Anth 101 - Art & Play Flashcards
Who is Michelle Bigenho?
Anthropologist and ViolinistDid multisited field work and ethnography.study of bolivian music and identity.worked w a local band, two indigenous communities, and performed at an international folk festival
Dialectic of Fieldwork
Both fieldworker and informant begin w little or nothing in terms of shared experience.engage in dialogue with each other about the activites going on around them�.reflexivity is key! (introspective flexibility)
reflexivity
thinking critically about the way one thinks, reflecting on one’s own experience
Fieldwork and sense of _____ x2
Fieldwork can disrupt our own sense of self and sense of identity of our informants.many anths experience culture shock!.however provides remarkable opportunities to talk across cultural boundaries
Language
A system of arbitrary vocal sounds�Used to encode one’s experience of the world and of othersA key component of human symbolic creativity
how is language biocultural?
Human brain and anatomy of the mouth and throat provide the capacity for language.languages are cultural products embedded in meanings and behavioral patterns�
study of language?
linguistics
Language vs Languages
Language is an abstract property that belong to humans as a whole.Languages are the specific was groups of people communicate
Missing slide 14, 15, and 6
get ittt
Worldviews
.encompassing pictures of reality created by members of societies.people use shared cultural assumptions about how the world works
How are metaphors used to construct worldviews?
By asserting a significant link between two expressions from different domains of meaning…wtf
sense of self
mediated by symbolic meanings and worldviews embedded in power relations
what do some anths refer to instead of saying the ‘self?’ Why?
Individual Subjectivities.focuses on individuals’ experience as shaped by their position in a field of power (hierarchy? like roles they have and how use them).idea that enculturation and socialization are positioned in terms of subject positions (gender, class, ethnicity, age).i assume what that means is that the kind or type of socialization/enculturation one receives depends on things like gender, socioeconomic status, age, ethnicity…
What three domains contain the spectrum of human creativity?
Play, Myth, and Art
Play
A generalized form of behavioral openness..a way of organizing activities
Openness
Abilitiy to think, speak, and do different things in the same way or the same thing in different ways.
How does Play affect adolescent development?
May be critical to the development of cognitive and social skills
Framing
.Placing a cognitive boundary between play and ordinary life.play and non-play must be signaled clearly to participants.think… can’t beat people up in public, but can do it in rules of hockey!
Play Frame
.period when individuals are consciously engaged in play.arbitrarily marked.eg. saying “let’s pretend”.or a particular tone of voice.or a referees whistle
Art
Form of creative play subject to cultural restrictions on form and content (what is aesthetically pleasing vs what is not depends on viewpoint of culture usually).artistic rules direct attention to the form of activities or objects
Artists seek to evoke what in observers?
.aesthetic response.aesthetic evaluations are culturally shaped value judgments.seeks to create successfully either a positive or negative response
How does Ethnocentrism limit western art experts’ perspective?
.Limits them to view only objects that fit their definition of art.but… not all societies separate art from non-art
Why are myths powerful?
.b/c make life meaningful for those who accept them.high verbal art when presented as stories between teller and audience.socially important b/c they tell people their origins and can guide their present and future actions.think of how disney hercules greek myth was westernized to apply to our culture
Orthodoxy
myths that are codified and can lead to punishment of those who question them
Origin of Halloween
Began 2kya in Ireland, England, Northern France with festival of Samhain of the celts (origins in pagan religion)
How did Festival of Samhain change?
Rise of christianity changed it to All Saints Day, to honor saints.they then made a day called all souls day for the next day, for honoring the dead
How is halloween like play?
Pretend to be someone/something elseSuspension of disbelief (like playing dress up)
What happened on All Souls Day?
.Ghosts of the dead returned to earth.People would where disguises to hide from ghosts.carving of turnips as lanterns (later pumpkins).collection of soul cakes, now practice by children who collect candy.would originally get cakes for praying for the dead to people
Why is dressing as a member of another culture critiqued?
.costumes are often insensitive stereotypes.cultures have complex identities that cannot be distilled down into an offensive stereotype
style (art)
schema (patterning of elements) that is recognized and characterized
if art makes you feel indifferent it is….
unsuccessful as art, must elicit either positive or negative reaction
art by intention vs art by appropriation
.intended to be art.someone at sometime decided it would be art.to appropriate, it must have exhibition value, someone must be willing to explain it
rite of passage stages
separation from old position (e.g. civilian)transition phase (into soldier)reaggregation, ritual passenger reintroduced into society as something new (visit family on leave)
liminality
ambiguous state in the transition phase of a rite of passage, likened to death, darkness, being in womb, bisexuality
communitas
people who are in the transition phase of a rite of passage together develop strong bonds and creates some structure for ritual passengers during this characteristically unstructured time
play and ritual are complementary forms of
metacommunication
compare play vs ritual frames
ritual: “let us believe” and “all messages within this frame are true”play: “let’s make believe”ritual’s what should be vs play’s what can be
ritual vs play liminality
ritual most stable liminal domainplay most flexible liminal domain (players move in and out with ease, not so with ritual)
play vs ritual effect on social order of ordinary life
play has little effect, allows for wide range of commentary on social order.ritual is different, its role is to maintain status quo
Orthopraxy
When every act of everyday life is ritualized and other forms of behavior strongly discouraged.traditionally practice by jews and muslims
Religion
Ideas and practices that postulate reality beyond that which is immediately available to the senses
AFC Wallaces Minimal Categories of Religious Behavior
Prayer: way of addressing cosmic forcesPhysiological Exercise: inducing ecstatic spiritual stateExhortation: certain people have closer relationships with cosmic forces than othersMana: impersonal superhuman power believed to be transferableTaboo: objects/people can’t be touchedFeasts: eating and drinking in religious contextSacrifice: giving something of value to invisible forces or their agents
Physiological Exercise (min categories o religion), what are four ways of inducing it?
inducing ecstatic spiritual state thru drugs, sensory deprivation, mortification of flesh by pain, sleeplessness or fatigue, and deprivation of food, air and water
Examples of mana
.laying on of hands, healing power enters body of sick to remove illness.cameroon, ppl believe ink used to copy passages from Qur’an have power, drink it.
Examples of taboos
.Catholics not to touch Host during communion.Jews may not touch handwritten text of biblical scrolls.ancient polynesia, commoners couldn’t touch chief.foods may or may not eat
Examples of Feast
.Holy Communion of Catholics and Protestants.Passover Seder for Jews.Huichol of Mexico and consumption of peyote.everyday meals sometimes begin with prayer
Shaman
part-time religious practicioner, believed to have power to contact supernatural forces directly on behalf of individuals or groups.decade of training, chosen by the spirits to be shaman, must remain for life, usually
Prist
A religious practitioner skilled in practice of religious rituals, carries out for benefit of group.don’t necessarily have contact with cosmic forces
witchcraft
performance of evil by humans believed to possess an innate unhuman power to do evil, either intentional or not self-aware
magic
set of beliefs and practices designed to control the visible or invisible world for specific purposes
oracles
invisible forces to which people ask questions and whose responses they believe are truthful
Azande and Witchcraft
.blame witchcraft for most misfortune, unless cause is obvious.older the witch the more dangerous.people react with anger to witchcraft.consulted oracles to expose witches by poisoning chickens.people usually unaware of themselves being witches
What two categories do witches seem to fall into?
evil outsider or internal enemy
how can accusations of witchcraft help or harm societies?
accused outsider witches strengthens in group tiesif witch internal enemy, accusations can weaken in group ties.if witch is a deviant (not an enemy from a rival faction), accusation can defend wider views of the community
theology of channeling’s four key assupmtions
- human beings are in essence gods, or fragments thereof2. humans undergo reincarnations to acquire important learning experiences3. each of us is responsible for creating our own reality (groups of people can magnify a thought and make it happen…)4. transcendant value of holism, we are all interconnected
how do channels explain misfortune? implications?
.victims cannot or will not envision the world in ways that protect them from it.victims have chosen their fate at a deep soul level, beyond their conscious awareness (so if cancer, you actually chose it to have a learning experience).implies that evil doesn’t exist
syncretism
synthesis of old and new religious practices, new ones usually from outside often by force
revitalization
conscious attempt by some members of society to create a more satisfying culture in times of crisis (either through syncretism or nativism)
nativism
a return to the old ways; often accompanied by expectations of a messiah or prophet who will bring back a lost golden age of peace or whatever ok
How can worldviews be mobilized as instruments of power and control?
.A religious symbol can be invoked as a guarantee of self-evident truth (Qur’an implies god punishes liars, so can make liars fess up by holding it or swearing on it.a symbol may be under direct control of a person wishing to control others (priests can justify things based on their sacred knowledge)
