ANTHROPOLOGY

UNDERSTANDING ANTHROPOLOGY

What is Anthropology?

• Study of all aspects of human conditions.

• Includes human history, present human conditions, and future possibilities.

Importance of Anthropology

How does it explain humans?

• Self is an animal species that evolved overtime.

• We share some traits w/ other animals, especially those related to humans (hominids).

The self is a living animal but superior to other animals due to certain factors:

Physical Aspects:

• Only animal w/ larger brain capacity, a Rational Animal.

• Has enhanced mobility as it can stand up straight.

Social Aspects:

• Allows to communicate, and preserve history, knowledge, culture.

• Can cooperate w/ others in a systematic manner in a larger cooperation; and invests new things for survival.

Important Concepts

Culture:

• Traditionally defined as a system of human behavior and thought.

• Complex structures of knowledge, beliefs, religion, language, traditional practices and all other aspects needed by humans to function in society.

• Is symbolic, which gives meaning to important events, shaping the way our culture has developed over time.

• It is learned and deeply connected to a person's customs, beliefs, and everyday patterns.

Enculturation:

• Transmission of culture from one generation to the next.

• Done thru observation, use of language, adaption to environment, rituals, and education (both formal & informal).

THE SELF & PERSON IN CONTEMPORARY ANTHROPOLOGY

The Anthropological Self

1. Takes a holistic dimension of the individual person.

2. Consider both the biological and environmental aspects of the person.

Cultural Self

• Genetic component plays a significant role in the cultural development of an individual.

• Anthropologists suggest that the genes of the person living in a particular community are already a necessary component for the enculturation of the person.

• Environmental exposure is also a vital component in the creation of the cultural self.

Anthropologists claim that environmental exposure starts soon after birth.

Contemporary anthropologists suggest that the environmental exposure starts during conception

ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

• A crucial component is the growing years of the child.

• The time when the child develops the psychological construct of dependency or independency.

Independency/Dependency

• Western Culture (emphasize independence)

Dependency/Independency

• Asian Culture (values dependency)

Self-Awareness

• Anthropology says self-awareness is the ability to take responsibility for your actions, understand how to respond to others, and take on different roles in life.

• Children who sleep with their parents and experience things like touch and other interactions develop self-awareness earlier than usual. These experiences help them understand themselves and their surroundings sooner.

• As people quickly learn their culture and become self-aware (enculturation), it's important for them to develop positive values about themselves, which helps build a healthy sense of identity.

• A child needs to learn the culturally right values for living as an adult in their culture. Parents, family, and the community are important in teaching and shaping these values as the child grows.

• Naming individualizes a person.

• It helps define their traits, personality, identity, and role in society.

• A person's name can also represent their status or position within their community.

SELF AND BEHAVIORAL ENVIRONMENT

The Four Environmental Orientations

Object Orientation

• Positions the self in relation to the surrounding objects.

• Self should be able to act responsively to the cultural objects around.

  • E.g. indigenous groups from south cotabato, T’boli respect the trees, lakes, falls, and the forest. Consider woods a holy ground and believe in the spirit of the forest.

Spatial Orientation

• Positions the self with personal space in relation to other people or things.

• Individualistic society, where independence of utmost importance is emphasized.

• Communal society, where interdependence is strongly developed, personal space is more likely lessened.

Temporal Orientation

• Endows the self with the sense of time.

• Time is seen as spherical in Filipino philosophy and linear in Western concepts.

• Rural communities, routinary activities are not considered repetitions because they’re done based on the “feel of time”.

• Urban communities, self must adapt to this temporal orientation dictated by the Western linear concept of time.

Normative Orientation

• O+Provides the self with the grasp of accepted norms in the community.

• Being on time is generally accepted norm in communal activities.

• Provides the self with an idea of behaviors that are not acceptable in the community.

THE SELF EMBEDDED IN CULTURE

• The self distinguishes between acceptable and unacceptable behavior.

• Awareness of differences between one’s self and others.

• Self embedded in culture through managing these differences.

The Cultural Self vs. Actual Self

• Actual self is shaped by feelings, thoughts, experiences, and memory.

• Culture helps define the identity of the self in relation to society.

* The actual self is your personal identity, while the cultural self is how culture influences your understanding of that identity within society.

Culturally Reflexive Identity

• The self must respect the complexities of cultural identities.

• It is important to be aware of both our similarities and differences.

• Anthropology encourages a culturally reflexive self, not an individualistic self.

* Encourages us to think of ourselves not just as isolated individuals but as part of a larger cultural network.

* Instead of focusing solely on individualism, we are encouraged to reflect on how culture shapes who we are and how we interact with others.

Contribution of Anthropology

• Anthropology moves toward plurality and multiplicity of beliefs and practices.

  • embraces a wide range of cultural beliefs and practices, which acknowledges that there is no single, universal way of understanding the world. It respects the diversity of human experience.

• Breakdown of grand narratives or ideologies that used to suppress marginalized voices.

  • moving away from these rigid narratives, allowing space for marginalized voices to be heard and valued.

• It recognize the power of culture in influencing little gaps and interstices.

  • culture has a subtle but significant influence on the smaller, often overlooked aspects of life.

Cultural Degradation

• Cultural degradation or more horribly cultural genocide means the loss of a particular culture due to assimilation or loss of interest.

  • E.g. Indigenous Peoples (IP) resisting their identity in universities.

• Assimilation happens when a dominant culture is overshadowing the inferior culture.

* Culture were LOST Loss of language, traditions and identity.

• Also lost thru continued violence, genocide, inability to respect traditions, beliefs, and the cultural community's sense of pride, which are largely the result of globalization.

* Particularly true for marginalized groups like the Moros of Mindanao, whose culture has been historically impacted by conflict and colonialism.

• Prejudice or violence can lead to the destruction of important cultural landmarks—physical symbols of a community's heritage.

* These landmarks carry historical and cultural significance, so losing them weakens a culture's connection to its past.

• Globalization can also lead to the gradual erosion of traditional cultures. As global influences spread, local customs, languages, and practices may be overshadowed.

Media Influence

• Excessive exposure to media in various forms leads to cultural degradation.

• Television for instance influences language, traditions, beliefs, knowledge and even personalities.

  • E.g. Media's influence on beauty standards.

• Flawless skin, black silky hair, white skin, slim body = ideal beauty.

Conclusion

• Anthropology liberates the self from rigid, dominant ideas.

• The self is no longer seen as:

  • An entity with innate ideas, programmed to respond to the world.

  • A "blank slate" that passively absorbs experiences and becomes limited by them.

• Instead, anthropology views the self as:

1. Biologically attuned to respond to its environment.

2. Self-aware of the cultural mechanisms influencing it.

3. Reflective of the uniqueness and differences in other selves and the surrounding world.