Tippetts 1

Tiana Tippetts
John Gauthier
ANTH-1010-034
May 5, 2014
Ive learned a lot about how other cultures live. I was surprised as to how much I learned
and how shocked I was by what I learned. To be an anthropologist, you need to be completely
impartial. It would be hard for me not to become emotionally attached or base my findings off of
my own beliefs, especially if there were ethical situations at hand. Anthropologists have difficult
decisions to make when documenting their findings. There is a fine line between sharing too
much and sharing not enough.
This class has opened my mind and I believe that will make me a better person. I
sometimes feel so sheltered and closed minded about the rest of the world and dwell too much on
my own life and sometimes on my misfortunes. I think that because I took this class, Im able to
take a step back and put my life in the perspective of the whole realm of things.
I will have more respect and compassion for other cultures because of this class.
Although some of the cases we studied were extreme, it was nice to learn more and have a
deeper understanding of different cultures and different ways of life. The culture that stuck out
to me the most, were the Baka. It was nice to see a foraging community who didnt live like
savages, which is what I thought they lived like before I took this class. They had loving
families, they took care of each other, they were in tune with the earth and their surroundings,
and they played games and sang and danced. I appreciate their culture and am glad to have a
more open mind about how they live their lives.
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As far as how this will influence my plans in my career, I cant say it will have much of
an influence. I plan of being a graphic designer, which doesnt entail much as far as working
with diverse cultures, however, I do hope I will be able to take what I learn to be a more open-
minded person. I dont regret taking this class. I only wish I would have been able to see the
film A Man Called Bee.