anthropology exam 3
localization
-"flip side of globalization" -creation and assertion of highly particular, often place based identities and communities -transformation of a global culture by local cultures into a new form
after WWII...
-A Hutu emancipation movement began -Both sides now begin to argue that their differences are not class-based... they are different races -Power struggles fluctuate back and forth: Hutus killing Tutsis and taking control, Tutsis killing Hutus and retaking control -Civil war breaks out in the 1980s -In 1994 the Hutu presidents of Rwanda and Burundi were killed when their plane was shot down
Muzes- Mexico
-Assigned male at birth, but dress and behave in ways associated with women (embroidery careers), family caretakers, -Marry men or women -their gender is MUXES
eugenics movement
-Attempts to "improve" the genetic quality of human populations by removing undesirable traits from the breeding pool -Francis Galton (half cousin of charles darwin) late 1800s -Forced sterilizations, marriage restrictions, euthanasia, genocide; Used on the basis of race and ethnic affiliation, the US government forcibly sterilized native american women in the 1970s -NATURALIZING DISCOURSES -Conception of distinct races, distinct creation events -Mixing of groups= dilution, decline -Used to create and justify systems of inequality based on skin color; Slavery, Jim Crow, Miscegenation laws, Immigration quotas, Racial discrimination
What is race?
-Biology -Human categorization -Assumption that those physical characteristics are also indicative of profound genetic differences
example of a Patrilineal society: The Neur
-Divided into 20 clans -People in a clan are patrilineally related through a common ancestor -Cannot marry within a clan-considered incest -Incest taboos -Endogamy-marriage within a group -Exogamy- marriage outside of a group -Members of the same lineage shared rights to territories and cattle -When a male within a lineage married, other lineage members helped provide bridewealth (compensation to wifes lineage) -YET, mothers brother was an important figure in a mans life (maternal uncle=mother) -NOTE: connection between kinship and economy
Rwandan genocide and its consequences
-Hutus begin a campaign of massacring Tutsis and moderate Hutus, led by government spread propaganda on the radio -Many tutsis attempt to flee uganda -Rwandan patriotic front (Tutsi led government forced into Uganda after the civil war) reentered the country and eventually took control -UN estimates that 1 million-800000 people were killed; Sexual violence -Hutus fled to Zaire -The RPF (and Uganda) supported the overthrow of the dictator Zaire kicking of the first congo war
polygyny
-Marriage form in which a man has multiple wives -Some societies limit the number of wives -Other societies do not limit the number of wives -In polygynous societies, not all men are guaranteed multiple wives; status, Economics, Demographics -Sororal polygyny
Case study: reservation system in the US
-Pre-contact: Diverse cultures Some had institutionalized economic and political inequality Ex: Mississippian societies in the southeast -Post-contact: Many tribes decimated as a result of disease Complex networks of alliances and contentious relationships emerge Some ally with european colonizers and later US government Es: Upper (side with british during rev. war) and Lower creeks (allied with US) Assimilation efforts Christianity, agriculture Civilization fund act of 1819 Native americans allowed to occupy land, but not hold title
example of a matrilineal society: The Dine (Navajo)
-Rights to land usage is vested in women (even though men oversee agricultural operations) -Matrilocal- husbands reside with wives -Often men speak for the residential unit, but he speaks on behalf of the female head -If a divorce happens, land/herds/etc. stay with the female head, even if the land originally belonged to the mother of the male
marriage is a social arrangement that:
-Transforms the status of participants -Stipulates degree of sexual access between partners -Perpetuates rights and responsibilities within kinship groups (lineages) if offspring are produced or adopted -Creates relationship between kin of partners -Symbolically marked in some way
Case Study: The Rwandan genocide. Rwandan society before colonialism
-Twa: hunter gatherers -Hutu: farmers -Tutsi: cattle herders -Primarily caste or class based differences in which Tutsi were higher
McDonalidization
-a kind of cultural imperialism -US corporate culture; homogenization of global cultures -promotion of one culture over another
what is sexuality?
-a persons sexual orientation; who a person is sexually attracted to -this is not a fixed state-its a continuum -heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, asexual -people may consider themselves as having a particular sexual orientation and have sexual experiences and desires outside
Indigenous Resistance
-american indian movement -native american self determination -american indian religious freedom act 1978 -native american graves protection and reparation act 1990 -Dakota access pipeline protests 2016 -language and cultural revitalization programs -McGirt vs. Oklahoma
residential boarding schools
-as part of treaty agreements; US government was supposed to provide education on reservations -this took the form of schools on reservations -part of a forced assimilation program -Carlisle industrial Indian School model
how do the cultural constructs benefit and limit WBM?
-biology/culture (body/mind) -over reliance on genetic/evolutionary explanations
Hijra-India
-born biologically male, but not considered male or female -historically responsible for performing certain rituals
people can be born intersexed
-born with extra set of chromosomes -or reproductive anatomy doesnt fit the typical definitions of male or female
Sworn Virgins-Albania
-born women, take a vow of chastity dress and live as men -connections to patriarchal descent
clash of civilization
-conflict model -euro-american capitalism; dienshantment, alienation, resentment -"west vs the rest"
Samuel Morton
-crania americana 1839 -study of crania size from different races -race--> cranial capacity--> intelligence -polygenism
Hybridization
-cultural syncretism/creolization -blending of cultural constructs -adoption of global constructs into set patterns -sometimes thought of as a blend "old" and "new"
how does inequality happen?
-differences are afforded varying degrees of value -the valuation is negotiated -hegemony
anthropology of religion
-early anthropologists took an ethnocentric approach to the anthropological study of religion -aminism/natural forces--> polytheism--> monotheism
Subtle kinds of inequality
-food deserts -health care access -gentrification
polyandry
-form of marriage in which a woman marries more than one man -rarest form of marriage -fraternal polyandry (Tibet and Nepal)
inequality in the reservation system
-general crimes act/major crimes act--> crimes committed on native territory by or against non-indigenous people are under federal jurisdiction -complexities of sovereignty and land ownership -locational and economic inequality; pine ridge reservation--> 80+% unemployment, many families have no electricity, running water, sewage environmental inequality--> US waste disposal, Navajo nations; uranium mining, church rock uranium mine spill
is one kind of sexuality more "normal" or "natural" than others?
-heterosexuality; tied to procreation and reproduction -many societies have homosexual practices that are seen as normal and natural just like heterosexuality -ex: Etoro and Sambia people of Papua New Guinea-men marry women, but believe that homosexual acts cause longevity of life (life forces concentrated in semen)
Legacies of the boarding schools
-hide and seek -loss of language and other traditions -runaways -abuse, disease -forced adoptions, children leased as laborers -unmarked cemeteries -US indian self determination and education assistance act of 1975- government will contract with tribes to run essential services rather than BIA -in canada the 2015 truth and reconciliation committee describes the schools as "cultural genocide"
how many genders are there?
-in many societies gender identity is not seen as fixed or tied to sex -there can be more than 2 genders, or people switch between genders
marriage and economic exchange
-land/property rights -Bride wealth or bride price- common in societies where women provide a lot of labor -Goods given to a brides family to compensate them for their loss of labor and childbearing capabilities -Dowry- transfer of wealth from parents to daughter (interhitance) to contribute to new household -Intended to ensure the well being of the bride in her new family
patterns of disease transmission/evolution
-many modern diseases evolved with and because of human actions and human responses to these pathogens are also coevolved. populations that share an evolutionary history with pathogens are more resistant to them
rites of passage
-marks a culturally significant transition in a persons life (adulthood, marriage, etc) -some rites can last for years
Marriage
-marriage looks different around the world -there is no "natural" form of marriage -marriage is not necessarily about love; thats a relatively modern idea
what can anthropology contribute to addressing global health problems?
-medical pluralism (coexistence/interpretation of difference medical traditions) -patterns of transmission
polygamy
-multiple spouses -2 types: polygyny, polyandry
Techniques du corps; Marcel Mauss
-obligations people build through giving gifts -people use their bodies in cultural ways
The valuation is negotiated
-often those with the most status, those most respected or those with the greatest power in society have a greater role in determining value -that which is more similar to them has the highest value/that which is less like them has lower value
Indian Removal Act 1830
-passed by congress during Andrew Jackson presidency -authorized the president to negotiate with southestern tribe for their removal to Oklahoma -trail of tears -reservations controlled by US government -prohibitions on religion
Under German and Belgian colonialism
-power consolidated under the Tutsi; europeans believed that the Tutsi originally came from Ethiopia and were more caucasian than the Hutus and twa, hutus disenfranchised and forced into labor -Belgium implements identity cards, solidifying caste/class membership
anthropology today
-questioning the idea of "pristine" -if all cultures change, dont they all die?
are human races natural/biological?
-race as an historical phenomenon; originally used to refer to nations/ethnic groups, age of exploration (15th century( -in US difference initially based on religion or economic status (heathen vs. christian, rich vs poor) -slave trade increased -scientific racism
ambilineal descent
-self defined or voluntary affiliation -relatives distinguished by generation and gender
how do people deal with social inequality?
-some do nothing (acceptance) -art of resistance -"hidden transcripts" (rumor, gossip, metaphors, ritual gestures) -everyday resistance (foot dragging, false compliance, slander, sabotage) -large scale protests, rebellion, violence, war
culture-bound syndromes
-specific syndromes for specific cultural contexts -often attributed to somatization/ embodiment--> body absorbs social stress and manifests symptoms
Resistance on the periphery
-studied by groups on the periphery and groups that have been marginalized -range from open rebellion to forms so subtle that they might not be recognized by outsiders -ex: Malaysian factory workers -show how people interpet and challenge global processes through local cultural idioms and beleifs
two spirits: north america
-that is their gender -We-was; Zuni -Crow
Western biomedicine (WBM)
-the ethnomedicine we are most familiar with -scientific, quantitative, technical, highly specified classifications (differential diagnoses) -heavily tied to western cultural values/experiences
Gender ideologies
-the values, tasks, properties that cultures assign to different genders -certain cultural configurations of gender have seized a hegemonic hold (come to seem natural in our culture) -"boys will be boys" -in the west we often assume gender differences and inequalities are a part of biological destiny
overall anthropology has taken a very functionalist approach to the study of religion: why do humans have it? what function does it serve?
-way of explaining and coping with universal human problems and issues
Early anthropology
-worries of cultural imperialism -documentation of pristine socieites -documentation of dying/endangered cultures (salvage paradigm)
inherited biological differences
-you receive one sex chromosome from your mother (X or X) and one from your father (X or Y) -these sex chromosomes result in observable physical characteristics needed for biological reproduction -sex usually matches external genitalia
what are the three stages of rites of passage?
1. separation 2. liminality/transition (in between/on the edge) 3. reincorporation/ reaggregation
Johann Blumenbach
1790s -developed grouping of 5 races -based on skull shape -monogenesis
which of the following is an element of violence?
All -a highly visible assertion of power, the use of force to cause harm to someone or something, it is an efficient way to transform a social environment
which of the following are areas of social activity that globalization affects?
All are correct: finances, communication, migration
Fa'afafine- Samoa
Born biologically male, but embody both masculen and feminine traits -Men in some families may be assigned to fa'afafine roles if there are not daughters in the family
Who thought it was their duty to bring civilization to the uncivilized parts of the world?
Colonial governments
T/F?corruption is only a serious problem in non-western socieites
False
What president sought to help the underdeveloped world?
Harry Truman in 1949
Jola Ethnomedicine
Jujus: amulets, inscribed with versus from the Quran, tied to witchcraft
when did we become global?
Long histories of contact, exchange, movement in Europe, Asia, and Africa
what are the 4 models of cultural interaction?
McDonaldization Hybridization Localization Clash of civilization
While the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality as a mental illness in 1973, the same classification of homosexuality as "abnormal" label continued to allow the U.S. government to reject immigrants. This ability to classify individuals according to a state of normal or abnormal is an example of the use:
NOT medicalization
which of the following refers to the family into which one is born and raised?
Natal family
rugby
New Zealand All Blacks haka
what is the family formed by a married couple and their children called?
Nuclear family
what is the rarest form of marriage?
Polyandry
more recent critique of rejections of scientific racism
Stephen Jaw Gould's The Mismeasure of Man
What countries are the model for "ideal" social and economic development?
Technology advanced capitalist
T/F? localization is the flip side of globalization
True
T/F?Weddings and marriages are usually less about the couple than about relationships with the couples social network, including friends and family:
True
What promotes international development?
United nations, government aid agencies, lending agencies, and NGOs
is magic controllable?
YES -can be directed to function on behalf of humans and their interests
Capitalism has expanded on the basis of unequal exchange throughout the world, creating a global market and a global division of labor and dividing the world between?
a dominant "core" and a dependent "periphery"
monogamy
a form of marriage where a person has one spouse at a time -not isolated to heterosexual partnerships -Nandi (Kenya) "female husbands" (assume many of the roles of men)
The ghost dance among the Sioux in the 1890s was:
a new religious movement responding to white encroachment on their lands, drawing on a mix of older and newer religious concepts, an attempt to recover self-respect
unilineal descent
a persons significant kin come through either ones mother or father
Hijaras interest anthropologists mainly because they are
a reflection of a gender/sex system that sees meaning in combining male and female
revivalism
a return to the old ways
what is gender?
a set of socio-culturally constructed meanings used to define and police difference -Sometimes there is a 1:1 relationship between sex and gender, but not always Gender is a "performance"; its what you do at particular times, rather than a universal who you are- gender expression -"One is not born a woman but becomes one"- Simone de Beauvioir
influence
ability to achieve a desired end via social or moral pressure
authority
ability to take action based on achieved and or ascribed status or moral reputation
power
ability to take action, often backed by force or perceived force
the most important goal of the Congolese sapeur is
accumulate presitge
Differences are afforded varying degrees of value. How?
achieved vs ascribed status, and power vs authority vs influence
Carlisle industrial indian school model
adopted by BIA- compulsory attendance staring in 1891 -students forced to cut hair, wear uniforms, adopt english names, only allowed to speak english, corporal punishment for misbehavior -"kill the indian in him and save the same": col. richard pratt founder of carlisle school
a good example of the process of medicalization is found in the changing understanding of which of the following conditions as a "disease"?
alcoholism
people participate in globalization by:
all are correct: consuming coca-cola, watching TV, migrating to distant cities for work
a synonym for hybridization is
all are correct: syncretism, creolization, friction
monogenesis
all races have a shared origin (creation) but some races have degenerated over time
magic
attempt to compel supernatural forces and beings to act in certain ways
revitalization
attempts to create a more satisfying culture (often through religion) during a time of crisis
humoral healing
balancing the elements of the body. medicine for equilibrium
anthropologist George Gmelch studied which sport where he found that players used a lot of magic?
baseball
Gmelch
baseball magic
central principle of descent
based on parent-child links to transmit group identity and incorporate new people
contagious magic
based on the notion that mana or spirit energy connects people to things closely associated with them -by "effecting" an object through magic the effect will be transferred to the person associated with it-hair, fingernails
ritual
behavior that is formal, stylized, repetitive and specific -performed as a social act -meaningful to the performer -meaningful to the audience IF the audience understands the symbolism
religion
beleifs and behaviors related to supernatural beings and forces -mechanism for relating supernatural phenomenon to the everyday world -just like any other apsect of culture, religious beliefs are learned
Koro
belief that external genitalia are shrinking (SE asia)
3 major strategies for determining descent:
bilateral descent ambilineal descent unilineal descent
Johann Blumenbach's 5 races
caucasoid monogoloid malay negroid american
the theory that explains why cultural differences have not disappeared because cultural consciousness is increasingly bringing people together around cultural similarities is
clash of civilizations theory
Sports, religion, ritual, and magic do what around the world?
collide
what two routes, or combination of the two routes can magic be undertaken?
contagious and sympathetic magic
as with every other aspect of culture, definitions and classifications of health problems can be subjective and vary by?
culture
sports and games can often be considered as models of what?
culture (depicting basic ideals) -socializing viewers and participants toward certain values and ideals
cubs
curse of the billy goat (1945)
tylor
dealing with death
malinowski
decreases individual anxiety and uncertainty
susto
depression and wasting illness caused by shock (latin america)
bilateral descent
descent group is formed by people who believe they are just as closely related to fathers side as they are to their mothers side -most common strategy in US -referred to as the "eskimo system"
Core nations
develop at the expense of periphery nations
what is social inequality?
differential access to: wealth, power, prestige, goods, services
doctrine
direct statements about religions beliefs -explicit, written, formal -behavior regulated (may involve punishment) -associated with institutionalized, large scale religion -changeable over time
Ales Hrdlicka and Earnest Hooton
documentation of considerable variation within races
Hegemony
dominance of particular cultural groups through the empowerment of certain cultural beliefs, values, and practices over others -normalizing and naturalizing discourses--> biology, tradition (thats the way its always been) -the valuation and institutionalization of differences requires hegemony -hegemony and inequality requires a "buy in" of lower ranked groups
Violence between ethnic groups is not inevitable, but the idea that it is persists. Which of the following is not a reason for its persistence?
ethnic groups actually do fight with each other all the time
when social norms dictate that someone from a particular clan must marry outside of that clan, anthropologists say that the clan is
exogamous
T/F? globalization is exciting to anthropologists right now because they have never studied interconnectivity before
false
T/F? people in the periphery rescinded passively to capitalist expansion
false
patrilineal (unilineal descent)
father-child links, shared paternal ancestor
transgender
gender does not match the sex assigned at birth -not all transgender people take the steps to change their sex
one of the main reasons localization interests anthropologists is that
global integration creates opportunity for local cultures to express themselves
It is suggested in the text that the appearance of some mental illnesses are showing up in other countries where they did not previously exist, and this may be the result o
globalization
anthropomorphic
have human form and behaviors -often have emotions, human characteristics; can be swayed -Often have human-like relationships -Pantheons often have hierarchies and divisions of labor that corresponded to the cultures social structures -Zoomorphic beings often have anthropomorphic qualities
health and illness:
have much variation throughout different cultures and societies
phytotheraphy
healing through use of plants
how do we classify sickness?
health systems classify and define health problems with any combination of the following: etiology (cause), vector (means of transference), physicality (whats bodily affected?), and symptoms
what is the "subjectivity of illness"?
how people understand and experience their condition on a personal level
nurturance
ideas of shared substance/contact based relationship -bodily substance:blood, milk, genes -spiritual substance: soul, spirit, love -other substances: food
how do we experience and use our bodies?
in culturally conditioned/learned ways
ancestors
in many cultures, supernatural beings include the spirit of the ancestors -living must appease the dead -seek guidance, protection, favors from the dead -very common in asia, africa, and americas
zoomorphic
in shape or partial shape of an animal -ex: egyptian, hinduism -Ganesh, pacific northwest tribes, lion statuette
what is sex?
inherited biological differences -people can be born intersexed
Individuals who diverge from the male-female norm and exhibit sexual organs and functions somewhere between, including both male and female are called
intersex
which of the following is not true about hybridization theories?
it explains why conflict is growing around the world
Anthropologists have studied hundreds of different kinship systems around the world over the past century, but they can all be grouped into 6 different patterns. This has resulted in the development of
kinship terminologies
medicalization
labeling and treating problems medically rather than addressing the underlying cultural forces, structural suffering, or environmental facots
a voodoo doll is a good illustration of
magic that follows the law of similarity
Globalization
major force of cultural change involving the process of intense global interconnectedness and movement of goods, information, and people
what does globalization contribute to?
marginalization, exploitation, unsustainable economies, and massive disparities in wealth and access to resources--> frustration and anger
why is there no natural form of marriage?
marriage is not just about procreation -is a social arrangement
exogamy
marriage outside of a group
endogamy
marriage within a group
serial monogamy
married to several people but one at a time -marriage-divorce-marriage
Hula
meant to direct and showcase mana
religious ritual
mechanisms people use to attempt to intercede with the supernatural
The term politics can mean many things, but from the wider anthropological perspective, it is understood as talking about the relationships and processes of all of the following except
media
What subfield of anthropology tries to understand how social, cultural, biological, and linguistic factors shape the health of human beings in different cultures?
medical anthropology
nearly all societies draw on more than one medical tradition simultaneously, a process called
medical pluralism
geertz
model of life (how to understand the world), how to behave in the world
matrilineal (unilineal descent)
mother-child links, shared maternal ancestor
what is religion based on?
myth and doctrine
chosen kin
not related by marriage or birth (uncle thats not actually your uncle)
disease
objective, universal-physiological condition of being sick, diagnosed
medical anthropology
one of the fastest growing fields on anthropology -focuses on ethnomedicine -biocultural approach
religious pluralism
one or more religions coexist as complimentary or competitively within a culture
marx
opiate of the masses (empty comfort)
Habitus; Pierre Bourdieu
people engage in habitus-repetition of things, dont realize you are doing it
cisgender
person identifies with gender assigned at birth
for a big man in a non state society, what is the most powerful and valuable tool?
persuasion
marriage takes different forms in different places. all the terms listed below are forms of marriage except:
polyamory
placebo effect
positive result from a healing method due to a symbolic or nonmaterial factor VERY POWERFUL
which of the following is not a political act?
posting what you had for dinner on facebook
what is the role of the periphery?
provide labor and raw materials for the cores consumption, resulting in the periphery's poverty, underdevelopment, and dependency on the core
diseases of civilizations
proximate sickness resulting from ultimate factors linked with "development" -diabetes, expansion of malaria
polygenism
races have different origins
Anthropologists and other social scientists refer to ways in which social, economic, and political processes categorize and transform a population into racial meanings as
racialization
nativism
reject outsider influences
consanguineal
related by birth (blood relatives)
affinal relations
related through marriage
what is a life cycle ritual that marks a persons or group of persons transition from one social state to another?
rite of passage
stylized performances involving symbols that are associated with social, political, and religious activities are called
rituals
Taboo
rule that prohibits certain behaviors; may be because it interferes with positive mana or signals when mana is present and dangerous
examples of localization
sapeurs, young Bakongo men from democratic republic of congo, use clothes to accumulate prestige and project self worth to the upper classes of congolese society
Franz Boas
scientific study of cranial shape and size; both highly malleable, health and nutrition impacts
anorexia nervosa/bulimia
self starvation and or induced vomiting -association skewed self perception of body (north america/europe)
From an anthropological perspective, sex assignment surgery is useful because it
shows that "sex" is constructed upon cultural assumptions
a key feature of religious beliefs and behavior is that they are rooted in
social behavior and social action
human categorization
social construct, group of people who share physical characteristics
violence is
socially constructed
kinship systems
socially recognized network of relationships through which individuals are related to one another by ties of descent, marriage, and relations
which of the following is an example of american totemism?
sports team mascots
achieved
status that an individual earns or chooses and that reflects their skills, abilities, and efforts
ascribed
status that an individual is born with or otherwise assigned and has no control over
myth
stories about supernatural forces and or being
Power that transcends individuals, operating in settings and orchestrating settings in which social and individual actions take place is referred to as
structural power
ethnomedicine
study of cross cultural health systems -Perceptions and classifications of health problems -Preventative measures -Diagnoses -Healing (magical, religious, scientific, chemical, etc) -Changes in "traditional" health systems -Cultural perceptions of the body, disability
illness
subjective, cultural-psychological and social experiences with disease
illness is an experience that is
subjective, exacerbated by class differences, shaped by culture
Aminism
supernatural power -ex: pacific islanders have mana, a lifeforce or spiritual energy of an object, place or person -mana can be harnessed and directed, mana can be dangerous
biology
taxonomic designation, one level below subspecies -genetically distinct but capable of interbreeding -may also refer to geographically isolated populations of a species -may also have different physiological or behavioral adaptations -different breeds
world religion
text based religion having many followers, is regionally widespread and is concerned with "salvation" of all people
The importance of a phenomenon like "revenge suicide" in Papua New Guinea is that it demonstrates
that the nonpowerful have ways of exercising political power
religious syncretism
the blending of features of two or more cultural/religious traditions. often associated with religious change
The work of Paul Farmer in Haiti to combat AIDS revealed much more than the underlying problems inherent in the clinical pathology and transmission of the disease, including
the connection between health and socioeconomic and political conditions there
Geertz's approach to religion is a style of analysis that looks at the underlying symbolic and cultural interconnections within a society; this is often referred to as
the interpretive approach
Hawaiians and other polyneasian islanders traditionally believed that mana, sacred or supernatural power, existed within certain objects, at sacred spaces and in persons, including all of the following except
the sun
is gender a choice? is sex a choice? is sexuality a choice?
these are not necessarily fixed categories
an explanation given for medicalizing the nonmedical is:
to increase the prestige of physicians, the desire of people to see social problems in scientific terms, the growth in profits for insurance and pharmaceutical companies
T/F? marriage can take many forms
true
those who practice polyandry tend to marry
two or more brothers
millenarianism
typically involves the beleif that a messiah/prophet will appear to guide people back to a golden age
withcraft and sorcery
use magic to cause harm, usually to a specific person or group
anthropologists now understand that magic
usually involves working at a distance without direct physical contact, is often frightening or dangerous, is at the basis of many rituals
ethno-etiologies
what is perceived to cause sickness is culturally bounded -can be natural, socioeconomic, psychological, and or supernatural ex: going out in the cold with wet hair can make you sick- climatic variation
the Columbian exchange
widespread exchange of animals, plants, people, diseases, and ideas between the old and new worlds
sympathetic magic
works on the notion that "like effects like" -an object made to represent someone or something can be affected with magic and the effect will be transferred to the real person or thing
can over-medicalization be dangerous?
yes -can lead to ignoring root causes
Can belief in magic and magic forces have very real consequences?
yes! -physical; psychosomatic responses -psychological; confidence or lack thereof -behavioral; caution or lack thereof -social/cultural; inter and intro-group cohesion or conflict
does community healing work?
yes! (psychological and physical support) -common outside of WBM
