Cultural Anthropology

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Four modes of subsistence

- hunting and gathering(foraging) - agriculture (cultivation) - herding (pastoralism) - horticulture

transgender

a category for people who or people who identify as a different gender than the one that was assigned to them at birth. This may entail a social transition or a physical one, using a number of methods.

rite of passage

a ceremony designed to transition individuals between life stages.

balanced reciprocity

a direct exchange in which something is traded or given with the expectation that something of equal value will be returned within a specific time period

bilocal residence

a pattern of residence in which a married couple lives with or near either the husband's parents or the wife's parents

ritual

a religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order.

culture

a set of beliefs, practices, and symbols that are learned and shared. Together, they form an all-encompassing, integrated whole that binds people together and shapes their worldview and lifeways.

matrilineal descent

a system of tracing descent through the mother's side of the family

heteronormativity

a term coined by French philosopher Michel Foucault to refer to the often-unnoticed system of rights and privileges that accompany normative sexual choices and family formation.

exogamy

a term describing expectations that individuals must marry outside a particular group.

endogamy

a term describing expectations that individuals must marry within a particular group.

participant observation

a type of observation in which the anthropologist observes while participating in the same activities in which her informants are engaged.

dialects

a variety of speech. The term is often applied to a subordinate variety of a language. Speakers of two dialects of the same language do not necessarily always understand each other.

horticulture

small-scale crop cultivation characterized by the use of simple technology and the absence of irrigation benefits: intercropping drawbacks: can be very dependent on just one crop

stratification

societies in which there are large differences in the wealth, status, and power of individuals based on unequal access to resources and positions of power.

Eglatarianism

societies in which there is no great difference in status or power between individuals and there are as many valued status positions in the societies as there are persons able to fill them.

holism

taking a broad view of the historical, environmental, and cultural foundations of behavior.

the 5 scapes

technoscape- flow of technology ideoscape- flow of ideas financescape- flow of money across political borders mediascape- flow of media across borders ethnoscape- flow of people across boundaries

kinship

term used to describe culturally recognized ties between members of a family, the social statuses used to define family members, and the expected behaviors associated with these statuses.

Redistribution

the accumulation of goods or labor by a particular person or institution for the purpose of dispersal at a later date.

morphemes

the basic meaningful units in a language.

phonemes

the basic meaningless sounds of a language.

Ethnicity

the degree to which a person identifies with and feels an attachment to a particular ethnic group.

reciprocity

the exchange of resources, goods, and services among people of relatively equal status; meant to create and reinforce social ties

religion

the extension of human society and culture to include the supernatural.

tribes

political units organized around family ties that have fluid or shifting systems of temporary leadership.

race

an attempt to categorize humans based on observed physical differences.

symbolism

anything that serves to refer to something else.

Patrilineal

based on or tracing descent through the male line

Anthropology Subfields

cultural, linguistic, biological, archaeology

bilateral system

descent passes through both females and males of a family

commodities

economic goods or products before they are processed and/or given a brand name, such as a product of agriculture

different political systems

eglatarian, ranked, stratified

Ethnography

he in-depth study of the everyday practices and lives of a people.

semantics

how meaning is conveyed at the word and phrase level.

Eglatarian Society

in which there are few differences between members in wealth, status, and power

structural racism

inter-institutional interactions across time and space that reproduce racial inequality

ranked society

involve greater differentiation between individuals and the kin groups to which they belong. These differences can be, and often are, inherited, but there are no significant restrictions in these societies on access to basic resources. All individuals can meet their basic needs.

negative reciprocity

is an attempt to get something for nothing. It is the most impersonal of the three forms of reciprocity and it commonly exists among people who do not know each other well

how does language shape culture

it shapes culture because it is the basis for some of the things we pay attention to, for example, using directions in language makes us aware of directions, affecting culture

chiefdoms

large political units in which the chief, who usually is determined by heredity, holds a formal position of power.

symbolic ethnicity

limited or occasional displays of ethnic pride and identity that are primarily for public display.

patrilocal residence

married individuals live with or near the husband's father's family.

matrilocal residence

married individuals live with or near the wife's mother's family.

Types of family

matrilineal, patrilineal, and bilateral kinship systems.

habitus

mental and cognitive structures through which individuals perceive the world based largely on their standing in a social class

concept of linguistic relativity

the idea that the structures and words of a language influence how its speakers think, how they behave, and ultimately the culture itself (also known as the Whorf Hypothesis).

linguistic relativity

the idea that the structures and words of a language influence how its speakers think, how they behave, and ultimately the culture itself (also known as the Whorf Hypothesis).

cultural relativism

the idea that we should seek to understand another person's beliefs and behaviors from the perspective of their own culture and not our own.

states

the most complex form of political organization characterized by a central government that has a monopoly over legitimate uses of physical force, a sizeable bureaucracy, a system of formal laws, and a standing military force.

fieldwork

the most important method by which cultural anthropologists gather data to answer their research questions. While interacting on a daily basis with a group of people, cultural anthropologists document their observations and perceptions and adjust the focus of their research as needed.

collective effervescence

the passion or energy that arises when groups of people share the same thoughts and emotions.

one-drop rule

the practice of excluding a person with any non-white ancestry from the white racial category.

reification

the process by which an inaccurate concept or idea is accepted as "truth."

syntax

the rules by which a language combines morphemes into larger units.

gender

the set of culturally and historically invented beliefs and expectations about gender that one learns and performs. Gender is an "identity" one can choose in some societies, but there is pressure in all societies to conform to expected gender roles and identities.

subsistence

the set of skills, practices, and technologies used by members of a society to acquire and distribute food.

family

the smallest group of individuals who see themselves as connected to one another.

bands

the smallest unit of political organization, consisting of only a few families and no formal leadership positions.

ethnocentrism

the tendency to view one's own culture as most important and correct and as the stick by which to measure all other cultures.

hunting and gathering (foraging)

the use of simple tools to hunt animals and gather vegetation for food benefits: high levels of social equality drawback: gender inequality, conflict with farming populations

How do cultural anthropologists do their research?

they do field work.

hijras

this "third gender" category in India includes men who have undergone an emasculation rite involving voluntary castration

agriculture

ultivation of domesticated plants and animals using technologies such as irrigation, draft animals, mechanization, and inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides that allow for intensive and continuous use of land resources benefits: large productivity drawbacks: uneven distribution, casing hunger and poverty

code switching

using two or more language varieties in a particular interaction.

What is wealth and how is it culturally defined?

what you have that is valuable to that culture, may be money or property, or animals

stratified society

which is defined as one in which elites who are a numerical minority control the strategic resources that sustain life

Who was Franz Boas?

widely regarded as the founder of American anthropology, developed cultural relativism, the view that while cultures differ, they are not better or worse than one another.

religious authority

A governing system to ensure conformity for the followers of a belief.

pastoralism

A type of agricultural activity based on nomadic animal husbandry or the raising of livestock to provide food, clothing, and shelter. benefits: personal property, drawbacks: rely on other societies as well

gifts

A voluntary present of money or some other valuable asset.

Advantages of Globalization

Lower cost, decreased overhead, higher profits, increased opportunities, greater business innovations, and better products.

What is anthropology?

The study of humans,

Disadvantages of Globalization

Transportation Costs Security Costs Unskilled Labor Import Restrictions Criticisms Productivity support neoliberalism- unregulated markets

generalized reciprocity

When we gift without reckoning the exact value of the gift or expecting a specific thing in return we are practicing, This form of reciprocity occurs within the closest social relationships where exchange happens so frequently that monitoring the value of each item or service given and received would be impossible, and to do so would lead to tension and quite possibly the eventual dissolution of the relationship.

ethical issues in anthropology

Who might be harmed by conducting or publishing this research? What are the costs and benefits of identifying individuals involved in this study? How should one resolve competing interests of the funding agency and the community?

syncretism

a blending of beliefs and practices from different religions into one faith

market exchange

an economic system in which goods and services are bought and sold at a money price determined primarily by the forces of supply and demand

cosmology

an explanation for the origin or history of the world.


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