Lesson 2.

Anthropology
HSP3U
MS. BAEZ
 Outline the key ideas of the major

Learning anthropological schools of thought

Goals Summarize and compare major theories,

perspectives, and research methods in
anthropology
 9:00 - 10:00: Cultural Anthro &
Ethnography

Agenda 10:10 - 11:00 : Archaeology & Linguistic

Anthropology

11:00-11:45: Schools of Thought

 Key Words
ethnology kinship

participant observation ethnography

subjective objective

reflexivity ethnocentric
Anthropology
• Anthropology is ____the scientific study of the origin, the behaviour,
and the physical, social, and cultural____ development of humans.

• Anthropologists seek to understand what makes us human by studying

human ancestors, and observing living cultures throughout the world.
 Anthropolog
y
Cultural Physical
Anthropology Anthropology
 Cultural
Anthropology
• What aspects of culture can you see?
• In what ways are people’s beliefs, behaviours, and attitudes/ evident?
 What is Canadian
culture?
Add images and words that represent Canadian culture in the following
Jamboard:

What is Canadian Culture? Jamboard

Cultural Anthropology
• Cultural anthropologists are anthropologists who study both past and
present cultures.

Questions cultural anthropologists ask:

• Why is there social and political inequality?
• __How does language affect and express culture___________
• What can we learn about culture from what the people left behind?
 Cultural Anthropology
Fields

Ethnology Linguistic Archaeology

Anthropology
Ethnology
• Ethnology is the study of ___the origins and cultures of different races and
peoples________.
• Ethnologists are concerned with topics such as marriage customs, ___kinship
patterns___, political and economic systems, religion, art, music, and
____technology____.
• _Participant observation__is the main method of study that ethnologists use to gather
information about cultures.
• Ethnologists _immerse themselves_ in a culture for months or years and take
meticulous notes.
Kinship
Problems with participant observation

• Participant observation can be highly ___subjective___, which, means that a

researcher’s ____point of view____and ___cultural background__ can shape his or her
conclusions.
• Researchers should use ___objective___data (i.e., counting populations, mapping, and
semi-structured interviews), along with notes from their participant observation.
• It is also important for researchers to use ___reflexivity___, the practice of reflecting
on their own world view, __biases__, and impact on the culture they are studying.
Margaret Mead vs. Derek Freeman

• Margaret Mead is one of anthropology’s most

influential and controversial figures.
• Best known for her study on Samoan adolescent girls,
Mead was interested in examining whether stresses
during adolescence were caused by adolescence itself or
by society.
• Mead conducted participant observation and interviews
during nine months between 1925 and 1926.
Margaret Mead vs. Derek Freeman

• Mead observed that in contract to American adolescent

girls, adolescence was stress free time for Samoan girls.
Mead concluded that sex roles were determined by
culture not biology.

• Derek Freemam, which began to study Samoan culture in

the 1960s, criticized Mead’s work.

• Based on his research, he found that Samoa actually had

restrictive sexual practices and felt that Mead was tricked
by her informants, who were highly embarassed by the
intensely personal questions of a foreigner.
Class Discussion

Why was Mead a controversial figure?

How did Mead and Freeman come to different conclusions using participant
observation?

What are some of the ethical issues of studying the culture of an enemy during
wartime?
Archaeology
• Archaeologists study _the physical remains of past cultures_through excavation and
reconstruction.
• Some archeologists study cultures with no written record (prehistoric_ or study sites that
have a recorded history to supplement their understanding.
Linguistic Anthropology
Linguistic anthropologists study the history and structure of language,
and the ways human use language.

Historical Linguistics
• Historical linguistic anthropologists compare the similarities and
differences of ___language structures___ so they can understand
how people migrated in the past.
Structural Linguistics
• Naom Chomsky is known as the father of modern structural
linguistics.
• Studied how sounds are put together to make meaning.
• All human children are born with internal, universal rules for
grammar and that __________________.
Linguistic Anthropology
Sociolinguistics
• Sociolinguistics is the study of __how people use language____ within their culture
to ___express status and context___. (i.e. you would probably use language
differently to talk to your teacher vs. your friends)
• Sociolinguistics study not only spoken language, but also ____body language_.
Discussion Board in groups

How do you think road signs or reclaiming names like in

the videos would help the cultural revival or survival of
Black and Indigenous peoples?
 Schools of Thought in
Cultural Anthropology

Cultural Functional Cultural

Relativism Theory Materialism
 • Franz Boas promoted the idea of cultural
relativism, stating than an anthropologist
Cultural Relativism cannot compare two cultures because each
culture has their own ___internal rules___
that must be accepted.

• Example: If you were born and raised in the

US, you might view Canada differently than
if you were born and raised in Canada.

• Cultural relativism was a response to

cultural evolutionalism which assumed an
__ethnocentric____ view that 19th century
European culture was superior to all others.

Franz Boas
 Functional Theory
• Functional theory is that idea that every
belief, action, or relationship in a
culture functions __to meet the needs of
individuals ___.
• Functional theory stresses the
importance of _interdependence_
among all thing within a social system
for long term survival.

Bronislaw Malinowski
 Cultural
Materialism • Cultural materialism state that __materials
or conditions within the environment__ (i.e.
climate, food, supply) influence how culture
develops, creating the idea and ideology of
culture
• Believes that society develops on a trial-
error basis
• If something is not of value to a society’s
ability to produce or reproduce, then __it
will disappear___.
Marvin Harris (1960s)
Exit Ticket
3 things you learned...
2 things you reflect on...
1 thing you wonder...
Questions?
Thank
You!