ANTHROPOLOGICAL, EASTERN, AND WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Anthropology

The inclusive study of human race, its culture, society, and physical development

Sociocultural Anthropology

• People adapt to their surroundings in distinct ways, leading to the emergence and evolution of various cultures over time.

• analyzes the nature of individual cultures, describe differences between cultures and study cultural change and social transformation processes.

Sociocultural anthropologists

They study sociocultural anthropology. They have a strong interest in diversity and variability between cultures, thus exploring the principles of cultural relativism and universalism.

Sociocultural relativism

every culture holds its own relative value and significance, standing in contrast to earlier notions of cultural evolution.

Sociocultural Evolution

all societies progress through a linear path, and it describes how societies and cultures change over time

Cultural Relativism

the practice of understanding a person’s beliefs, values, and practices within their own cultural context rather than judging them by the standards of another

Cultural universalism

the belief that certain values, behaviors, and legal or moral standards—such as basic human rights—apply to all human beings everywhere, regardless of local differences

Archeology

• study of how people lived in the past. Studied through artifacts like tools, relics, weapons, anything made by humans.

Biological anthropology

• Study of human biology, including how they adapt to where they live.

• Studies human evolution - how body changes, studied also using non-human primates.

Linguistic anthropology

• Study of how people speak, the language they use, and how it was developed, and how it evolved.

• Studies how language change, and how it changed the way people think and change their language.

Cultural Anthropology

• Study of how people live in the present, and how they may have lived in the past. Including tools and foods. Related to sociology and social psychology.

Social psychology

the scientific study of how people's thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others

Self in anthropological view

• Self is social construct - shaped by culture, societal norms and values. It may also be a product of own experiences and values.

• SELF is viewed as complex, multi-dimensional view, of human identity shaped by culture, historical, personal factors.

Self in contemporary anthropology

• set of implicit cultural value that we follow and use that we use as guide

• Self - a dynamic process by which a person experiences and identifies his specificity as a human in tension with being a person.

Person in contemporary anthropology

• Person/Personhood - Bundle of roles, norms of behavior, expectations, responsibilities, obligations that situate a human being in social life based on age, gender, sexuality, birth order, class, kinship, labor division

Sir Edward B. Taylor

Founder of Cultural Anthropology

Culture according to Sir Edward B. Taylor

complex whole which includes knowledge, beliefs, arts, morals, law, customs, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by [a human] as a member of society.

Material Culture

• Material culture refers to the physical objects, resources, and spaces that people create, use, and define. It is tangible and handmade (Books, weapons, money, buildings.)

Non-material culture

• Inclusive of the intangible human creations that include beliefs, values, norms and symbols.

• 1) gestures 2) language 3) values 4) norms 5) sanctions 6) folkways 7) mores

Catherine Raeff

• Developmental Psychologists who believed that culture can influence how you, your peers, and view relationship and personality traits

• Relationship - Culture influences how you enter and maintain relationships. It shows how adult influence children to form relationships.

• Personality traits - These are traits like humility, politeness, empathy. Culture influences how you perceive hardship and how you rely on others.

Culture according to Leslie White

• Culture is an organization of phenomena that is dependent upon symbols.Phenomenas like:

• Acts - patterns of behavior

• Objects - tools and things made by tool

• ideas - belieſs, knowledge

• sentiments - attitudes, values

Leslie White

• American anthropologist, In this sense, culture is the entire way of life followed by people and everything learned and shared by people in society.

Anthropologists view on culture

• culture is based on the premise that all learned behavior is, in the final analysis, a product of how people think about things- their COGNITIONS

Cognitive Models of Culture or Schema.

• This model views culture as a MENTAL MAP, which guides people in their relation to their surroundings and to others

• Each person may have a slightly different map, each family has a somewhat different version which is passed on.

T.S. ELIOT (ТHОМAS STEARNS ELIOT)

• described culture as the way of life of a particular people living in one place

• Culture also includes man's material inventions and accomplishment such as: Bolos, weapons.

• The material aspects of culture, called ARTIFACTS, tell much about the things people value and the processes with which solutions are formulated to cope with needs.

Theory of Sexual Selection

• Sexual selection explains how we evolved certain physical traits, behaviors, and personality features to attract mates

• Men are more aggressive to attract woman, but now, women are more aggressive

Cultural relativism

• Ethical and social standards reflect the cultural context from where they are derived.

• Cultural relativist says that cultures differs in most aspects. So, we must promote comprehension of unfamiliar culture.

Classifications of cultural relativism

1. Absolute - Everything in the culture must not be questioned, nor challenged by outsiders.

2. Critical - This involves questioning cultural practices and understanding who accepts them and why.

THE EASTERN AND WESTERN THOUGHT

• Western - More on logic, reasoning, categorization. They like to break down ideas, they look at parts of the ideas and not the whole. This is more on differences in ideas.

• Eastern - Focuses on ideas as a whole. They like to generate ideas and reflect on the truths. They focuses on similarities of ideas.

EASTERN THOUGHT

1. Confucianism - Founded by Confucius. It states that the self is connected to others and it focuses on harmonious relationship. Confucianism believes that cultivation is the real goal of life. It means cultivating morals and virtues through self-reflection and self discipline.

2. Taoism - Originated in China. The self is part of nature and the universe. It emphasizes balance and selflessness.

3. Buddhism - Originated in India. Founded by Siddhartha Gautama. Self is illusion and impermanent fluid. Self is not separate entity. We must abandon materialistic things. We need to appreciate everyone.

Individualist Culture

• Everyone is expected to look after themselves, “I”. Individual ownership.

• Uses low-context communication- Self-actualization is the goal.

• Media is the source of information.

• Occupation mobility is fast. Tasks over relationship.

• Independence over collectiveness. GDP is higher (mostly western)

Collectivist Culture

• Expected to look after family, “We”. Loyalty is important. Shared ownership.

• High context culture. Harmony and consensus is the goal.

• Social network as primary source of information.

• Relationship over tasks. Low occupation mobility.

• Collectiveness over independence. GDP is lower (mostly eastern)

Self as defined in Individualism

• People use self-autonomous, focused on self-goal not as group.

• Self is a separate entity from community, self decision prevails.

• Man is disengaged from social matrix or social groups.

• Stability: The self is stable, controlling entity.

• Values independence, own strength, freedom.

Self as defined in collectivism

• The self is part of the others.

• Self is part of the communal group.

• The self and values are not separate from the what the family holds.

• Interconnectedness: Self is interconnected with others and nature

• Values interdependence and group work.