Anthropology exam 1 essay questions

Why is anthropology holistic?

based on human condition (past, present, future: biology, society, language, culture) holistic means connects between different aspects of life (ex. halloween and day of the dead. looking at how culture changes over time

why is anthropology comparative?

compares all societies, ancient to modern, simple to complex, helps find similarities and differences in beliefs, behaviors, customs, and institutions, ex. comparing folklore, shoes diveristy of human societies.

What does Kottak mean culture is contested?

culture is not fixed, they involve disagreements, negotiations and debates, there’s no universal agreement about what is important, moral or normal, Ex. china verse america and value of last versus first name.

what are the mechanisms of cultural change?

diffusion- spread of culture from one group to another-either direct or indirect like foods, holidays, and technology, acculturation- long term continuous contact between cultures leading to exchange of features like recipes, music, or tools caused by colonization of migration, independent invention- different cultures solving the same problem independently

how do anthropologists study evolutionary basis of culture?

compare humans to apes, study hominins- all human species that every existed excluding chimps and gorillas, fossils, ex. opposable thumbs, learning from experience, they all show traits uniquely to humans, which behaviors are shared with ancestors, how culture evolved

why must cultural anthropologists avoid ethnocentrism in fieldwork?

it’s believing one’s own culture is superior; judging other cultures as “wrong,” “immoral,” or “strange.” it creates biased and inaccurate interpretations, blocks understanding of cultural practices on own, can harm relationships between anthropologists and communities they study, creates unnecessary conflict or negative stereotypes. ex. egyptian funerary rituals- celebration of transition to afterlife vs US mourning

what does a cultural anthropologist study?

human beliefs, traditions, norms, and practices, how they change over time and influence each other, what makes cultures similar and different. do this by comparing ancient vs modern societies, study how traits are integrated and patterned within a culture. ex. southern US face jugs vs indian pottery with geometric patterns both are pottery but have different styles and purposes

Chagnon: Three foods of Yanomamo-would you eat them?

Palm sticky fruit- slimy, sticky, stringy, slightly sweet (like nectarines/mangoes), like the taste not su much burning sensation, Wild honey and honeycomb, sweet crunch=appealing, would not eat the larvae, armadillo- would try like calamari and frog legs

subsistence system of the Yanomamo

type- horticulture and foraging- meeting kottak’s criteria by using small-scale gardening and simple tools, do not use intensive labor or machinery, use fallow periods so soil can recover, combine horticulture with hunting and gathering, food amount depends on cooperation and shared labor

industrial vs non-industrial economic systems

industrial- rely on factories, machines, mass production, depend heavily on money for exchange, jobs are specialized, non-industrial- rely on subsistence strategies: hunting, gathering, horticulture, emphasize sharing goods, resources are redistributed based on community ties and social relationships, learning often occurs through observation rather than formal teaching

what is science? How is it different from other ways of knowing?

Science- method of understanding the natural world through observations, testing, and evidence, uses scientific method- hypothesis, testing, data, acceptance/rejection, revision. Why it’s unique- knowledge is testable, repeatable and evidence based, open to change, not based on belief, ritual, or authority

How did chagnon use ethnographic techniques to understand yanomamo food acquisition?

Techniques- observation, participation, interviews, mapping, recording convos (he interviewed them on hunting and gathering strategies, what food they ate, etc)

Why are anthropologists concerned about real vs. ideal behaviors

ideal- what people say they do, real- what people actually do, relying on ideal behavior can give inaccurate information, anthropologists must use emic perspective (talking to locals) to understand cultural meaning, participant observation help reveal real vs ideal behavior

why is ethnography “anthropology’s distinctive strategy”

ethnography- aims to understand the whole culture not just one part, requires long term fieldwork, immersion, and hands on learning, uses both observation and participation plus recording sensory details, provides depth and context

Why are idealized typologies useful for anthropologists?

Typologies- simplify complex societies into categories (foragers, horticulturalists), help identify patterns, similarities and differences, allow anthropologists to make correlations between environment, economy, and culture

Drawbacks of using interview schedule with Paliyans

paliyans are non-talkers, avoid direct, detailed explanations, responses may be vague, incomplete, or contradictory, ex- men use a stick but called by three different names, interview schedules rely on verbal explanations which conflicts with paliyan learning style (learning by observing not instruction)

Political systems and adaptive strategies

They evolve together, how society gets food influences how it governs itself and vice versa, adaptive strategies- how groups get food/resources (foraging, horticulture, pastoralism, agriculture, industry), Political systems- band, tribe, chiefdom, state. ex. if you have live in small kin-based egalitarian—> forages, tibes—> horticulture pastoralism, etc

Does Kalobawa have authority or power

Authority- socially granted, accepted leadership, power- coercion, ability to for compliance, Kalobawa has authority because he protects the village-stops brother from going to a hostile village, mediates conflict and de-escaltes tense interactions, does not coerce people, unlike Hontonawa, village listens to him voluntarily, when crisis ends he goes back to being ordinary showing he doesn’t rule by force

Three ways societies punish deviant behavior