WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY EXPLORING THE FOUR FIELDS OF

WHAT IS ANTHROPOLOGY? EXPLORING THE FOUR FIELDS OF ANTHROPOLOGY Introductory Lecture Anthropology 100: Survey of Anthropology

LEARNING OBJECTIVES 1. Develop an understanding of anthropology and how the subfields of anthropology interrelate 2. Develop an understanding for the importance of anthropology in today’s world 3. Practice thinking like an anthropologist

ANTHROPOLOGY anthro = human ology = the study of Study of the past and present biological and cultural variation within the human species

ANTHROPOLOGY Major question addressed within anthropology: What Does It Mean To Be Human?

DISTINCTIVE WAY OF STUDYING HUMANS Unique Perspective of What Does It Mean to Be Human: 1. Holistic Emphasizes the functional relation between parts and Past the whole Language Genetics Culture Present Holism= Integration Anatomy

DISTINCTIVE WAY OF STUDYING HUMANS Unique Perspective of What Does It Mean to Be Human: 2. Comparative Compare patterns of variation Biologically and Culturally Consideration of similarities & differences Skeletal Features Left: Chimpanzee; Right: Modern Human Coming of Age Ceremonies Left: Korean; Right: Maasi (Kenya)

DISTINCTIVE WAY OF STUDYING HUMANS Unique Perspective of What Does It Mean to Be Human: 3. Field-based Data collection; direct contact Linguistic Anthropology Project on Beaver Language Archaeology in the Middle East Primatology: Baboon Dominance Calls Cultural Anthropology Mursi women in Ethiopia

DISTINCTIVE WAY OF STUDYING HUMANS Unique Perspective of What Does It Mean to Be Human: 4. Evolutionary Observations placed in temporal framework Consider change over time Evolution Humans Primates

CONCEPT OF CULTURE What is culture? Set of learned behavior and ideas that humans beings acquire as members of a society Humans are biocultural organisms Environment Triangle of Adaptation Biological and cultural factor influence the world around us Biology Culture

ANTHROPOLOGY: CROSS-DISCIPLINARY DISCIPLINE Spans the social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities Diversity with the discipline : 4 subfields Biological (Physical) Anthropology Cultural Anthropology Linguistic Anthropology Archaeology Holistic Applied Anthropology

FIGURE 1. 1 THE SUBFIELDS OF ANTHROPOLOGY Copyright © 2008 by Robert H. Lavenda and Emily A. Schultz.

BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY Human beings as biological organisms Aims to discover what characteristics make humans different from other organisms and what characteristics they share Paleoanthropology Attention focused on patterns of variation & adaptation Dental Anthropology & Bioarchaeology Primatology

Lesion on a rib with M tuberculosis DNA BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY Research – What Can It Tell Us? • Allocation of energy – breastfeeding, health & disease, primates • Skeletal anatomy – disease, stress, activity patterns, trauma, forensic anthropology • Susceptibility to disease – access to resources, lower immunity, genetics

BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY Research – What Can It Tell Us?

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY Variation in beliefs and behaviors of members of different human groups Shaped by sets of learned behaviors and ideas that human beings acquire as members of society Study all human societies Urban & Rural, Developed & Developing, Western & Non- Western Conduct fieldwork: Participant observation & Ethnography

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY Research – What Can It Tell Us? • Social organization – comparison of different forms of human social life, kinship patterns, social groupings • Cultural conflict – war, ethnicity, politics, aftermath of conflict • Subsistence patterns – strategies, land ownership,

CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY

LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY Study of human language Language: system of arbitrary vocal symbols used to encode one’s experience of the world and of others Broader cultural, historical and/or biological contexts

LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY

LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY Research – What Can It Tell Us? • Multi-lingualism – usage of language, circumstances, education • Language socialization – children, new language, crosscultural studies • Power and Control – linguistic dimensions

LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY

ARCHAEOLOGY Study of past societies and their cultures, especially the material remains of the past Examine evidence of past human cultural activity Artifacts Garbage heaps Postholes Settlement patterns Plant pollen Amber Beads from Stonehenge Excavation Sigatoka Valley, Fiji

ARCHAEOLOGY Research – What Can It Tell Us? • Human-Environmental Interactions – use of the environment, climate change, paleoclimates • Garage heaps – past and contemporary; consumption patterns • Agricultural production – emergence of the first agricultural complexes

ARCHAEOLOGY Research – What Can It Tell Us?

IN-CLASS ACTIVITY Four-Field Approach Worksheet In this activity, students will: Describe the distinguishing features of anthropology Identify the four subfields of anthropology We will do one example as a class The other two examples will be worked on in small-groups. Be prepared to share your responses with the class.

Linguistic Anthropology Language use in trading and business Differences in languages among SES Archaeology Cultural Anthropology Local and regional spheres Local / regional trade of interaction Globalization Economics Labor distribution Development & effects on Subsistence traditional societies Subsistence regime Biological Anthropology Health consequences (skeletal & living populations) Non-human primate societies

ANTHROPOLOGY - SUMMARY Anthropology is devoted to the broad, “holistic” study of humankind, to the understanding and explanation of human beings in all of their diverse aspects at all times and places