Anthropological Perspective of the Self

Anthropology
The self and the person in contemporary Anthropology
I. Anthropology and Its Subdisciplines
The academic discipline of anthropology, or “four field” anthropology, studies human
species and its immediate ancestors include four main sub disciplines or subfields -
sociocultural, archeological, biological and linguistic anthropology. Each sub discipline
studies adaptation, the process which organism cope with the environmental. Anthropology
is a systematic exploration of human biological and cultural diversity.
The Subdisciplines of Anthropology
1. Cultural Anthropology
Cultural anthropology is the study of human society and culture which describes, analyzes,
interprets and explains social and cultural similarities and differences. It explores the
diversity of the present and the past. Ethnography and Ethnology are two different activities
which can study and cultural diversity.

Ethnography
Ethnology
(based on field work)
(Based on cross-cultural comparison)

Ethnography requires fieldwork to collect data, often descriptive and specific to group.
Ethnology uses data collected by a series of researches, usually synthetic and comparative.

2. Archeological Anthropology
Archeological Anthropology reconstructs, describes and interprets human behavior and
cultural patterns through material remains. These materials remain such as plant, animal
and ancient garbage provides stories about utilization and actions.
3. Biological, or Physical Anthropology
Biological, or Physical Anthropology focuses on these special interest, human evolution as
revealed by the fossil, human genetics, human growth and development, human biological
plasticity and the biology, evolution, behavior and social life of monkeys, apes and other
nonhuman primates.
4. Linguistic Anthropology
Linguistic anthropology studies language in its social and cultural context across space and
over time. Universal features of language are analyzed and associations between language
and culture are evaluated. It also studies how speech changes in social situations and over
time.
The Self Embedded in the Culture
Culture refers to customary behavior and beliefs that are passed on through enculturation
(kottak, 2008), wherein enculturation is the social process which culture is learned and
transmitted.
Culture is a social process that is learned and passes from generation to generation to the
next. Culture depends on images, which have a specific significance and incentive for
individuals who share a culture. Cultural traditions take regular marvels, including organic
desires, and transforming them specifically headings. Everybody is cultured. Social orders
are coordinated and designed through predominant monetary powers, social examples, key
images and core values. Cultural mean of adjustment has been urgent in human evolution.
Cultures obliged people, yet the activities of the people can change cultures

Shared
Adaptive and
Symbolic
Maladaptive

Encompassing
Culture
Natural

Integrated Learned
Culture defined: Culture is shared, symbolic, natural, learned, integrated, encompassing and
adaptive and maladaptive.
Csordas (1999) elaborated that the human body is not essential for anthropological study
but the paradigm of embodiment can be explored in the understanding culture. The body is
not an object to be studied in relation to culture, but is to be considered as the subject of
culture, or in other words as the existential ground of culture. On the other hand, Geertz
(1973) described culture as “ a system of inherited conceptions expressed in symbolic forms
by means of which men communicate, perpetuate, and develop their knowledge about and
attitude towards life.”
The interpretation of the symbols in each culture is essential which gives meaning to one’s
action. Each culture has its own symbols and has its own meaning, one must need to
comprehend those meanings keeping in mind the end goal to understand the culture. One
must disconnect, the components of culture, discover the relationship among those
components, and portray the entire framework in some broad way.
Anthropologists believe that your concept of the Self or personal identity is a product of
your culture. There are four terms you need to remember here: (1) enculturation, (2)
collective identity, (3) personal identity, and (4) acculturation.

Enculturation
Enculturation refers to the internalizing and the subjective process of adopting a
transmitted culture from a generation to the next (Laird & Tedam, 2019, p. 10). The
moment you are born, you already have a culture you inherited from your parents. Growing
up, you developed habits and beliefs based on the customs and traditions of your barangay
or town. The ways you speak, move, and construct your thoughts are partly because of the
local community where you belong.
For example, if you were born in Cebu City, most likely you will speak Cebuano as your
mother tongue. Whereas, if you are from Tacloban City, most likely you will talk in Waray. It
is the same thing with those Chavacano speakers in Zamboanga, the Hiligaynon in Panay,
the Bicolanos in Region V, and so on. The first language you speak depends on where and
who you are during your early years of childhood. Your mother tongue is a product of
enculturation.

Collective Identity
Collective Identity refers to connecting to the patterns of behavior observed in a cultural
group (Polletta & Jasper, 2001). For example, some foreigners say that OFWs are very
hardworking. “Being hardworking” now is part of being an “OFW”. If you are Filipino
working abroad, you must strive hard to impress your foreign boss because you want to fit
into this “hardworking OFW” collective identity.
Notice that in the activity “Taga ____ ka kon ____“ you think of something that most people
from your town also do. You get the impression that you are very much alike with the people
in your locality. The things that you and the people in your village do in common are part of
what anthropologists call collective Identity

Personal Identity
Personal Identity when you reach the point of self-awareness in the enculturation process
(Haviland, 1996). In other words, finding your personal identity means “building of the Self”
based on “how same you are or how different you are with the people around you.”
For example, you are from Bohol, and your place is famous for the delicacy, kalamay, but it
does mean that you are fond of eating it. However, people who are not from Bohol might be
shocked if they find out that you don’t eat kalamay. “Kay abi diay taga-Bohol, mukaon
dayon og kalamay?”, you might say.
In finding your personal identity, you need to also find out how unique you are despite your
native culture or nationality. Therefore, the concept of personal identity in anthropology
goes beyond enculturation. Culture may change over time, especially when you transfer to a
different place or link with different people from a different culture.

Acculturation
Acculturation is acquiring cultural practices when you meet a different culture aside from
the culture where you grow up (Seremetakis, 2017). Concerning this subject, it is your
“personal journey across cultures” (Berry, 2019). Throughout your life, you will encounter
different cultures when you travel, work, or migrate to another place. As you meet different
communities, you will experience exciting phenomena called culture shock and reverse
culture shock.
 cultural baggage
 culture shock
 assimilation
 reverse culture shock

Conclusion
Anthropology sheds light on understanding the Self through an evaluation of culture. As
what I understand, the more culture ourselves encounter in life the more we can experience
a change in ourselves.