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Perspectives: an Open Invitation to Cultural Anthropology PERSPECTIVES: AN OPEN INTRODUCTION TO CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY SECOND EDITION Nina Brown, Thomas McIlwraith, Laura Tubelle de González 2020 American Anthropological Association 2300 Clarendon Blvd, Suite 1301 Arlington, VA 22201 ISBN Print: 978-1-931303-67-5 ISBN Digital: 978-1-931303-66-8 http://perspectives.americananthro.org/ This book is a project of the Society for Anthropology in Community Colleges (SACC) http://sacc.americananthro.org/ and our parent organization, the American Anthropological Association (AAA). Please refer to the website for a complete table of contents and more information about the book. Perspectives: An Open Introduction to Cultural Anthropology, 2nd Edition by Nina Brown, Thomas McIlwraith, Laura Tubelle de González is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted. Under this CC BY-NC 4.0 copyright license you are free to: Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material Under the following terms: Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. CONTENTS Preface xi WHY THIS BOOK? xi ABOUT THE SOCIETY FOR ANTHROPOLOGY IN COMMUNITY COLLEGES xii WHY OPEN ACCESS? xiii THE COVER DESIGN xiii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xiii I. Part 1 1. Introduction to Anthropology 3 WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY? 5 WHAT IS CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY? 5 WHAT IS CULTURE? 6 A BRIEF HISTORY OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL THINKING 7 THE (OTHER) SUBFIELDS OF ANTHROPOLOGY 10 ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES 14 WHY IS ANTHROPOLOGY IMPORTANT? 17 GLOSSARY 25 ABOUT THE AUTHORS 26 BIBLIOGRAPHY 27 2. The Culture Concept 29 THOUGHTS ON CULTURE OVER A CUP OF COFFEE 29 STORIES AS A REFLECTION ON CULTURE 30 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THEORIES OF CULTURE 35 BACK IN THE COFFEE SHOP 40 GLOSSARY 41 ABOUT THE AUTHORS 42 BIBLIOGRAPHY 43 3. Doing Fieldwork: Methods in Cultural Anthropology 45 FINDING THE FIELD 45 TRADITIONAL ETHNOGRAPHIC APPROACHES 49 ETHNOGRAPHY TODAY 54 ETHNOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUES AND PERSPECTIVES 56 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS 63 WRITING ETHNOGRAPHY 65 GLOSSARY 67 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 68 BIBLIOGRAPHY 68 4. Language 70 THE IMPORTANCE OF HUMAN LANGUAGE TO HUMAN CULTURE 70 THE BIOLOGICAL BASIS OF LANGUAGE 71 HUMAN LANGUAGE COMPARED WITH THE COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS OF OTHER SPECIES 75 UNIVERSALS OF LANGUAGE 76 DESCRIPTIVE LINGUISTICS: STRUCTURES OF LANGUAGE 76 LANGUAGE VARIATION: SOCIOLINGUISTICS 78 LANGUAGE IN ITS SOCIAL SETTINGS: LANGUAGE AND IDENTITY 83 LANGUAGE CHANGE: HISTORICAL LINGUISTICS 87 GLOBALIZATION AND LANGUAGE 88 GLOSSARY 92 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 94 5. Subsistence 96 STUDYING SUBSISTENCE SYSTEMS 97 MODES OF SUBSISTENCE 98 THE GLOBAL AGRICULTURE SYSTEM 112 CONCLUSION 114 GLOSSARY 114 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 115 BIBLIOGRAPHY 115 6. Economics 119 MODES OF PRODUCTION 120 MODES OF EXCHANGE 127 CONSUMPTION AND GLOBAL CAPITALISM 135 POLITICAL ECONOMY: UNDERSTANDING INEQUALITY 139 CONCLUSION 141 GLOSSARY 142 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 143 BIBLIOGRAPHY 143 7. Political Anthropology: A Cross-Cultural Comparison 148 BASIC CONCEPTS IN POLITICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 148 LEVELS OF SOCIO-CULTURAL INTEGRATION 150 EGALITARIAN SOCIETIES 150 BAND-LEVEL POLITICAL ORGANIZATION 151 TRIBAL POLITICAL ORGANIZATION 152 RANKED SOCIETIES AND CHIEFDOMS 161 STRATIFIED SOCIETIES 166 STATE LEVEL OF POLITICAL ORGANIZATION 168 CONCLUSION 173 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 175 BIBLIOGRAPHY 176 8. Family and Marriage 182 RIGHTS, RESPONSIBILITIES, STATUSES, AND ROLES IN FAMILIES 183 KINSHIP AND DESCENT 183 KINSHIP TERMS 188 MARRIAGE AND FAMILY 190 FAMILIES AND CULTURE CHANGE 199 GLOSSARY 200 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 202 9. Race and Ethnicity 204 “DUDE, WHAT ARE YOU?!” 205 IS ANTHROPOLOGY THE “SCIENCE OF RACE?” 207 RACE IN THREE NATIONS: THE UNITED STATES, BRAZIL, AND JAPAN 215 ETHNICITY AND ETHNIC GROUPS 220 A MELTING POT OR A SALAD BOWL? 222 ANTHROPOLOGY MEETS POPULAR CULTURE: SPORTS, RACE/ETHNICITY AND DIVERSITY 223 CONCLUSION 226 GLOSSARY 226 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 227 BIBLIOGRAPHY 228 10. Gender and Sexuality 231 INTRODUCTION: SEX AND GENDER ACCORDING TO ANTHROPOLOGISTS 231 FOUNDATIONS OF THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF GENDER 233 CONTEMPORARY ANTHROPOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO STUDYING SEXUALITY AND GENDER 262 CONCLUSION 271 GLOSSARY 272 ABOUT THE AUTHORS 274 11. Religion 286 DEFINING RELIGION 288 THEORIES OF RELIGION 289 ELEMENTS OF RELIGION 291 CONCLUSION 300 GLOSSARY 300 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 301 12. Globalization 304 OVERVIEW AND EARLY GLOBALIZATION 305 THE ACCELERATION OF GLOBALIZATION 306 SELECTIVE IMPORTATION AND ADAPTATION 308 GLOBALIZATION IN EVERYDAY LIFE 311 GLOBALIZATION AND NEOLIBERALISM 316 RESPONSES TO GLOBALIZATION 319 IMPLICATIONS FOR ANTHROPOLOGY 322 CONCLUSION 326 GLOSSARY 327 ABOUT THE AUTHORS 328 II. Part 2 13. The History of Anthropological Ideas 335 CENTRAL CONCEPTS 336 THE FALL OF COLONIALISM AND THE RISE OF NEWLY INDEPENDENT STATES 340 SPECIALIZATION – A WIDE RANGE 342 CONCLUSION 350 GLOSSARY 350 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 351 BIBLIOGRAPHY 351 14. Culture and Sustainability: Environmental Anthropology in the Anthropocene 357 LIVING IN THE ANTHROPOCENE 357 CULTURAL ECOLOGY 361 ETHNOECOLOGY 364 POLITICAL ECOLOGY 368 ADDITIONAL APPROACHES TO ENVIRONMENTAL ANTHROPOLOGY 373 APPLYING ANTHROPOLOGY IN CONSERVATION 375 CONCLUSION 377 GLOSSARY 378 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 379 BIBLIOGRAPHY 379 15. Performance 382 OVERVIEW 383 EVERYDAY PERFORMANCE 386 CONSTITUTING SOCIAL REALITY 391 BOUNDED PERFORMANCES 394 CONCLUSION 401 GLOSSARY 402 ABOUT THE AUTHORS 403 16. Media Anthropology: Meaning, Embodiment, Infrastructure, and Activism 407 A BRIEF HISTORY OF MEDIA ANTHROPOLOGY 408 MEANINGFUL MEDIA 409 WHAT MAKES MEDIA POSSIBLE? 412 PARTICIPATORY MEDIA AND MEDIA ACTIVISM IN ANTHROPOLOGY 415 CONCLUSION 419 GLOSSARY 421 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 421 BIBLIOGRAPHY 421 17. Health and Medicine 425 ANTHROPOLOGY AND THE BIOCULTURAL PERSPECTIVE 426 ETHNOMEDICINE 428 MENTAL HEALTH 433 THE EXPERIENCE OF ILLNESS IN PLACE 434 BIOMEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES 437 CONCLUSION 439 GLOSSARY 440 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 441 18. Seeing Like an Anthropologist: Anthropology in Practice 444 ANTHROPOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT 445 “HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES” 446 WE NEVER ASKED ABOUT IT BEFORE 448 SEEING LIKE AN ANTHROPOLOGIST 449 I WILL NOT EAT IT UNTIL I DIE 449 AN ISOLATED CASE? 451 REFLECTIONS 452 GLOSSARY 453 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 453 BIBLIOGRAPHY 453 19. Public Anthropology 456 INTRODUCTION 456 TWO PUZZLES 458 DEFINING PUBLIC ANTHROPOLOGY 463 PUTTING PRESENT CONCERNS IN PERSPECTIVE 464 PUBLIC ANTHROPOLOGY’S RELATION TO APPLIED ANTHROPOLOGY 466 THE UPS AND DOWNS OF PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT 467 TAKING STOCK OF WHERE WE ARE AND WHERE WE ARE HEADING 468 A FRAMEWORK FOR RESHAPING THE DISCIPLINE 469 FACILITATING SOCIAL CHANGE 476 CONCLUDING QUESTIONS 480 CENTER FOR A PUBLIC ANTHROPOLOGY PROJECT: HOW THE BLOOD CAME BACK TO THE 480 YANOMAMI ABOUT THE AUTHOR 484 BIBLIOGRAPHY 484 Image Credits 489 PREFACE Welcome to Perspectives and Open Access Anthropology! We are delighted to bring to you this novel textbook, a collection of chapters on the essential topics in cultural anthropology. Different from other introductory textbooks, this book is an edited volume with each chapter written by a different author. Each author has written from their experiences working as an anthropologist and that personal touch makes for an accessible introduction to cultural anthropol- ogy. Our approach to cultural anthropology is holistic. We see the interconnectedness of cultural practices and, in all of the chapters, we emphasize the comparison of cultures and the ways of life of different peoples. We start with Laura Nader’s observation that cultural differences need not be seen as a prob- lem. In our complicated world of increasing migration, nationalism, and climate challenges, cultural diversity might actually be the source of conflict resolution and new approaches to ensuring a health- ier world. Indeed, as Katie Nelson reminds us, anthropology exposes the familiarity in the ideas and practices of others that seem bizarre. Robert Borofsky advocates for anthropology’s ability to empower people and facilitate good. Borofsky calls on anthropologists to engage with a wider public to bring our incredible stories and important insights to helping resolve the most critical issues we face in the world today. This book brings Nader, Nelson, Borofsky, and many others together to demonstrate that our anthropological understandings can help all of us to improve the lives of people the world over. We need you, as students, to see the possibilities. As instructors, we want to help you easily share anthro- pological knowledge and understanding. We want all readers to be inspired by the intensely personal writings of the anthropologists who contribute to this volume. WHY THIS BOOK? For students, we promise readable and interesting writing on topics that will be covered in your first year anthropology course. The chapters contain links to support your use and enjoyment of the book. They are designed to help learn the material. Use this book, even if it is not your course text, and then ask your instructor tough questions! Use social media to ask us questions or to send us comments—the details are below. For instructors, we invite you to build your own book, the perfect book for your course. The available chapters mirror the lecture topics in many first-year courses. The chapters form a whole and they can also
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