Anthropological Self
Anthropology
● The word is from two Greek terms:
● Anthropos: “man” or by extension
“human”
● Logos: “study of ” or “science of ”
Quite literally, anthropology is the study of
humanity. It is the study of everything and
anything that makes us human.
Anthropology is a study of all aspects of
the human condition. This includes human history,
the present human condition, and even the future
possibilities. It also examines the biology,
interactions in society, language and especially
culture (Kottak, 2009)
Anthropology explores the
interconnectedness and interdependence of
human cultural experiences in all places and
ages.
How does anthropology explain human
nature?
● What is the anthropological concept of
the self ?
The self is both a biological and a cultural
entity. The traditional anthropological
understanding of the self is that the self is an
animal specie which underwent the process of
biological evolution and has shared
characteristics with other living animals, the
hominids, in particular.
a. Physical Aspect (self as the only animal
with a larger brain capacity making
him/her a rational animal; the only animal
that can stand straight allowing him/her to
have better mobility in doing
b. Social Aspect (self uses language and
symbol in dynamic, complicated and yet
systematic manner allowing him/her to
communicate, and preserve history,
knowledge, culture, etc
Two important concepts in Anthropology
● Culture
is traditionally defined as systems of human
behavior and thought. This covers all customs,
traditions and capabilities of humans as they
function in society symbolic & learned
● Enculturation
is the transmission of culture from one generation
to the next. Unlike biological hereditary
transmission, cultural transmission is done
through observation, use of language, adaptation
to environment, rituals, and formal and informal
education.
The Self and Person in Contemporary
Anthropology
Anthropologists even suggest that the
genes of the person living in a particular
community are already a necessary component
for the enculturation of the person. In the same
way. Environmental exposure is also a vital
component in the creation of the cultural self.
Some anthropologists claim that
environmental exposure starts soon after birth.
However, contemporary
anthropologists suggest that the environmental
exposure starts during conception.
The child inside the mother's womb
already hears the language, tastes the food and
feels the mother's emotions. These experiences
then are solidified as soon as the child is born.
Self-awareness
● Anthropology defines self-awareness as
"that which permits one to assume
responsibility for one's own conduct, to
learn how to react to others, and to
assume a variety of roles"
Self and Behavioral Environment
● In order to strengthen the identity of the
self, one must be able to grasp the
different behavioral orientations. These
are concepts that will help situate the self
in different behavioral conditions.
The four environmental orientations
1. Object orientation- positions the self in
relation to the surrounding objects. The
self should be able to act responsively to
the cultural objects around.
2. Spatial orientation- provides the self with
personal space in relation to other people
or things.
3. Temporal orientation- endows the self
with the sense of time. Time is truly
relevant to cultural communities.
 4. Normative orientation- provides the self (3) self-reflexive of the uniqueness and
with the grasp of accepted norms in the differences of all other selves and everything else
community. Being on time is a generally around.
accepted norm in communal activities

The Self embedded in culture

The self –concept is an organized
collection of beliefs about the self. The
self-concept entails your beliefs about your
personality, those things that come to mind when
you think about yourself. These beliefs, also
called self-schemas, shape social perception.
These are developed from “past experience”,
and are concerned with your personality traits,
abilities and physical features, values, goals,
and social roles

Actual Self
- includes all the feelings, thoughts,
experiences, biological and psychological
constitutions, language and memory

The claim of the self as embedded in

culture can only be embraced when the self
recognizes its relation to everything else. The
complexity of cultural identities of peoples, things,
and events shall be recognized and respected by
the self.The individual self must remain reflective
of the similarities and unique differences of
everything around it. This shows that the self
should not maintain the individualistic,
independent and autonomous entity but that the
self should be able to maintain his or her solid
culturally reflexive identity in relation to
everything and everyone else.

In conclusion, Anthropology liberates the

self from the fallacies of dominant ideas. In this
most liberating science, the self is no longer seen
as an entity with innate ideas, ready to face the
world, and as if programmed to respond to the
demands of time

Likewise, the self is not seen as a "blank

slate" ready to encode all the details of everyday
experiences, so that it becomes limited only to
what is written on that slate

The self is recognized as:

(1)biologically attuned to respond to his or her
environment,
(2) variably self-aware of the mechanisms of the
elements of culture working within the self, and