Anthropology “is the study of the human species and its immediate ancestors” (Kottak 5). It is comparative and holistic, which indicates that anthropology study human diversity in time and space (Kottak 4). This is done in order to understand the human condition (Kottak 4). According to Kottak, the human condition includes, “past, present, and future; biology, society, language, and culture” (Kottak 5). Anthropology helps to compare one society to the other to deepen our perspectives or understandings of that culture as it relates to other cultures studied (Kottak 5). Anthropology helps to further understand, on one hand, what is shared between societies, and on the other hand, what is a distinct culture with unique cultural traditions of that …show more content…
Anthropology does not just focus on the present it also ponders about the past by the examination of bones and tools that have helped to shed light on human existence (Kottak 5). This human existence that had anthropologist study human adaptation, variation, and change and discovering that “humans also habitually rely on cultural means of adaptation” (Kottak 5), and that “organisms cope with environmental forces and stresses by adapting to their changing environment (Kottak 5). On a similar note, anthropology includes four subfields that play important roles in adding to the science of Anthropology in unique ways (Kottak 8). According to Kottak, the four subfields are sociocultural, archaeological, biological, and linguistic anthropology (8). These four subfields will be discussed in detail in the following …show more content…
This is the third subfield of anthropology mentioned previously. Biological anthropology is one of the four subfields that has a multiplicity of subfields under it. According to Kottak, common interest in human biological variations, adaptations, and changes has given rise to five specialties within biological anthropology, which as the following: “1) human evolution as revealed by the fossil record (paleoanthropology), 2) human genetics, 3) human growth and development, 4) human biological plasticity (the living body’s ability to change as it copes with stresses, such as heat, cold, and altitude) and 5) primatology (the biology, evolution, behavior, and social life of monkeys, apes, and other nonhuman primates)” (Kottak 12). These five specialties bond biological anthropology to other fields such as biology, zoology, geology, anatomy, physiology, medicine, and public health. (Kottak 12). Kottak stated that it is in biological anthropology that we discovered that “people with a genetic tendency to be tall will be shorter if they are poorly nourished during childhood” (Kottak 12). Biological anthropology includes osteology and primatology, which is the study of bones and the study of apes and monkeys,
To start with anthropology, and outlining the timelines of mankind, one can start cumulating the facts around how humans have evolved throughout hundreds and thousands of years. Using anthropology as a theory of history is the ability to understand the social and cultural behaviors that connect the concept of human culture. As historians there are many benefits from using anthropology, studying the behaviors of human kind and all of its variations is a true...
Biological anthropology is broken into six branches, paleoanthropology, human osteology, human biology, anthropological genetics, forensic anthropology, and primatology. Primatology is the scientific study of primates, both living and extinct. Since we ourselves are primates it is natural that we should understand how they communicate and interact with their young. It could help us gain insight into why we act the way we do with our off spring. Our bones can tell us a lot about ourselves; even a simple measurement can be essential for identifying stature and growth patterns. These studies of osteology can help us better determine the health of the bone structure in infants. Something as simple and easy as measuring a forearm and help prevent a life threatening illness from causing a young one’s death before any symptoms become apparent.
Anthropology is broadly defined as the study of humans. In it we learn all about how we have changed culturally, linguistically, historically, and physically over time. Like in any of the sciences however, the ideas, thoughts, and practices used in anthropology have change drastically over time. These changes were caused when anthropologist at the time realized that the way that they were doing things were wrong. They also realized that these errors that they were making were creating some issues over time. So in order to prevent future anthropologist from thinking like Morgan did during his time in the present time, they changed their ways. Some of the biggest changes happened post-World War II. The five theorists that helped aid in this change
Anthropology is the study of humans through the ages. It aims to understand different cultures and practices that have existed from the origins of mankind as well. It differs from sociology in that it takes into account humans and cultures that no longer exist.
In Anthropology, as the word implies, you see the physical, social, material, and cultural developments of human beings who have risen above their "place," after having been born black in the South.
Physical anthropology delineated from the nineteenth-century naturalists and natural historians. The naturalists, although rooted in religious beliefs and explanations of the world, were the pioneers of evolutionary science because they began to look for explanations that were not found in religious texts. They explored the natural world. In today’s world, physical anthropologists focus on human variation in order to determine what factors into the physical and genetic variation of humans. Because the human anatomy is a large part of our biological makeup, some physical anthropologists specialize in just studying the human anatomy and physical anthropology is a good basis for other career choices s...
Perhaps the most ubiquitous subset in anthropology is the socio-cultural subfield of sociocultural anthropology. This branch analyzes social patterns and customs across cultures. Focusing in particular on how people from different cultures live and their respective societal organization. Sociocultural anthropologists observe societies as a whole entity but break it down into smaller subsections including nationality, race, sexuality, gender and class then look at how these sections work in conjunction to create the entire society. These are the anthropologists which come to my mind when I conjure up a mental image of anthropology, the researcher who “goes-native” immersing themself into a society to gain firsthand knowledge of a distant culture. They learn how a society handles their everyday problems and what is of importance. Some of the areas which this branch of anthropology is concerned with are health, education, agriculture and work.
Peoples, James, and Garrick Bailey. Humanity: An Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. 9th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2003. Print.
It analyzes similarities and differences in various cultures and societies. Culture is learned and affects our perception of the world throughout our life. Overtime, a sense of cultural superiority is formed amongst individuals who are constantly exposed to their own culture. Anthropology can help eliminate culturally based biases, also known as ethnocentrism. It is a common practice we all in engage in when evaluating other cultures, however, by practicing anthropology this allows us to learn about other cultures by placing themselves into the cultural environment allows us to learn the traditions and customs by experience. Marjorie Shostak`s study of the !Kung people revealed that they organized themselves differently than Western cultures, which included solving conflicts with discussion, communal behavior, and basic living traditions. Moreover, by interviewing and living in this cultural environment, Shostak was able to empathize with the !Kung people and she also considered that all humans share an emotional life, which is important when studying the history of our human
...a much easier and more accurate approach to studying humans. By using quantifiable measures you can put a number on whatever you are studying rather than a vague guess, people want exact numbers and details. Anthropology is and will always be seen as a hard science.
When trying to figure out what the field of applied anthropology is Sillitoe says that there is still some debate as to what the meaning of applied anthropology is and since anthropology is such a huge field and is considered to be the ‘study of humankind’, there is a threat that it could possibly too big and possibly collapsing on itself or how Sillitoe says, “such a broad church that there is a danger the walls are now too far apart and the roof falling in” (Sillitoe 2007). With such a big topic, there’s discussions as to how to define applied anthropology without able to agree on a single definition because it is “a very odd subject”, “hard to say what it is the study of”, and “it is not at all clear what you have to do to study it” as well
Cultural anthropology known as the comparative study of human societies and cultures and their development. Cultural anthropology is also known as the study of human cultures, their beliefs, practices, values, ideas, technologies, economies and other domains of social and cognitive organization. Cultural anthropology studies how human cultures are shaped or shape the world around them and it focus a lot on the differences between every person. Human societies has been culturally involved throughout generations because of human development and advanced. The goal of a cultural anthropology is to teach us about another culture by collecting data about how the world economy and political practices effect the new culture that is being studied. However, cultural anthropology has gave us a understanding of world affairs and world problems, the way to interpret the meaning of social actions by putting them in as much context as possible, and a deeper insight of humankind-at all times, in all places and of yourself as part of a culture.
Anthropology encompasses four main aspects in the field: archaeology, linguistics, physical anthropology, and cultural anthropology. All four areas must collect data and find a way to interpret the data collected. Data is then interpreted with the use of theories. The data would be useless to any anthropologist without any meaning. Theory helps an anthropologist choose what data to collect and how to interpret the results. Authors McGee and Warms assert that theory “helps us think about who and what we are as human beings,” (2). Basic understanding of different anthropological theories enlightens anthropologist about different cultures by attempting to understand and learn from each other. Overtime some theories have been disregarded due to
Since humans have come together, there has been culture, and while we continue to live there will continue to be culture. Culture is a thing that we as humans all have in common, but our culture is also what keeps us apart. Anthropology is the study of humans, how we work, what are our rituals, the study of our past. The anthropological perspective is how one must look at culture or at another society to observe it without bias and without judgement. There are four important parts to observing through the anthropological perspective the first being the concept of culture, holistic perspective, comparative perspective, and culture relativism. Through the study of cultural anthropology one, will understand how societies as people are the same and how they are different. The same things that make societies different make them the same. It is also important to understand why and how societies work. The anthological perspective is an important part of viewing cultures.