ISU ANT 185

the study of the full scope of human diversity, past and present, and the application of that knowledge to help people of different backgrounds better understand one another.

the application of anthropological data, perspectives, theory, and methods to identify, assess, and solve contemporary social problems

switching back and forth between one linguistic variant and another depending on the cultural context

Beliefs, customs, and traditions of a specific group of people.

Benefits one receives from knowledge, abilities, and skills

Things that are normal to other cultures, may not be normal to a different culture

performances that are expressive forms of culture with functions similar to the other arts

the study of the construction of those sounds, their meanings, and their combination into forms that communicate meaning.

a particular form of a language that is peculiar to a specific region or social group.

an approach to gathering data that investigates how local people think and how they understand the world

the process by which culture is learned and transmitted across the generations

anthropology that includes political action as a major goal of fieldwork

an area of study in the field of genetics exploring how environmental factors directly affect the expression of genes in ways that may be inherited between generations

Your own culture is right and others are wrong, being judgemental of a different culture

How the ethnographer convinces the reader they know what they are talking about

A primary research strategy in cultural anthropology that typically involves living and interacting with a community of people over an extended period

A detailed description of a particular culture primarily based on fieldwork.

description of local behavior and beliefs from the anthropologist's perspective in ways that can be compared across cultures

The idea, attributed to Franz Boas, that cultures develop in specific ways because of their unique histories.

the anthropological commitment to look at the whole picture of human life - culture, biology, history, and language - across space and time

Characteristics that are found in all human societies.

giving potential participants enough information about a study to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

the study of a culture as a system of meaning

A community member who advises the anthropologist on community issues, provides feedback, and warns against cultural miscues.

a form of interview that traces the biography of a person over time, examining changes and illuminating the interlocking network of relationships in the community

Languages classify things in different ways, these different ways have an arbitrary relationship to observable reality

investigators observe people while joining them in their routine activities

the use of many voices in ethnographic writing

a particular way of speaking, or language variation, that is associated with wealth, success, education, and power

descriptive data

analyzing and critically considering our own role in, and effect on, our research

a group of people who share a set of norms and expectations regarding the use of language

a conceptual framework positing that each element of society serves a particular function to keep the entire system in equilibrium

cultural knowledge that people lack words for

an early anthropological theory that states all cultures evolve from simple to complex along a single trajectory of progress

father of modern American anthropology; argued for cultural relativism and historical particularism

British Social Anthropologist, Anthropology of food and nutrition, Advisor of T.M. Luhrman

Central figure to Harlem renaissance, African American Folklorist, Ethnographer (US south, Caribbean), Novelist, Filmmaker

Original Anthropologist, Filmmaker and Ethnographer
Interested in childhood and, gender, mothering, adolescence, Bisexual

Invented cultural anthropology after spending a long spring break in Mexico, Known for a book PRIMITIVE CULTURE,

Pioneer cultural anthropology-- armchair anthropologist in Rochester, U.S., studied the Iroquois, unilinear cultural evolution

interpretive anthropology

British anthropologist (born in Poland) who introduced the technique of the participant observer (1884-1942)

Cultural Anthropology: Studies human societies and elements of cultural life.
Archaeology: Examines past societies through their material remains.
Biological (Physical) Anthropology: Focuses on human evolution and biological diversity.
Linguistic Anthropology: Studies language and its social and cultural contexts.

religious experiences and beliefs are deeply influenced by the cognitive and emotional processes of the mind.

to demonstrate how ethnocentrism can skew our perception of other cultures.

The main point is that the Balinese cockfight is a complex cultural performance that provides insights into the society's values, social structure. Geertz uses the cockfight as a metaphor to explore deeper social meanings and tensions within Balinese culture.

to show how cultural context influences the interpretation of literature. Bohannan, an anthropologist, recounts her attempt to tell Shakespeare's Hamlet to the Tiv people in Nigeria.

to emphasize the shared experiences and fundamental commonalities of human beings across different cultures and backgrounds.

Characteristics: In-depth, immersive study of a culture or society, typically through participant observation.

Advantages: Provides deep, nuanced understanding of social practices.
Disadvantages: Time-consuming, potentially biased by the researcher's presence.

What it is: Shared practices, beliefs, and values that shape social behavior.
What it is not: Not biologically determined, static, or isolated from outside influences.

The relationship between a word (signifier) and its meaning (signified) is arbitrary and culturally assigned.

Analyzing culture as if it were a text, where social actions are symbols that can be "read" and interpreted.

means to analyze and interpret cultural practices, symbols, and social actions as if they were elements of a written text.

Expert Information: Comes from specialists or authorities in a specific field, such as academics, professionals, or researchers.

Respondent Information: Comes directly from the people being studied in the field, usually through interviews, surveys, or observations.

suggests that the structure of a language influences how its speakers perceive and think about the world.

Ex. If a language has multiple words for snow (as in some Inuit languages), its speakers might perceive and think about snow in more nuanced ways than speakers of a language with only one word for snow.