Structuralism and Interpretive Anthropology Flashcards
structuralism founder
Lévi-Strauss, argued that the “savage” mind and “civilized” mind have the same structure, human characteristics are the same everywhere
structuralism
- looks at elements of culture by way of their relationship to a broader system
- works to uncover the structural patterns that underlie all the things that humans do, think, perceive, and feel
- THOUGHT shapes the world
- There are underlying universal structures patterns of thinking (structures) with which people (unconsciously) organize and classify the world
- BINARY OPPOSITIONS are important (yet western-centric)
Ferdinand de Saussure
structural linguist, how language is conceived as a self-contained, self-regulating semiotic (relating to signs and symbols) system, whose elements are defined by their relationship to other elements within the system
Looked at the sign, being anything that conveys meaning, and how it consists of a “signifier”, being the thing that gives meaning (word/object) and “signified”, the mental concept it the signifier evokes.
Lévi-Strauss and structuralism
*identified myths as a type of speech through which a language could be discovered/to access
unconscious mental structures
*to explain how seemingly fantastical and arbitrary tales could be so similar across cultures
*language in myth exhibits more complex functions than in any other linguistic expression
*myths consist of: a) elements that oppose or contradict each other and b) other elements that “mediate”,
or resolve, those oppositions
Quote Lévi-Strauss
“Mythology confronts the student with a situation which at first sight could be looked upon as contradictory. on the other hand, it would seem in the course of a myth that anything is likely to happen. there is no logic, no continuity. any characteristics can be attributed to any subject; any conceivable relation can be met. with myth, anything is possible. but on the other hand, this apparent arbitrariness is belied by astounding similarity between myths collected in widely different regions. therefore the problem: if the content of myth is contingent, how are we going to explain that throughout the world myths resemble one an other so much?”
Anthropologist with structuralist approach
Lévi-Strauss, Mauss, Bourdieu
post-structuralism
philosophical movement that questions the objectivity or stability of the various interpretive structures that are posited by structuralism and consider them to be constituted by broader systems of power
positive factors of structuralism
+ makes it possible to study universally valid principles. differences within and between cultures are transformations of and variations on universal principles (No hierarchies)
+ provides insight into areas of “free thought” (art, mythology etc)
negative factors of structuralism
- useful in specific areas, but not all social systems are analogous to the prevailing symbolic system. human behaviour is not like language and grammar, but depends also on external factors such as weather, disease, or enviroment
- no attention to agency
- no attention to the processual, dynamics
Interpretive anthropology
- study of cultural cultural symbols and those symbols can be used to gain a better understanding of a particular society
- culture lies within the basis of the individuals’ interpretation of their surrounding environment, and does not in fact exist beyond the individuals themselves. furthermore, the meaning assigned to people’s behaviour is moulded by their culturally established symbols
- cultures are coherent systems of MEANING. Analysis of symbols and symbolic actions can give insights into what and why people think, do and say.
Interpretive anthropology Turner vs. Geertz
symbolic approach vs. interpretive approach (thick description)
thick description
description of social action that describes not just physical behaviours, but their context as interpreted by the actors as well, so that it can be better understood by an outsider. A thick description typically adds a record of subjective explanations and meanings provided by people engaged in the behaviours.
Geertz quote
“… man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun… I take care to be those webs, and the analysis of it to be therefore an experimental science in search of law but an interpretive one in search of meaning”.
interpretive anthropology two step analysis
1) finding out the interpretation of those involved (emic)
2) the anthropological interpretation (etic) of the emic model
positive factors of interpretive anthropology
+ starting from an emic perspective, it offers insight into unconscious processes in creating meaning which give direction to people’s actions
+ by taking a relatively small or seemingly insignificant phenomen as a point of departure for analysis, deeper insight can be gained into cultural differences, the way in which people give meaning to the world, and how this creation influences their actions
