Anthropology Notes

1/24/08 History of Anthropology Herodotus- 1st anthropologist in the west 484-425 B.C. Studied Climate, Diet, Head of Family, Customs, and Diffusion Columbus- Spain and Portugal ?discovered? America wondered if natives were human people wrote about and brought back people from the ?New World? Scholars assumed that superiority is fundamental Perfectibility- movement towards becoming western European perfect Darker races God given slaves to lighter races, commerce in slaves 19th Century Radiology: Phrenology- study of the skull Cephalic index- ratio to head length to breadth Used to support biases against dark skinned peoples and immigrants Mid 19th Century- Darwin and the Theory of Evolution Charles Darwin (1809-18820 ? published The Origin of the Species (1859) Theory?s about Human evolution and sexual selection Social Darwinism Connected to Capitalism- rising up and profiting Marriage of racism and theory of evolution Racial interpretation of history and economics Social changes imagined as part of evolution Dream of universal progress maintained Archeology becomes a new field in Europe and the near East 19th Century evolutionary Anthropologist: Lewis Henry Morgan (1818-1881) 3 Stages of Civilization: Savage- hunter and gatherer Barbaric- farmed Civilized- writing Bachovin?s Theory- world was dominated by women and men took control and now things are ok Franc Boas (1858-1942) ?Father of Anthropology? Founded the 1st U.S. anthropology dept. at Columbia University Repudiated racial classification Adolf Bastian- all humans had some mental capacity Variations in Beliefs- accidents in historical changes Cultural relativism- every culture has to be looked at in its own terms Participant Observation- taking part in the culture Every society is a collective representation of its unique historical past Diffusion, trade Brovislaw Malinowski (1884-1942) Born in Poland, key figure in British social anthropology Proponent of participant observation via intensive field work Worked in Melanesia Functionalism- argued that culture functioned to most the needs of individuals rather than society as a whole Historical functions of Anthropology: Native Americans Colonized people in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Later, others who are less powerful than anthropologists The lure of the ?Other? Preservation or ?Salvage? Documentation of Evolution Appreciation of difference Denaturalizing the familiar Now Study not just the other or the powerless, but members of our own society Mandate to ?study up? Rethinking the ?Other? Understanding power and colonialism Speaking for others? denaturalizing the familiar Question boundaries Questioning uniformity? 1/27/08 Mirror for Humanity: Kottak Chapter 1 Anthropology offers a view that is a distinctive comparative, cross cultural perspective Anthropology is a comparative science that examines all societies, ancient and modern, simple and complex Anthropology compares the customs of one society with the customs of others Ethnography- 1st hand, personal study of local setting; usually entails living in a different society and studying it Holistic- studies the whole of human condition Society- organized life in groups Cultures- are traditions and customs Most critical element of cultural traditions is their transmission Hominoids- are members of the zoological family that includes fossils and humans Adaptation- the process by which organisms cope with environmental stress General Anthropology: Socio-cultural Archeological Biological Linguistic Cultural anthropologists- study human, society and culture. They describe, interpret, and explain, social and cultural similarities and differences Ethnography- provides an account of a particular community, society or culture. Archeological anthropology- reconstructs, describes, and interprets human behavior and cultural patterns through material remains. Human nature can?t be drawn from a single nation, society, or cultural tradition Anthropology has 2 dimensions: Theoretical/academic anthropology Practicing or applied Erve Chambers- defines applied anthropology as, ?the field of inquiry concerned with the relationships between anthropological knowledge and the uses of that knowledge in the world beyond anthropology.? Sociolinguistics- studies the relation between social and linguistic variation Ethnocentrism- the tendency to view one?s own culture as superior 3 roles for applied anthropologist: Identifying needs for change that local people perceive Working with those people to design culturally appropriate and socially sensitive change Protecting local people from harmful politics and projects that threaten them Robert Redfield - Early anthropologist, focused on contrasts between rural and urban life. Proposed that urbanization be studied along a rural-urban continuum Foster and Anderson: there are three basic theories about the causes of illness Personalistic- blames illness on agents ex: witches, ghosts Naturalistic- blames bacteria Emotionalistic- emotional experiences cause illness Micro enculturation- the process by which people learn particular roles in a limited social system For Business anthropology Includes: Ethnography and observation as ways of gathering data Cross-cultural expertise Focus on cultural diversity 1/27/08 Kottak Chapter 2 Informed consent- agreement to take part in the research, after having been so informed Anthropologist should: Include host country colleagues in their research plans and finding requests Establish collaborative relationships with those colleagues Include host country colleague in publication of research results Participant Observation- taking part in the events one is observing, describing, and analyzing Emile Durkheim- among founders of anthropology and sociology Techniques: Direct, first hand observation of daily behavior including participant observation Conservation with varying degrees of formality, from the daily chit chat that helps maintain rapport and provides knowledge about what is going on, to prolonged interviews, which can be unstructured or structured The genealogical method Detailed work with my consultants, or informants, about particular areas of community life In-depth interviewing, often leading to the collection of life history of people. Discovery of local beliefs and perceptions, which may be compound with the ethnographies own observation and conclusions Problem oriented research of many sorts Longitudinal research-continuous long-term study of an area or site Team research- coordinated research by multiple ethnographers Interview Schedule- the ethnographer talks face to face with people, asks the questions, and writes down the answers. Genealogical method - procedure by which ethnographers discover and record connections of kinship, descent, and marriage, using diagrams and symbols Key cultural consultants- an expert on particular aspects of local life who helps the ethnographer understand the aspect. Life history- recollection of a lifetime of experiences Ethnographers usually combine two research strategies: Emic (native-oriented)- how local people think Etic (scientist-oriented)- views of the anthropologist Cultural consultant- refers to an individual the ethnographer gets to know in the field 1/29/08 Lecture Fieldwork: Reflexivity Language skills Time Field notes/head notes/diaries Ethnographic Data Taped interviews Notes on conversations Description of events Text of ritual language/ myths Audio/ Videotapes Genealogies/ Social network diagrams Other forms of data Public records Census data Land tenure data Questionnaires Church records Cultural Artifacts Artistic objects Crafts Clothing Domestic utensils Ritual objects Family photos Emic? and etic ? raw sounds - Subjective vs. objective - Insider vs. outsider Political considerations Where we come from Where we go Effects of our presence Long-term impact of our presence AAA Code of Ethics: Openness about research goals, funding, impact with all, including those studied Do no Harm Voluntary informed consent Future of discipline Openness No ?stealth? research We must level with everyone involved This might mean we cannot do our work Do no Harm Importance of anonymity of persons and places Predicting future impact Considerations of long-term well being of people Respectful behavior Informed Consent Right to refuse participation Willingness to answer questions and provide funding May or may not involve written consent Dynamic process Future of the Discipline Consider future researchers Consider reputation of discipline Particular issues surrounding war Is ethnography ?true?? The investigator an instrument how do we evaluate the ?truth? of ethnography? Reflexivity: Post modernism Feminist anthropology Anthropologic data as a co-construction Questioning the Omniscient voice Margret Mead in Samoa Wrote, The coming of age in Samoa, in 1928 Mead?s 1st ethnography About adolescent behavior Critique of the west?every culture is unique because of its history 1925- 9 months of field work in Samoa Found less sexual jealously Found they were relaxed about sexual experimentation Found that premarital sex was normal Derrick Freeman on Mead Countered Mead Accused her of being duped Published book in 1983, 5 years after meads death Who is the ?truth?? Meads research in the 1920?s Freeman?s research began in the 1940?s Female vs. Male investigators at different stages of life Different theoretical orientations Different standards of evidence Questions of Representation Being there Who can speak? Whose speech is authentic? How do we know who is to believe? What about ?native? anthropologists Margery Wolf Wrote A Thrice- Told Tale Compiles 2 versions of a incident Fictional Field notes Ethnography What to believe? Question of what the reader wants from the ethnographer Is the ethnography a collection of facts? Is the ethnography an interpretation? Is the ethnography a work of art? Native Anthropologists Can an anthropologist also be a native? The question of ?half-ies? Questions of betrayal Insider vs. outsider knowledge