Anthropology Exam 2

Why did the instructor list McDonald’s, etc. as ethnic restaurants?

To challenge the idea that only “foreign” foods are ethnic. This shows how “ethnic” applies to all groups, including dominant ones—making us rethink what counts as “ethnic.”

What are the twin processes at work in ethnic identity?

• Perceived sense (how you see yourself)

• Imposed sense (how others label you)

How to distinguish ethnicity from race?

Ethnicity = cultural (customs, language, heritage)
Race = biological or physical traits (often socially constructed and imposed)

What’s the larger issue with ethnic identity changing over time?

Ethnic identity is fluid, not fixed. It can shift based on life experiences and social context.

What is diaspora?

A group of people living outside their ancestral homeland but maintaining ties to it.

What was the point of discussing refugee practices in CNY?

To show how cultural memory and identity are preserved and passed on—even in displacement.

What does it mean to say anthropology is a relativizing discipline?

It means anthropology avoids judging other cultures. It tries to understand gender roles in cultural context instead of applying one standard.

Point of the “different gender for a day” exercise?

To help students realize that gender affects everyday life—like safety, expectations, and opportunities. It’s not just biology—it’s social.

What does it mean that gender is socially constructed?

Masculinity/femininity are not universal. Different cultures define them differently based on social and cultural norms.

Examples of erotic variation?

Tahitian sniffing vs. kissing Irish of Inis Beag (sex avoided, shameful) vs. 1st of Polynesia (open, taught at puberty) This shows that sexual norms vary culturally.

What’s important about KG’s definition of sexuality?

It shows that sexuality is shaped by culture, power, and inequality—not just personal choice.

Who is Margaret Mead and why is her work important?

She studied sexuality in different cultures and showed that U.S. norms are not universal. Her work questioned rigid gender/sexual roles.

What does “human nature is flexible yet elastic” mean?

Human behavior can change (flexible), but there are some limits (elasticity).

Why was Mead criticized?

Critics said her research was romanticized or biased—some doubted the accuracy of her findings.

What did the class care about in the kiss discussion?

Cultural meaning of kissing, not the biological act.

Consanguinity

Kinship through blood

Affinity

Kinship through marriage

Endogamy

Marry within your group (e.g., caste)

Exogamy

Marry outside your group (e.g., incest taboo)

Monogamy

One spouse

Polygamy

 Multiple spouses (includes polygyny and polyandry)

Jim’s son marries John’s daughter

Parallel-cousin marriage

Sarah’s daughter marries Michael’s son

Cross-cousin marriage

Fraternal polyandry & ecological reason?

Brothers marry one woman to keep land from splitting across generations. Seen in Tibet, India, Nepal.

Two unilineal descent types:

Patrilineality Matrilineality

Post-marital patrilocal residence:

Wife moves to husband’s family home

Post-marital matrilocal residence:

Husband moves to wife’s family home

Minangkabau descent & inheritance beliefs?

• They follow matrilineal descent (property passes through women)

• Islam teaches patrilineal inheritance

• They resolve it by splitting inheritance:

  • High: land/home = matrilineal

  • Low: earnings = patrilineal

Is matrilineal descent rare and only in Southeast Asia?

False – It exists in multiple regions, like parts of Africa and Indigenous groups

Incest taboo conclusion

No single theory explains it. But it's culturally universal, though defined differently across cultures.

How many international migrants today?

Roughly 300 Million

How many forcibly displaced people today?

Over 100 million

Not all forcibly displaced are refugees because…

Some are internally displaced or asylum seekers who haven’t met the legal definition of refugee.

Internally Displaced Person (IDP)

Still in their own country

Asylum Seeker

Waiting for official refugee status

Refugee:

Forced to flee country and legally recognized as such

UNHCR stands for

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Overlapping large circles on the refugee maps?

Showed how people flee nearby countries (close to home), hoping to return when safe.

Four traditional subsistence strategies:

• Foraging

• Pastoralism

• Horticulture

• Agriculture

Market exchange:

Trading goods/services based on supply and demand

Lottery tickets = what type of reciprocity?

Negative reciprocity (try to get more than you give)

What was the point of discussing college motivations?

To explore how economic and cultural values shape personal choices

Anthropologists vs. Economists?

Anthropologists focus on cultural context, relationships, and meaning—not just numbers or profit.

Types of reciprocity:

• Generalized: No return expected (e.g., parenting)

• Balanced: Equal return expected

• Negative: Trying to gain more (e.g., gambling)

Redistribution:

Goods go to a central place (e.g., government) and are redistributed (e.g., social services)

What global problem does Sun Come Up focus on?

Climate change and environmental displacement—rising sea levels forcing people to move.

A group of people who share a sense of historical, cultural, and sometimes ancestral connection and who see themselves as distinct from people in other groups is described as a(n)

ethnicity

A story that is told about the founding and history of a particular group to reinforce a common sense of identity

c. origin myth

Swedish people share a common language, culture, and ideals; therefore, Sweden illustrates which concept

c. nation-state

The process where immigrants adopt national culture but retain their ethnic identity

b. multiculturalism

The unification of the French people into a single identity resulted in a

b. nation-state

The expectations of thought and behavior that each culture assigns to people of different sexes

b. gender

Observable biological differences between male and female reproductive systems

b. sex

In India, the devotees of Bahuchara Mata, “neither man nor woman,” are called

b. hijras

Only 25% of the world’s parliamentarians are women. This shows

a. Gender stratification is reflected in access to political power.

Emily Martin’s analysis of egg and sperm in textbooks focused on

a. the ways in which scientific language naturalizes ideas about differences in male and female behavior

Emma Sulkowicz’s story raises awareness about how __________ is defined on college campuses

Consent

The way cultural institutions and systems of power interconnect is called

a. intersectionality

The U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in

a. 2015

The system of meaning and power that defines who is related to whom is

d. kinship

Early anthropologists collected kinship data to

a. discern patterns of social structure that could be used to categorize and compare societies

Relationships based on marriage and alliance are called

d. affinal

The practice of remarrying quickly after a marriage ends is

b. serial monogamy

Incest taboos generally prohibit sexual relations between

c. parents and children and between siblings

Janet Carsten suggests __________ draws on kinship and family to create connection

a. Nationalism

The Nuer of South Sudan are

b. Pastoralists

The Trobriand Islanders, who grow yams, are

c. Horticulturalists

Reciprocity, redistribution, and market exchange are

d. patterns of exchange

Your roommate's dish situation is an example of

d. negative reciprocity

Pierre Bourdieu found that

d. Social relations were reproduced across generations

Ashley Carse’s research on the Panama Canal focuses on

b. how the Panama Canal affects the lives of local communities and landscapes

Environmental anthropologists challenge the Western division between

d. human beings and nature

The Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area is in

a. Papua New Guinea

Tours that support conservation and communities are called

b. ecotourism