anthropology
scientific and humanistic study of human beings
archaeology
linguistic anthropology
biological anthropology
social / cultural anthropology
4 fields of anthropology
look at material remains people leave behind to try to interpret their cultural patterns and provide insights
archaeology
how language relates to culture
what you speak effects what you think
linguistic anthropology
biological anthropology
human paleontology describes evolutionary development of our species
primotology
study of other primates that are biologically close to humans. Jane Goodall's work with chimps. focus on aspects of humans that are genetically inherited.
social cultural antrhopology
study of human thought behavior life ways. understand culture through origins and development.
ethnogrophy
description of society or culture (what anthropologists do) tool of discipline. gathering and interpreting information based on intensive, firsthand study.
emic
insider perspective - attempts to capture what ideas and practices mean to members of a culture
etic
outsider perspective- describes and analyzes culture according to principles from the western scientific tradition
british
social ideas came from
american
cultural ideals came from
franz boaz
brought social anthropology to the us in 1890s
edward tyler
1832 - 1917
quaker with no school
primitive culture
origins of religion
theory of social evolution
franz boaz
1858-1942 germany
1st anthropology professor "father of anthro"
micro approach
established ethnographic field work as necessary
empiricism
knowledge is derived from experience
franz boaz key aspects
history is not an expression of natural laws but ideas
geist = every culture has its own unique spirit
culture contains its own principles
diffusion : ideas change cultures borrow things from each other
historical particularism
interested in a particular history of a culture and society
boaz and cultural relativism
insisted that anthropologists approach each culture on its own terms, in light of its own notions of worth and value
relativism
everything has its own spirit. all cultures are equal.
holisim
cant pull out one aspect of culture and study it on it's own
theory
general notion to explain every one, everywhere.
materialism
elements of peoples cultures are determined by how people organize their activities to survive and persist in their environments.
how people make a living.
interpretive anthropology
focus on humanistic methods to analyze culture and discover its meaning. culture as an 'ensemble of text'
positivism
laws underlies societies
science
understand world through observation and find patterns
relativism
way the world looks varies on perspective
interpretation
need to know how people think
bronislaw malinowski
stuck on the trobriand islands during wwii. his work emphasized the function of culture; extended period of field work as crucial. participated in the kula exchange
participant observation
fieldwork technique that involves gathering cultural data by observing people's behavior and participating in their lives.
goals of ethnogrpahy
grasp natives pov and relations to life
food shelter sex water
malinowskis hierarchy of needs
margaret mead
nature vs nurture
asked: is adolescence a universally traumatic and stressful time due to biological factors or is the experience of adolescence dependent on his cultural upbringing
ruth benedict
1887-1948
studied zuni in the southwest
zuni - wealth as sign of greed /individual fame is a sign of selfishness
solutions- share wealth with other members of the tribe /dare not do anything to bring fame
dominant culture
culture with the greatest wealth and power in a society that has subcultures. accumulation of wealth-social positions
subculture
group within society that shares norms and values that are different from those of a larger culture within the same society
norms (and values)
ideal cultural pattern that influences behavior in a particular society
(norms and) values
culturally defined idea of what is true, right, and beautiful. family / freedom.
cultural change
changes come from within a culture. change is the only constant.
cultural ecology
focus on adaptive aspect of culture. investigate how certain cultures evolve. how they changed with new social positions.
plasticity
ability of humans to change their behavior with relative ease in response to environmental demands
post modernism
theory that focuses on issues of power / voice/ violence. argues culture is a context in which norms and values are contested and negotiated.
ethical fieldwork
anthropologists must : obtain consent of the people to be studied, protect from risk, respect their privacy and dignity
culture shock
feelings of alienation, loneliness, and isolation common to one who has been placed in a new place
feminist anthropology
questions gender bias in ethnography and cultural theory. women's perspectives were often ignored
project camelot
US military project that used anthropologists to achieve foreign policy goals - anthropologists seen as spies in host countries.