What Is Anthropology and Why Should I Care? Chapter 1 What Is Anthropology and Why Should I Care?

Chapter Outline The Nacirema Specialization in Anthropology Anthropology and “Race” Why Study Anthropology? Bringing It Back Home: The Anthropology of Violence

The Nacirema The Nacirema are a North American group in the territory between the Canadian Cree, the Yaqui and Tarahumare of Mexico, and the Carib and Arawak of the Antilles. Their culture is characterized by a market economy. They have a fundamental belief that the human body is ugly and has a tendency to debility and disease.

The Nacirema Each day Naciremans perform a complex set of rituals devoted to the mouth. They believe that, were it not for these rituals, their teeth would fall out, their gums bleed, their jaws shrink, their friends desert them, and their lovers reject them.

The Nacirema Much of the Nacirema population shows masochistic tendencies. A portion of the daily ritual performed by men involves scraping and lacerating the face.

Anthropology The scientific and humanistic study of human beings Encompasses: the evolutionary history of humanity physical variation among humans the study of past societies a comparative study of current day human societies and cultures

Society A group of people who depend on one another for survival or well-being

Culture The learned behaviors and symbols that allow people to live in groups The primary means by which humans adapt to their environment The ways of life characteristic of a particular human society

Goals of Anthropology Don’t take notes for this slide Describe, analyze, and explain different cultures to show how groups live in different physical, economic, and social environments, and to show how members give meaning to their lives.

Ethnocentrism Belief that one’s culture is superior to all other cultures Judges other cultures from the perspective of one’s own culture Measures other cultures by the degree to which they live up to one’s own cultural standards

The “American Way” What examples of ethnocentrism do you see in this picture?

Cultural Relativism Belief that cultures should be analyzed with reference to their own histories and values rather than according to the values of another culture

Holism Anthropologists bring a holistic approach to understanding and explaining. Anthropology combines the study of human culture, history, language, and biology to understand human societies. Holism separates anthropology from other academic disciplines, which generally focus on one factor as the explanation for human behavior.

Sub-disciplines of Anthropology Biological (or physical) anthropology Linguistic anthropology Archaeology Cultural anthropology

Biological or Physical Anthropology Biological (or physical) anthropologists study humans as physical and biological entities. All human culture rests on a biological base. Biological anthropology primarily focuses on those aspects that are genetically inherited.

Paleoanthropology and the Study of Evolution Paleoanthropologists Search for fossils to discover and reconstruct the evolutionary history of our species. Lucy (Australopithecus Afarensis) Extract biological and chemical data from ancient bones or from living humans to help discover the biological histories of humanity and the relationships among different human groups. Apply physical anthropology: Forensic Anthropology

Forensic Anthropology Uses traditional methods and theories from physical anthropology to identify the remains of crime and disaster victims.

Primatology 1950’s- Physical anthropologists developed their own specialization The study of our nearest living relatives (apes, monkeys, prosimians) Study the anatomy and social behavior of non-human primates to gain clues about human evolution For e.g., Baboon troops have division of labor-> sheds light on role specialization Chimpanzees make rudimentary tools Tanzania- Primatologist Richard Wrangham- leaves with thiarubrine-A

Human Variation A specialty of biological anthropology concerned with physiological differences among humans. This approach focuses on human physical diversity and attempts to explain its sources. Race and anthropology For decades humans were divided in to races Race- a group of people Who share a greater statistical frequency of genes And physical traits with one another Than they do with people outside the group Today, emphasis on how human physical variation help people adapt to their environment. For example: dark skin protects people from UV light.

Linguistic Anthropology The study of language and its relation to culture Humans have a huge number of words and complex patterns that we use to put them together. The use of complex language is central to being a human being and forms part of all cultures.

Language and Culture Historical linguists- study linguistic change and the relationships between different languages Ethnolinguistics- relationship between language and culture Sociolinguistics- relationship between language and social relations Descriptive linguistics- study of sounds and grammar and meanings attached to words.

Archaeology The key focus of archaeology is to look at the material remains people leave behind to try to infer their cultural patterns from it. Archaeology is about interpreting patterns to provide insights into the lives and cultural ways of other people in other times. I Not Archaeology

Terms Artifacts- Any object that human beings have made, used, or altered and which can be moved. Features- Made and modified by people but they cannot be readily moved. Example: fireplace, home foundation. Ecofacts- Objects found in the natural environment that were not made or altered by humans but were used by them. William Rathje- Garbology

Cultural Resource Management (CRM) Concerned with the protection and management of archaeological, archival, and architectural resources.

Cultural Anthropology The study of human thought, behavior, and lifeways that are learned and typical of a group of people. Cultural anthropologists attempt to understand culture through the study of its origins, development, and diversity. Contains two elements- Ethnography Ethnology

Ethnography Ethnography is the description of society or culture. An emic ethnography attempts to capture what ideas and practices mean to members of a culture. An etic ethnography describes and analyzes culture according to principles and theories drawn from the Western scientific tradition such as ecology, economy, or psychology. Noun and a verb.

Ethnology The attempt to find general principles or laws that govern cultural phenomena through the comparison of cultures.

Applied Anthropology The application of anthropology to the solution of human problems Forensic anthropology uses the tools of physical anthropology to aid in the identification of skeletal or badly decomposed human remains Forensic anthropologists identify the victims of crimes, warfare, and genocide.

Anthropology and “Race” In the United States, most people see humanity as composed of biological “races.” Most anthropologists believe that “race” is not a scientifically-valid system of classification.

Problems in Scientific Racial Classification Almost all traits we use to assign people to a race are facial traits. It is hard to imagine a biological reason why the shape of one’s eyes should be more important than the characteristics of one’s liver. It is easy to find a social reason: Traits easily visible on the face enable us to rapidly assign individuals to a racial group.

Problems with Racial Classifications Although the characteristics of our species were fully present 35,000 to 40,000 years ago, a recent study argues that all current-day humans have common ancestors who lived only 2,000 to 5,000 years ago. At a time depth of more than 5,000 years, all people alive today have exactly the same ancestors.

Why Study Anthropology? Anthropology focuses on understanding other groups of people. Anthropology presents many useful ways of thinking about what it means to be human. In our world today we face extraordinary problems: Anthropology gives us new and useful ways to think about culture.

Bringing It Back Home: The Anthropology of Violence An anthropological approach can help us understand the role of violence in cross cultural and historical context. While violence has been found to be part of most human societies, the degrees of violence that are tolerated vary cross-culturally.

Bringing It Back Home: The Anthropology of Violence The Semai, a gardening society on the central Malaysian Peninsula, is one of the best documented peaceful societies known. The Chewong of the Malaysian Peninsula and the G/wi of central Botswana are other very peaceful societies.

Bringing It Back Home: The Anthropology of Violence More recently, Steven Pinker has argued that humanity as a whole is becoming less violent. Anthropologists would likely disagree with Pinker, as the 20th century, in terms of the numbers of people killed, has been the most violent period of human occupation.

Bringing It Back Home: The Anthropology of Violence You decide: Anthropology shows that violence and reconciliation are both aspects of human and nonhuman primate behavior. Do you believe humankind is becoming more or less violent? What evidence can you cite? Do you believe there is a possibility of existing as a world without violence? Why?

Quick Quiz

Imagine a museum exhibit of an early one-room school in the Midwestern U.S. is being planned. Which subfield(s) of anthropology would be likely to carry out the research of surveyor's maps, diaries, textbooks, journals, and other historic artifacts, as well as excavation of the original site? Paleoanthropology and archaeology Archaeology Cultural anthropology Biological anthropology

Answer: b Imagine a museum exhibit of an early one-room school in the Midwestern U.S. is being planned. An archaeologist would be likely to carry out the research of surveyor's maps, diaries, textbooks, journals, and other historic artifacts, as well as excavation of the original site.

Which of the following statements would be considered ethnocentric? People in France have a long historical tradition of political autonomy. In many cultures marriage is the most important social institution. When a child dies, he should be buried in a religious ceremony. Gauchos in Argentina have a very complex herding strategy.

Answer: c The statement, “When a child dies, he should be buried in a religious ceremony,” is ethnocentric because it is judgmental.

Which of the following is not a specialization in anthropology? Linguistic anthropology Archaeology Paleontology Cultural anthropology

Answer: c Paleontology is not a specialization of anthropology. The proper term is paleoanthropology and it is part of biological anthropology.

All people alive today would have begun to have the exact same ancestors at approximately what time depth? 500 years ago 1,000 years ago 2,000 years ago 5,000 years ago

Answer: d At a time depth of more than 5,000 years, all people alive today would have had the exact same ancestors.