...Daniel Hutton Ashford University ANT: 101 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Professor Chad Goings According to the history of the Navajo Tribe, the Holy People lived in the underworld and helped by guiding the First Man and First Woman to earth (McCoy 1988). The Holy People are said to be attracted to songs, dances, and chants during the ceremony along with the creation of Sand painting. The Sand painting is used in the healing process of the ceremony to draw a picture that tells a story of the Holy People. The Navajo culture have amazed so many people to how beautifully constructed the rituals are performed. Although, the ritual has been passed on from generation to generation, how the Navajo rituals are ways of communication has been questioned by so many. Many believe that it way for the patient to come into “…harmony… ” with the universe (Klukhohn and Leighton 1962). The hypothesis for the question was presented based on exploration of the culture done by researchers; concluding that, the Navajo rituals are a way of communication to their ancestors/the Holy People, who are worshiped in return of good lucks for the Navajo Community. It is believed that through this ceremony, people are cleansed from bad spirit and good luck is brought upon the family. For example, the rituals are performed on pregnant women, young men going to the army, and sick people. Naturally speaking, the most intriguing part of their belief is the ceremonial concepts of healing people...
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...Final Research Paper Tanya ANT 101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Final Research Paper Different societies exist throughout the world and within these societies each society develops culture that works best for them. Within these cultures they pass all their acquired knowledge and traditions down from generation to generation. Nevertheless, each culture has their own way of life, own marriage beliefs, their own values and feelings on life and religious beliefs. Cultures tend to have their own way to run their government, and ways to keep their economy up to their standards. Most importantly in cultural anthropology it is imperative to value culture relativism. This is the view in which no culture is superior to other culture when comparing systems such as morality, law, and politics (Crapo, 2013). Each culture beliefs are equally valid depending on the environment. In this paper, I will delve into a piece of my culture from an outsider’s standpoint, an etic perspective, and furthermore, I will examine another culture from an emic perspective on their traditional practices. Not only will I examine gender roles and equality in the United States workforce from an etic perspective, but also polygyny in Sub-Saharan Africa from an emic perspective. Throughout American history the number of women in the United States workforce has been increasing even though American society has always claimed men to be the breadwinners and heads of the house. According to...
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...Week 1 Discussion 1: Assimilation John Doe Ant101 - Introduction to Cultural Anthropology YOUR TEACHERS NAME HERE July 9, 2014 Week 1 Discussion 1: Assimilation John Doe Ant101 - Introduction to Cultural Anthropology YOUR TEACHERS NAME HERE July 9, 2014 Assimilation The textbook discusses the process of assimilation. After viewing the film, Indian School: Stories of Survival, answer the following questions: a. What is the definition of assimilation? b. What happened to the Native American children in the film? c. Why did the American government decide to assimilate them into Western culture? d. How did this affect them long term? e. Is assimilating others into another culture ever justified? Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required material(s) and/or other scholarly resources, and properly cite any references. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts by Day 7. The textbook defines assimilation as, “when members of one society become a politically or economically subordinated part of another, as when a conquered group is incorporated into the conquering society or when an ethnic population immigrates into a country with a different culture, the subordinate group may lose its original culture as its members adopt the customs of the larger society.” (Crapo, 2013) In the film, Indian School: Stories of Survival, the Native American children were uprooted from their...
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...Elderly Care Methods in the United States and China ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Beverly Musso Professor: Dr. Marjorie Estivill June 26th, 2014 Elderly care, is something that has some role in every culture around the globe in one way or another, even if that way is neglecting the elderly and letting them fend for themselves, either way it is a part of humanity as a whole. Different cultures have different ways to approach this topic. I believe in the United States, and China, we are taught to respect and take care of our elders. While both countries believe in cherishing and taking care of their elders, their methods are different, because they have different ways of caring to them, have different statuses in each country, and have overall different beliefs around this topic. Each culture has their way of handling this topic, and I believe there is no correct answer to this, but exploring the different ways that cultures take on this task is important. To begin with, both the United States, and China agree that elders are important to society, and have wisdom that can only be gained through age. However, each of these countries have different ways of caring to their elders. For example china has the one child policy, which leaves a gap with much more older people then young to care for them. It is not uncommon for a Chinese household to have four grandparent’s two parents and one child. This phenomenon is known as “4-2-1”. Contrasting to the United...
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...ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Locating Scholarly Resources Worksheet Week 2 Assignment: Locating Scholarly Resources Citation 1: Bianchi, S.M. (1999). Feminization and juvenilization of poverty. Trends, relative risks, causes, and consequences. Annual Review of Sociology,25, 307-333. Retrieved from the JSTOR database Thesis: First, are "feminization" and "juvenilization" best assessed by trends in the percentage of the poverty population that is female (or juvenile), by the absolute poverty rates of women and children, or by the relative risks of poverty for different groups (i.e., men versus women, adult versus children)? Second, what factors are implicated in the heightened poverty levels of women and children, and what factors seem to be correlated with changes overtime in their relative risks of poverty? Finally, and perhaps most importantly, what are the effects of poverty, particularly for those who grow up poor? Citation 2: Murphy, F. (2011). Archives of Sorrow. An exploration of Australia's stolen generations and their journey into the past. History and Anthropology, 22 (4). 481-495. Retrieved from EBSCOhost database Thesis: This article examines the role of the archive in the lives of Australia's Stolen Generations (Aboriginal Australians who were removed from their families and institutionalized from 1910 until the mid-19470s), and argues that returning to the archive is both an attempt to confront and negotiate past traumas...
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...The Navajo Ways of Life Navajo Way of Life Kathleen E. St.Cyr ANT101 Jeffrey Ratcliffe July 16, 2012 Every culture has a primary mode of subsistence that makes them unique. Among the Navajo culture their primary mode of subsistence are pastoralists. Pastoralists have an impact on different aspects with in the culture. The aspects that I will be discussing will be the Navajo’s beliefs and values, sickness and healing, kinship, and their social organization. “Pastoralists are those who regularly move in search of naturally occurring grass and water.” (Nowak & Laird, 2010) Navajo’s are an Indian tribe that live on reservations and sometimes reside on public domains outside of the reservations. The Navajo nation is the largest reservation in North America. The Navajo tribe is the natives of what is called the Four Corners region that reside in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado. Navajo’s call themselves Dineh, meaning “the people.” “Up until 1848, the land on which the Navajos lived had belonged to Mexico. The Navajos had to continually fight not only the Spanish, but also other Indian tribes in order to live on this land.” (Oracle ThinkQuest, The Navajo People) They continued this fight up until the 1850’s and 1860’s when Americans built Fort Defiance for the Navajo country, near what is now called Window Rock, Arizona. Only soon to be captured and killed by the Americans. After having to surrender and forced to walk 300 miles to Fort...
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...Btsisi MY NAME Instructor: MINE ANT101: Cultural Anthropology Sunday July 30, 2012 THE BTSISI’ Whenever the word “kinshp” is used, many of us think of family or a relative. Kinship is defined as a relationship by blood in the dictionary. In a nuclear family there is a mother a father and their children. The nuclear family is also said to be the most common family type. “The nuclear family is most common because, in a foraging setting, it is adaptive to various situations Nowak, B. (2010).” Another type of family grouping is the multifamily which are individuals who reside in the same area. These multifamily groupings are typically ranging between 25 to 50 people to be the optimal size. These multifamily groupings are also referred to as “bands”. The band size is varying based upon the carrying capacity of the environment. “Bands are typically composed of a group of related nuclear families. Sometimes the bands are composed of a few extended families each consisting of a nuclear family with married children, their spouses, and offspring. Such a band composition works best in terms of cooperation and sharing. (Nowak, B.,2010)”. Sororal polygany is when a man marries a group of sisters. Polygyny is stated to create a scarcity of eligible women for marriage because of one man marrying the grouping of the sisters. In some cases the girls are already promised to men before they are even born into existence. Polygyny makes it possible for a 12-year old to potentially...
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...Childrearing and Eating Disorders Mary Maha ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Instructor Adrienne Stafford May 8, 2016 Childrearing and Eating Disorders Childrearing in today’s society is different especially when there are different ways in between having the mother discipline or the father discipline. Different ways of childrearing are mainly the authorative or the permissive. Rarely would anyone have any other type of childrearing in the family. Also having issues with young teens in eating disorders to fit in with the right crowd within the community has been a major problem around the world. Due to having a certain image has brought the young adolescents to have this certain eating disorder. So within this paper I will be explaining the different ways of childrearing in each family from an etic perspective. I also will be giving an insider’s perspective on the image of young adolescents and the problem with the eating disorders that they will face for cultures in different countries. Part I Childrearing parents are different in many cultures, but the main point is the way the mothers and fathers have their own ways of childrearing in their lives. You have the authorative, permissive, non-conforming, and the rejecting-neglecting parents. Having different childrearing ways characterize a family relation as positive, but not as positive as the permissive style. You basically have the mothers as being more of the authorative style and the fathers...
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...English Aristocratic Marriage Negotiations, 1400-1700 Bruce Guy ANT101 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Dr. Emma Bate September 23, 2013 Marriage from the 14th century through the 17th century was more of a business arrangement between two families than a joining of a man and woman to live together in the holy bonds of matrimony. In some cases, the women were married to the suitor who had the most to offer. Marriages during those centuries focused more on status and wealth than on love. According to Desmet, “to marry for affection alone was deemed irresponsible, even immoral” (Desmet 2002). A woman’s position in the aristocracy and her living standards depended heavily on her husband’s wealth, political power, and rank. The goal of her parents was to have her marry into the wealthiest, highest ranking family possible. Marriage among the aristocrats is a collective decision of family and kin, not an individual one. Past lineage associations, political patronage, extension of lineage connections, and property preservation and accumulation were the principle considerations. Property and power were the predominant issues which governed negotiations for marriage, while the greatest fear in a society so acutely conscious of status and hierarchy was of social derogation in marriage, of alliance with a family of lower estate or degree than ones own (Stone 1977). In most cases the parents and children agreed because...
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...Australian Aborigines Kinship System Donalee Lund ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Sashur Henninger January 7, 2013 Australian Aborigines Kinship System The Aborigines of Australia have a very complex kinship system and to be honest I am not sure I fully understand their kinship system. You wanted me to give three specific examples on how the kinship system impacts the Aborigines cultures. By the time I finished researching their kinship system my head was pounding. I will try to explain how their kinship system impacts their daily lives In their culture everyone is related to everyone. The Aborigines are a tight net family; they are divided into two moieties. These moieties are really based on the environment surroundings like animals and plants. This also reinforces social and economic exchanges between the two moieties. Each moiety is given a name and in each moiety they have four marriage class names. For example; moiety A and moiety B two groups and then with in those groups are marriage class names (a, b, c and d). So a man from moiety A can only marry women from moiety B and then their children will be b’s in the moiety A. Then if a “c” man can marry only from moiety A and their children will be d’s in moiety B (Descent Groups by Dennis O’Neil 2007). A lot of times the brothers of moiety A will marry the sisters of moiety B. By marry someone in opposite moiety this is called exogamous system (outside the group). The on law they do have...
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...Navajo Way of Life Kathleen E. St.Cyr ANT101 Jeffrey Ratcliffe July 16, 2012 Every culture has a primary mode of subsistence that makes them unique. Among the Navajo culture their primary mode of subsistence are pastoralists. Pastoralists have an impact on different aspects with in the culture. The aspects that I will be discussing will be the Navajo’s beliefs and values, sickness and healing, kinship, and their social organization. “Pastoralists are those who regularly move in search of naturally occurring grass and water.” (Nowak & Laird, 2010) Navajo’s are an Indian tribe that live on reservations and sometimes reside on public domains outside of the reservations. The Navajo nation is the largest reservation in North America. The Navajo tribe is the natives of what is called the Four Corners region that reside in Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado. Navajo’s call themselves Dineh, meaning “the people.” “Up until 1848, the land on which the Navajos lived had belonged to Mexico. The Navajos had to continually fight not only the Spanish, but also other Indian tribes in order to live on this land.” (Oracle ThinkQuest, The Navajo People) They continued this fight up until the 1850’s and 1860’s when Americans built Fort Defiance for the Navajo country, near what is now called Window Rock, Arizona. Only soon to be captured and killed by the Americans. After having to surrender and forced to walk 300 miles to Fort Sumner in eastern New Mexico and years...
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...Intro to Cultural Anthropology: The Navajo Ashley Miller ANT101 Daniel Diaz Reyes June 16, 2013 The Navajo The Navajo, also known as the Diné, are one of the largest Native American Tribes in the world. Their culture is made up of very distinct and unique characteristics that have been passed down from generation to generation. They have been taught to adapt to their surroundings and to the land. Each moral, standard, belief and value are what make the Navajo so unique to the Native Americans. In the following, their primary mode of subsistence, kinship system, beliefs, values, and economic organizations will be briefly examined to gain a better knowledge of the Navajo culture. The Navajo culture were originally foragers, traveling across land in search of unsettled land and resources for their tribes. After migrating south from the pacific northwest over 700 years ago, the Navajo settled in Southwest America. They were then introduced to sheep by the Spaniards and soon after been pastoral and started growing small crops and caring for their animals. According to the Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural American, “A Navajo is “born to” the mother’s clan and “born for” the father’s clan” (Birchfield, 2000). It is said that the Navajo society is matrilineal, meaning that a clan’s identity is derived from the female. In a traditional introduction, the Navajo will first introduce themselves by naming the maternal clan, followed by the paternal clan....
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...Marriage Practice ANT101 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Prof: Christina Winn October 1, 2013 Marriage is a bond between man and woman that should not be entered into lightly. Many cultures have different views on how a man and woman should be joined together. Many traditional Christians believed in asking the bishop or leader of their congregation for consent before they got married. Second, in the Muslim culture, they are allowed to marry at a younger age than christens are allowed. Finally, marriage and divorce go hand in hand, in the Jewish culture divorce is usually handled right there in the community without the need for a judge. In many cultures it is a sign of respect to ask for permission from the father of the woman the man wants to marry. Christians wished to have the consent and blessing of their bishop or the leader of their congregation, and by the end of the fourth century it had become customary in some regions of the Empire for a priest to bless the marriage of a Christian couple (Grubbs, 1994). Muslim’s on the other hand believe that a man and a woman enter into marriage with both of them agree equally. “In Islam marriage cannot take place unless the female freely agrees to it and a dowry is given to her” (Islamicbulletin.org). Obviously a woman in each of these cultures enters into it on her own free will, but the Jewish culture adds a little bit to it. “Mishnah Kiddushin 1:1 specifies that a woman is acquired (i.e., to be a wife) in...
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...The Mbuti Culture ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology The Mbuti Pygmy Culture The Bambuti are a foraging group that are scattered throughout equatorial band of Africa. This area they live is primarily the rain forest. Mbuti have a unique culture, set of values, and lifestyle that are all undergoing great change. The Bambuti have been classified into three groups, which differ from each other linguistically, economically and geographically. The Aka people speak the Mangbetu language, hunt mainly with spears and live in the north of Democratic Republic of Congo. The Efe speak the Lese language, practice archery and live in the east of the country. The Sua speak the Bira language, usually hunt with nets and live in the south. Mbuti are the hunter-gatherers of the Ituri Forest. The Mbuti culture is more than 5,000 years old, and today's Mbuti live much as their ancient ancestors did. Roaming the forest in groups of no more than 14, they keep dogs and nets for hunting but otherwise have few material possessions. Their existence is harsh, and their average life span is short; many Mbuti die before they reach the age of 20, and very few of them live to see 40. Mbuti are primarily net hunters, although they also use bows for shooting arboreal monkeys, and spears for hunting bush pigs, buffaloes and other big game. Mbuti net hunter groups have been involved in commercial meat trading since the early 1950s. They obtain agricultural food...
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...Conflict Resolution Terry Harrold ANT101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Instr: Arianna Huhn Aug 9, 2014 Human Beings are involved in complex societies and wherever there are humans interacting with other humans, there is the potential for conflict. Conflicts occur in relationships, at work, between families, even between countries. National conflicts can result in wars, work and team conflicts can result in failure, and interpersonal conflicts can result in unhappiness. Conflict is a natural part of human life, but how we deal with it differs from culture to culture. Some cultures people get angry and attack the person, and not the problem. These cultures believe punishment and discipline is the only way to solve a conflict. They never consider there may be a more effective and peaceful solution to the conflict. Conflicts can be reconciled in a peaceful way as shown by the social cultures of the Zapotec and Semai. Zapotec people live in the state of Oaxaca, in southern Mexico (Fry, 1997, p.719). A relatively nonviolent place for the them to practices their beliefs (Nader & Metzger, 1963, p. 586). This town may not be completely free of conflict and quarrels, but few lead to physical violence. The nonviolence of this town is interesting and a bit of a surprise because there is other near bye communities that are violent, such as San Andres (Nader & Metzger, 1963, p. 586). The Zapotec are for the most part farmers and grow things like corn, beans and...
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