Monday, November 2, 2009

Anthropology: Social Groups, Power, Status e

11/2/09

Creation of social grouping
-who has access to resources?
Ex. property and wealth
-Political alliances
-who will raise children
-who will marry whom
-Subsistence strategies affect social groups
Ex. Foragers and pastoralists tend to keep groups with kin (except groups with age sets)

The Band

-Small groups for mobility
- face to face
-membership flexible
-social leveling

Leadership
-no power but authority and influence are temporary
Ex. Wise Woman, Medicine Man, Designated Driver
-types of decisions: migration, food distribution, resolve conflicts

Horticulture: cultivation of crops using only hand tools
Ex. Yanomami

-extended families form core work group
-children work more (caring for siblings, fetching fuel, hauling water)
-gender roles are clearly defined

The Tribe

Organized through kin
-corporate: several bands with similar lifestyle and language
-lineages: members trace descent from common ancestor
-clan: members trace descent from mythical beings
-ascribed: born into
-achieved: work to get
-part time authority

Pastoralism: animals are private property and land is shared with use rights

-kin is basic unit
-gender roles
-mobile
-tribes and chiefdoms

Chiefdoms (Ex. Maasai)

-permanent leader
-supernatural authority
Ex. Muhammed
-leadership is ascribed
solve conflicts and lead wars

Confederacies

-chiefdoms are joined
Ex. Nuer
-Segmentary lineages: close kin stand together against distant family
-Marriage is the heart of political and economic alliances

Agriculture: growing crops by use of fertilizer and plowing

-intensive strategy: continuous use of the same land
-permanent settlements
-large population
-large amount of occupational specialization

States

- religious beliefs and symbols tied to state
- hierarchal and patriarchal- male control over technology and war
-power to manipulate info
Ex. taxing
-Power of central gov't to coerce
Ex. draft

The four P's

Power- equal ability to control
Property- equal access to land
Prestige- class
Pleasure- anything not covered above



Anthropology: Comparison

10/28/09

Cross cultural

-Specific--->General--->Specific
Ex. Ati-Atihan--->celebration and parade---->Mardi Gras

Brazil: Carnaval

-Blocos: eight neighborhoods with 4000+ people

-Samba: Music, African/Potugese history

-History can be different though practices look similar
Ex. Filipino: Freedom and sensuality of pre cristian culture
African: absorbing dignity and power from Indian neighbors
Brazil: artistic expression and gender reversal
Fraternal polyandry: Woman marries brothers to keep resources in the family

Anthropology: Comparing vs. judging

10/26/09

Looking at cultures in your day to day life is often compared to looking through a pair of glasses. If you're looking at your own culture the glasses are focused and clear. If you're looking at another culture the view is distorted, kind of like looking through someone elses glasses.
Ethnocentrism is judging another culture by the standards of your own culture.Every strange action or belief another culture pracitces has a meaning or purpose. For example Thomas in the middle east and the belief in the evil eye.
The latah are women in Padang Kemunting and the Phillipines. Malays have a special name, explanation and meanings for the Latah. A scientific explanation for latah is that they're Hyper startlers. Hyper startlers have imitative behaviour, vulgar language, violent body movements, and often drop or throw things when surprised. An Emic (inside) explanation is that latah is hereditary, had been teased too much, and women lack enough semengat. An Edic (outside) explanation is that the latah, since often being widowed or older women, are just attention whores.
Cultural relativism is the idea that a culture must be understood in terms of its own values and beliefs not other cultures values and beliefs.
Absolute idea: Whatever goes on in a culture must not be questioned or changed.
Critical idea: Questions practices and power. Asks if its really okay for cultures to be left alone about their practices.
Cultural adaptation: change in response to environmental changes.
Maladaptive: reduces a cultures chance for survival. Ex.Pollution
And that was class. =]