Whats culture? Flashcards
Humans:
share behavioural and biological characteristics (exhibit tremendous variation).
Anthropology:
Search for what it means to be human, and a documentation of human life and possibility.
2 approaches:
Holistic, and Comparative
Holistic:
taking all aspects of human life into consideration
Comparative:
using comparison to learn what humans have in (common, different, and what changes).
Main branches of Anthro
- Socio-cultural
- Linguistic
- Archeological
- Physical/Biological
Culture:
A set of beliefs/practices/symbols that are learned/shared and form an encompassing community that binds people together.
Culture is . . .
Things we take for granted such as . . .
- rules
- moralities
- Behaviours that feel natural
Nacirema
- American spelt backwards
- Shows an ethnocentric bias towards other cultures (not our own).
Human:
Share behavioural and biological characteristics. But, exhibit tremendous variation.
Anthro:
search for what it means to be human, through documentation of human life and possibility.
2 approaches:
Holistic, and Comparative.
Holistic:
Taking all aspects of life into consideration.
Comparative:
Using comparison to learn what humans have in common, different, and what changes.
4 main branches of anthro
- Socio-Cultural
- Linguistic
- Archeological
- Physical/Biological
Culture:
A set of beliefs/practices/symbols which are shared within a community, and bind people together.
Culture is . . .
Things we take for granted in every day life . . .
- rules
- moralities
- behaviours that we feel are natural
Nacirema
- American spelt backwards
- Shows an ethnocentric bias in which we view other cultures.
How do people judge the beliefs and behaviours of others?
Ethnocentrism, and Cultural Relativism
Ethnocentrism:
Tendency to judge (beliefs)/behaviours of other cultures from the perspective of your own culture.
Cultural relativism:
Attempt to understand the beliefs and behaviours of other cultures in terms (of cultural contexts found).
T or F: is the anthro perspective of cultural relativism hard to maintain?
True
T or F: does cultural relativism force people to question what is normal?
True
When studying other cultures it is important to . . .
Develop empathy
16th to mid-20th century:
Travellers/explores returned from faraway places with supposed stories if “strange people”
- “The other”
Time of cultural-“Imperialism/colonialism”
16th-20th century
“Age of Enlightenment”
18th century (1700’s)
- the desire to explain reality in terms of “Natural law” rather than religion.
- Anthro tried to offer a scientific explanation of human diversity.
Armchair:
Made comparisons between/generalizations about the lifeways (various groups) and put them in the hierarchy.
- Involves (Collection/study/analysis) of writings (MISSIONARIES, EXPLORERS)
Armchair was focused on . . .
- Culture rather than rather
- Comparisons/Hierarchy
-Culture/unlinear (evolution)
Main ideas: unlinear evolution
- All societies have experienced different stages of evolution
- Different societies represent different stages of evolution
- These stages are labelled as “savagery, barbarianism, and civilization”
Coined the term “survival of the fittest”
Herbert Spencer
Came up with “Theories and Laws of evolution”
Herbert Spencer
Argued that just as organisms evolve, so do humans
Herbert Spencer
Suggested living and observing the daily interactions of other cultures (Long term field work) is necessary for Ethnography
Broinslaw Malinowski
Polish ethnographer
Broinslaw Malinowski
Emphasized importance of Long term field work particaptant observation
Broinslaw Malinowski
Boas proposed that . . .
Cultures can be researched through extensive in-person research
- Cultural ideas/practices are perfectly adapted (natural environment). Therefore it is not innate or biological but an adaptation.
Boas proposed that cultural relativism . . .
All populations have developed cultures, and they are different for every culture due to (Historical, social, and geographic locations).
T or F: Boas was criticized for his work in Indigenous communities, and was accused of “Salvage anthropology”.
True
Ethnography:
Extensive in-person research done within a specific country and/or culture within a period of time.
- mainly done through participant observation (Malinowski)
- Originally used to collect data in order to control populations.
- Work funded/facilitated by colonial and imperialism governments.
