THE NATURE OF ANTHROPOLOGY

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What is Anthropology?

What Do Anthropologists Do?

How Do Anthropologists Do What They Do?

 

The Development of Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humankind in all times and places

Anthropologists are from many different societies

 

Frank Hamilton Cushing

(1857-1900)

A pioneer ethnologist whose work at Zuni Pueblo made him one of the most important white observers of Native American culture in the nineteenth century, Frank Hamilton Cushing was, in his methods and thinking, a forerunner of anthropologists in our own century.

 

Matilda Coxe Evans Stevenson

1849 - 1915   

 A pioneer in American ethnology, Matilda Coxe Evans Stevenson was the first woman to work in the American Southwest. 

 

Anthropology and the Other Sciences

Anthropologists share their objectives with the other social and natural sciences,

 

The Discipline of Anthropology

Physical (biological) Anthropology

Cultural Anthropology

 

Physical Anthropology

   The systematic study of humans as biological organisms

Anthropology Applied

The identification of human skeleton remains for legal purposes

Forensic Anthropology at CSU, Chico

Forensic anthropology is the application of the science of physical anthropology to the legal process. The identification of skeletal, badly decomposed, or otherwise unidentified human remains is important for both legal and humanitarian reasons.

 

Cultural Anthropology

Focusing on human behavior

Avoiding culture bound theories

 

Cultural Anthropology

Three major divisions:

Archaeology

The study of material remains, usually from the past, to describe and explain human behavior

NCPA

The Northridge Center for Public Archaeology has existed for 18 years at the California State University, Northridge

Linguistic Anthropology

The study of human language

Ethnology

Comparative study of culture

Participant Observation

      Technique of learning a people’s culture through direct participation in their everyday life for an extended period

 

Original Study

Environmentalism in Costa Rica

Author: Luis A. Vivanco

 

 Anthropology and Science

   Anthropology involves the careful and systematic study of humankind using:

Facts

Hypotheses

Theories

 

Difficulties of the Scientific Approach

Motivation to prove one’s own hypothesis

Dangers of culture bound hypotheses

Restrictions upon replication

Comparison in Anthropology

 

Causes of cultural phenomena

Testing hypotheses

HRAF - Human Relations Area Files

http://libproxy.csun.edu:2090/e/ehraf/

George Peter Murdock

 

Anthropology and the Humanities

Concern with other cultures’ languages, values, and achievements in the arts and literature

Commitment to experiencing other cultures

Emphasis on qualitative research

 

Questions of Ethics

Do no harm to:

those studied

those funding research 

those in the profession

 

Anthropology and Contemporary Life

Anthropology provides the basic skills  for survival in the modern world

 

End of Chapter 1