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Questions and Answers
What is the primary goal of cultural relativism in anthropology?
What is the primary goal of cultural relativism in anthropology?
- To understand societies on their own terms without bias (correct)
- To establish a universal standard for ranking cultures
- To identify a single, superior culture
- To promote literacy and economic development in all societies
What is the opposite of ethnocentrism?
What is the opposite of ethnocentrism?
- Gender roles
- Kinship systems
- Cultural relativism (correct)
- Comparative fieldwork
What is a potential challenge of cultural relativism?
What is a potential challenge of cultural relativism?
- It implies all cultural practices are equally good, potentially leading to nihilism (correct)
- It leads to a universal standard for ranking cultures
- It only focuses on kinship systems and gender roles
- It eliminates the need for comparative fieldwork
What is the methodological role of cultural relativism in anthropology?
What is the methodological role of cultural relativism in anthropology?
What is a key goal of anthropology in relation to cultural relativism?
What is a key goal of anthropology in relation to cultural relativism?
What is the name of the astronaut who is mentioned in the context of cultural relativism?
What is the name of the astronaut who is mentioned in the context of cultural relativism?
What is the etymology of the term 'culture'?
What is the etymology of the term 'culture'?
What is the definition of culture according to the text?
What is the definition of culture according to the text?
Who developed the Geertzian Concept of Culture?
Who developed the Geertzian Concept of Culture?
What is one of the challenges of the Geertzian Concept of Culture?
What is one of the challenges of the Geertzian Concept of Culture?
How does culture affect the way we perceive nature?
How does culture affect the way we perceive nature?
What is the process by which a child learns their culture?
What is the process by which a child learns their culture?
What is an example of how culture affects the way we express biological urges?
What is an example of how culture affects the way we express biological urges?
What is the primary focus of anthropology?
What is the primary focus of anthropology?
What is an example of cultural advances overcoming natural limitations?
What is an example of cultural advances overcoming natural limitations?
What is ethnocentrism?
What is ethnocentrism?
What is the purpose of comparative fieldwork in anthropology?
What is the purpose of comparative fieldwork in anthropology?
Which of the following is a key comparative concept in anthropology?
Which of the following is a key comparative concept in anthropology?
What is a potential obstacle to understanding in anthropology?
What is a potential obstacle to understanding in anthropology?
What is the goal of anthropologists in balancing the universal and the particular?
What is the goal of anthropologists in balancing the universal and the particular?
What is a common feature of anthropological fieldwork?
What is a common feature of anthropological fieldwork?
Which of the following is NOT a field of anthropology?
Which of the following is NOT a field of anthropology?
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Study Notes
Anthropology: Definition and Scope
- Anthropology is the comparative study of cultural and social life using participant observation and ethnographic fieldwork.
Four Fields of Anthropology
- Sociocultural
- Biological
- Archeological
- Linguistic
The Universal and the Particular
- Anthropology seeks to understand the diversity of human social life by balancing the study of similarities and differences across cultures.
- Debate: to what extent all human cultures share common features (universality) versus the degree to which each culture is unique (relativism).
Key Comparative Concepts
- Kinship system
- Gender role
- System of inheritance
Ethnocentrism
- Definition: evaluating other cultures from one's own vantage-point and describing them in one's own terms.
- Placing one's cultural values at the center makes others appear as inferior imitations of oneself.
- Serious obstacle to understanding.
Cultural Relativism
- Definition: each culture has its own unique logic and shouldn't be ranked against others.
- Essential for understanding other societies without bias.
- Implies all cultural practices are equally good, potentially leading to nihilism.
- Anthropologists practice cultural relativism professionally but have personal moral beliefs.
Configuring Anthropology and Its History
- Anthropology is a method for studying and comparing societies without using a developmental scale.
- Helps identify unique and shared aspects of human societies.
Culture: Definition and Concept
- Etymology: comes from Latin 'colere', meaning to cultivate.
- Complex: over 160 definitions, contested for decades.
- “Abilities, notions and forms of behavior persons have acquired as members of society.”
- Ambiguous term: universal human trait, and systematic differences between humans.
Geertzian Concept of Culture
- Developed by Clifford Geertz in the 1960s and 1970s.
- Depicts culture as: an integrated whole, a system of shared meanings within a group.
- Challenges: variations within groups, globalization's impact on cultural boundaries.
Culture and Nature
- Interaction with Biological Urges: culture teaches expression of natural urges (e.g., eating, eliminating wastes).
- Culture affects the ways in which we perceive nature, human nature, and “the natural.”
Culture is Learned
- Enculturation: process by which a child learns their culture.
- Methods: direct teaching, observation and imitation.
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