Unit 1 Test: Anthropology Flashcards
ethnocentric definition
believing that one’s own culture is superior to all others
subculture
a small group within another group with similar values and beliefs unique to the larger group
subjective definition
type of conclusions shaped by a person’s cultural and personal perspective, feelings, and beliefs
what is anthropology
the study of the lives and cultures of human beings alive or dead
what are the two branches of anthropology
physical anthropology & social or cultural anthropology
define culture
the abilities, ideas, and behaviour people have acquired to become members of society
what do physical anthropologists study
human evolution, human biology, and other primates
what is cultural anthropology
the investigation of the origin, development, and function of human cultures & how another culture can be understood by an outsider
what is the focus of study for linguistic anthropology & which branch of anthropology does it fall under
– the connection between people’s language to their culture
– the language structure
– connections between languages, the brain, and cultural behaviour
– cultural anthro
what is archaeology, what branch of anthropology does it fall under
the excavation and study of human constructions and artifacts to see how humans once lived in their cultures
falls under cultural anthro
what is the focus of study for biological anthropology, what branch of anthropology does it fall under
how diseases and illnesses are genetically transmitted and how they are caused by different environmental or social conditions
falls under physical anthro
what is the focus of study for primatology, what branch of anthropology does it fall under
the thinking and communication patterns of our primates
falls under physical anthro
what do forensic anthropologists do, and what branch of anthropology does it fall under
– they analyze bodies of victims to homicide including their DNA to find the identity, and the cause of death of the person
– provide vital information to police but usually only investigate mass murders or other special cases
falls under physical anthropology
advantages and disadvantages of finding informants
pros
they offer personal perspective and have experienced something directly relating to the topic firsthand
cons
may not always be reliable or knowledgeable enough on the topic
advantages and disadvantages of unstructured interviews
pros
very flexible
cons
you have to have a good relationship with interviewee, will take longer, easy to get off topic
advantages and disadvantages of semi structured interviews
pros
you have a plan of what you are going to ask but can ask other questions or tweak them when necessary for getting more info
cons
can go off topic
advantages and disadvantages of structured interviews
pros
narrowed down, easy to conduct; anyone can do these
cons
can’t adapt if you want to elaborate, or info is insufficient, question doesn’t apply to them, etc.
advantages and disadvantages of counting people, photographs, and mapping
pros
provides quantitative data and concrete evidence
cons
there is a lack of perspective
dian fossey
· observed and studied mountain gorillas in rwanda
· was able to get close to gorillas by imitating their behaviours & gather new information bc of this
· stayed with the gorillas for several years and became attached, losing objectivity
raymond dart
· first person to provide evidence of the african origin of humanity
· was given a skull found in south africa and determined that it was more human than ape, walked upright, and had a small brain
· named the skull Australopithecus Africanus, and declared it to be an early form of human
louis and mary leakey
· found an Australopithecus skull in Kenya, mary nicknamed it “dear boy”
· the first people to use radiometric dating, use it to age the skull
richard leakey
· found an almost complete homo erectus skeleton
what family of paleanthropologists proved humanity’s origin to be africa
the leakey family
ruth benedict
· did research on japan for the u.s during WW2 in order to help the U.S. understand and defeat japan
· she could not live in japan because of the war so she used whatever cultural material available to her and interviewed Japanese immigrants and japanese americans
· her method was criticized, argued that she could not fully study and understand Japanese culture using her method
· was able to make recommendations to the u.s. gov. to reach terms of surrender with japan
franz boas
· promoted the idea of cultural relativism, stating that an anthropologist cannot compare two cultures bc each culture has its own set of internal rules that must be accepted
marvin harris
· pioneered cultural materialism: society develops on a trial and error basis; if something is not of value to society’s ability to produce or reproduce, it will disappear from society
what is the principal of cultural materialism
if something is not of value to society’s ability to produce or reproduce, it will disappear from society
what is the principal of cultural relativism
an anthropologist cannot compare two cultures, each culture has its own set of internal rules that must be accepted
charles darwin
·
Richard Lee
- studied and lived with the Dobe Ju’/hoansi of Southern Africa for almost forty years
- found that their people insult and belittle each other so nobody becomes arrogant or cocky
margaret mead
- made cultural anthropology understandable to ordinary people
- insisted that you must live with the people for a long time as one of them in order to understand their culture
ethnology definition
- the study of the origins and cultures of different races and peoples
kinship
- the relationship between two or more people that is based on common ancestry, marriage, or adoption
ethnography
the written account of a culture
participant observation
the careful watching of a group, in some cases living with its members and participating in their culture
reflexivity
the practice of reflecting on your own world view, biases, and impact on the culture you are studying
culturally constructed
created or shaped by a culture
informant
a reliable and knowledgeable person who provides specific information to an anthropologist studying his or her community
