that the aims of both are specific, and both are based upon the belief that if one performs a set of specific actions, one will achieve the desired result. Magic and science differ in that they are based on different theories of knowledge - magic is based on the belief that if spells or rituals are performed correctly, the supernatural will act in such a way that the desired end within the natural world will result.,

Magic is based on the idea that there is a link between the supernatural and the natural world such that the natural world can be compelled to act in the desired way if the spell is performed as it should be. *PART OF RELIGION*

Science is based on empirically determined logical connections between aspects of the natural world that will regularly result in predictable outcomes

Max Weber's Theory of Religion

KEY WORDS: Suffering, Explanation

Argued that since life is made up of pain and suffering, human beings developed religion to explain why they were put on Earth to suffer.

Sigmund Freud's Theory of Religion

KEY WORDS: Childhood

proposed that religious institutions represented society's way of dealing with childish needs of dependency on the part of individuals.

Emilie Durkheim Theory of Religion

KEY WORDS: Survival, Religion helps with ideas

Saw religion as means by which society inculcates values and sentiments necessary for the promotion of social solidarity and the society's ultimate survival

Religion and Cognitive Development

Approach examines religious phenomena as related to the evolution of human brain and its capacity to process and categorize information.

Nacirema

("American" spelled backwards) is a term used in anthropology and sociology in relation to aspects of the behavior and society of citizens of the United States of America

American football

a term used by non-Americans to distinguish the popular U.S. sport of football

Known as an American ritual

Widely celebrated across the world

Rites of Intensification: SUPER BOWL!!!

Cheerleaders, mascots

Tipping

Cultural ritual in America. It's where you pay the waiter, barman, or hotel extra because it's nice and it's what you do.

The Linguistic sign and Ferdinand de Saussure

the combination of a linguistic form and meaning

- binary

- one cannot exist without the other

- always a sound image in our head

arbitrariness: no reason why tree should mean tree

conventionality: sign and meaning is based on social and cultural meaning (= history)

linearity: the individual signs must not be pronounced simultaneously

Taboo

A restriction on behavior imposed by social custom

Commodity Fetishism

the perception of the social relationships involved in production, not as relationships among people, but as economic relationships among the money and commodities exchanged in market trade

Freud - Fetishism

"Fetishism," he argues that a fetish is a special form of penis substitute.

Sychronic

Describes the language rules at a specific point of time without taking its history into account

diachronic

Evolution of language over time

Cliché

a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought.

Metaphor

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Structuralism

the analysis of the basic elements that constitute the mind