MIDTERM 2 Flashcards
foragers
food is collected from local environment
little surplus
foragers live in small or large population densities?
small
carrying capacity
number of people an environment can support
malthus
theorized that societies tend to exceed environments carrying capacities
when carrying capacity is approached what 3 things do communities do?
migrate
intensify (invest more labor)
innovate
residential mobility
whole group moves
logistic mobility
sub-group moves to collect resources
nomadic
move place to place
what environment is sedentary allowed to exist in?
productive environments
pastoralism
subsistence strategy relying on raising livestock
horticulture
small-scale farming for personal use
what method of horticulture do the Yanomami people of Brazil/venezuela use?
slash and burn
agriculture
large-scale use of domesticated plants/animals
when did agriculture develop?
12000-7000 years ago
6 consequences of food production
new technologies
population increase
declining population health
specialization
increased surplus
different forms of social organization
domestication
organisms changed through human control of demography, reproduction diet etc.
what are select traits desirable to humans considered in domestication
disposition
taste
size
what changed in plants with human domestication?
ability to reproduce on their own
gigantism
sweeter, less fibrous
what 3 reasons caused agriculture to develop in human society
cimate
population pressure
social forces
foodways
cultural norms surrounding food/eating
food staples and examples
what makes a proper meal
NA = meat
Asian countries = rice
Chaga people, Tanzania = bananas/plantain
food taboos
foods forbidden to eat
what do food taboos create?
distinctions in ethnicity, class, gender
sense of identity/belonging
example of food taboo
Nukak (nomadic foragers/farmers of columbian amazon)
hunting tapir is taboo despite food value
avoid tapir tracks in the woods
contain ancestor spirits
food sharing
preparing food and eating in a group/social setting
what 3 things does food sharing do?
express solidarity/maintain social bonds
demonstrates staus
reaffirms cultural values
economic anthropology
all aspects of how humans meet their needs/wants
broader focus on non-market economics
the 3 phases of economic activity
production
distribution
consumption
means of production
land, labor, capital to make things
relations of production and exmaple
relationships formed around production
employer/employee
modes of production
combination of means and relations of production into bigger systems
3 modes of production
domestic
tributary
capitalist
domestic production
organized around family/household relationships
subsistence farming (family consumption rather then sale)
production for use vs exchange
use: clear goals, limited production
exchange: unclear infinite goals, intensive production
tributary production
production largely domestic but portion of production is given to rulers as tribute
capitalist production
workers sell labor to capitalist class who owns means of production
3 ways of exchanging things
reciprocity
redistribution
market exchange
reciprocity and what does it do?
exchange of gifts
creates social connections and communicates cultural values (generosity/selflessness)
3 steps of gift exchange
give
accept
reciprocate
types of reciprocity
generalized: time/value of return gift not specified
balanced: return gift of equal value in specific time
negative: parties try to get better of the exchange
potlatch and what do they do
redistribution ceremony practiced by indigenous NW coast peoples
creates/reaffirms relationships
meets economic needs/wants
market
institution for regulating exchange
multipurpose medium of exchange
money
what can be considered a negative form of reciprocity?
money
utility
personal satisfaction gained through consumption
what things can objects be symbols for?
class
nationality
sports team preference
inelastic demand
demand remains stable despite change in price
informal economics and example
economic activity unregulated/untaxed
grey markets
what countries are disposable clothing sent to?
SA, Asia and Africa
consumption
process of buying/using up products
consumption is a medium for expressing what?
personal, social and cultural identity
consumer lead trends
consumer behaviour drives changes in production/distribution
examples of consumer led trends
ethically sourced goods
fair trade
organic
local goods
conspicuous consumption
buying/consuming in a visible way
advertising is designed to appeal to who?
different social categories
brand tribalism
people view brands as persons and form social relationships
political economy
relationship between politics and economics
how is political power derived?
from economic control of land, money and labor
what 2 things is class defined by?
wealth
occupation
caste
endogamous occupational groups in hierarchal systems
evolutionism
idea that societies process through series of stages
savagery to barbarism to civilization
4 categories of social complexity
band societies
tribe
chiefdom
state
band societies
small-scale foragers
lack formal leadership
few status differences
little economic specialization
have exchange based on reciprocity
tribe
next above bands
leaders emerge organically
few formal rules of succession
gain followers in indebting others to them
equal access to wealth and prestige
big men lead by example/persuasion
segmentary lineages
hierarchy of lineages arranged in nested structure
chiefdom
3rd highest social complexity
leadership positions become institutionalized/hierarchy
leaders have greater access to resources/prestige
greater ability to coerce and economic specialization
example of an early chiefdom
Mississippian culture (cahokia)
states
highest social complexity
have bureaucracy with significant power
large populations supported by agriculture
significant stratification
circumscription
extracting from people more labor/goods then they would otherwise produce
states and non-states
people who have affectively resisted incorporation into states
Hobbes vs rousseau ideologies
Hobbes: states perpetuate injustice
Rousseau: state undermine natural human tendency for cooperation
what are 3 characteristics of human nature?
self-interested
group-interested
culturally/symbolically motivated
4 types of reinforcement
positive - rewards
negative - punishment
formal - laws/rules/regs
informal - unspoken expectations
what does gossip cause us to do?
change behaviour
sodalities
mechanisms that create connectedness between people who are not family
age sets and examples
sodalities that organize people based on age
grades in primary education
Maasai - boys, junior warrior, senior warrior, elders
secret societies and exmaples
social groups based on access to secret knowledge
Poro and Sande, west africa
Frats/sororities
interpersonal power
ability of one individual to impose their will on another
3 modes of social power
interpersonal
organizational
structural
organizational power
ability to control others in particular social settings
structural power
control over social settings
persuasion
reasoned arguments
what do power in states rely on?
formal coercive methods
gramsci vs scott
Gramsci: people are generally unaware of how elite ideologies disadvantage them
Scott: people are aware but maintain a public facade of compliance (revolution is unlikely to succeed)
power in non-states
use informal persuasive methods
individuals have more ability to resist authority/leave
coercion may be practiced including lethal force
