CA (S14)--Lecture Notes (to Date)(3

Carpenter MISS/SOCI 3613 Spring 2014

LECTURE NOTES (through 1/30/2014)

FAMILY AND MARRIAGE (1/30/2014)

(Reading: Kottak, Ch. 7, 133-159)

I. Introduction to family and marriage

A.Cultural anthropologist Paul G. Hiebert points out that two types of paired or “dyadic” relationships constitute the bedrock of all other family and kinship relations: namely, “‘marriage’ between husband and wife and ‘biological descent’ of child from parent” (Hiebert, Cultural Anthropology, 196).

B.Diverse perspectives prevail in different societies regarding extended families and how distinct relationship links within those extended families are prioritized; many aspects of marriage that Westerners tend to assume are universal turn out not to be universal at all.

Widely quoted definition of marriage from the Royal Anthropological Institute’s Notes and Queries on Anthropology: “Marriage is a union between a man and a woman such that the children born to the woman are recognized as legitimate offspring of both partners” (Kottak, Mirror, 144).

C.Conrad Kottak draws a distinction between the “family of orientation” (birth family) and “family of procreation” (family comprising spouse and children) (Kottak, Mirror, 136).

D.Different cultures impose certain restrictions on marriage relationships.

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1. Most cultures have an incest taboo that forbids sexual relations between certain close relatives, such as parents and children, brothers and sisters, and certain degrees of cousins (Kottak, Mirror, 145).

2. Exogamous rules enforce the principle of “outmarriage” by prohibiting marriage between members of the same family or kin group, thereby fostering marriage alliances as a result of intermarriage between members of different kinship groups (Kottak, Mirror, 145).

3. Endogamous rules enforce the principle of “inmarriage” by requiring that marriage be limited to two members of the same group or caste, with severe penalties for violations (Kottak, Mirror, 147).

II. Spousal relations

A.Cultures vary widely insofar as how many spouses an individual is allowed to have.

1. Monogamy is a situation in which each individual has only one spouse at a time. a. Relatively few of the world’s societies are

characterized by monogamous marriages. b. A common situation in many Western societies is

called serial monogamy: individuals undergo several divorces and remarriages over the course of their lifetime, but only have one legal spouse at any given time.

2. Any type of marriage in which either one of the spouses has more than one spouse at a time is called polygamy, which literally means “plural spouses” (Kottak, Mirror, 154-157).

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a. Polygyny is the term for a marriage relationship in which a husband has more than one wife at a time; in societies where this is permitted, generally only wealthier men can afford to have more than one wife.

b. Polyandry is the term for a marriage relationship in which a wife has more than one husband at a time; this is a much rarer phenomenon than polygyny and is not usually the predominant form of marriage in a society.

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POLITICAL SYSTEMS (1/28/2014)

Reading: Kottak, Mirror, Ch. 6, pp. 108-132

I. Varieties of political systems among world cultures

A. Conrad Kottak observes that the anthropologists’ perspective on political systems differs considerably from that of political scientists’ in that anthropologists maintain a global perspective and pay comparatively greater attention to nonstates.

B.Elman Service’s four-part sociopolitical typology — bands, tribes, chiefdoms, states — is widely accepted among anthropologists, even though the first three no longer exist in any pure form but, instead, function within the sphere of authority of states (Kottak, Mirror, 109).

C. Bands, which comprise small kinship groups living together and cooperating economically, tend to be made up of foragers — high seasonal mobility, no governmental structure (Kottak, Mirror, 110).

D.Tribes function in horticultural and pastoral societies, being organized into kinship groups with no formal governmental structure (Kottak, Mirror, 110).1. A male village head’s authority is quite limited; he

cannot issue orders so must lead by example, persuasion, and generosity (Kottak, Mirror, 110).

2. A “Big Man” exercises regional authority through ties with supporters in several villages (Kottak, Mirror, 115).

E. Chiefdoms are similar to tribes, except that they feature differential access to resources (that is, some people have greater access to valuable and useful resources than others do) and a permanent governmental structure, with

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chiefs being selected on the basis of ascribed status (Kottak, Mirror, 121).

F. States possess formal governmental structure and socioeconomic stratification (Kottak, Mirror, 110, 120).

Robert Carneiro’s definition of a state (1970): “an autonomous political unity encompassing many communities within its territory, having a centralized government with the power to collect taxes, draft men for work or war, and decree and enforce laws” (Kottak, Mirror, 119).

II. Various sociopolitical dynamics

A. Status refers to any social position (Kottak, Mirror, 115-116).

1. Ascribed status is an automatic consequence of one’s station in life, beyond the person’s control, such as parents’ social status.

2. Achieved status is not at all automatic but results from choices, actions, circumstances, and accomplishments; it can be either positive or negative.

3. The popular British TV drama series Downton Abbey portrays a rigid stratification between the elites and the servants — both groups reflecting ascribed status, with virtually no opportunity for members of the inferior group to attain the status of the superior group.

B.Norms differ from laws (Kottak, Mirror, 112-113).

1. “Norms are cultural standards or guidelines that enable individuals to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable behavior in a given society.”

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2. Laws entail legal codes with trials and enforcement.

C. Common systems within states (Kottak, Mirror, 124)

1. Population control (fixing boundaries, determining criteria for citizenship, conducting censuses)

2. Judiciary (laws, legal procedures, judges)

3. Enforcement (police and military)

CULTURE AND COMMUNICATION:VERBAL AND NONVERBAL (1/21/2014)

(Reading: Kottak, Mirror, Ch. 4, 58-82; Gudykunst, “Exchanging Messages with Strangers,” 169-191)

I. Some distinctive properties of human language (Kottak, Mirror, 61-62, and Gudykunst, 170)

A. A language’s multimedia potential means that messages can be transmitted by means of speaking and writing but also via sign language and touch.

B.The discreteness of a language permits the combining of individual sounds and/or visual symbols (letters or characters) to form words.

C.Arbitrariness means that words are symbols; generally there is little innate connection between the sound and the meaning.

D.Productivity allows a communicator to work with a finite number of words to form an infinite number of new expressions or sentences that can be understood by a receptor.

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E. Displacement makes it possible to communicate about objects, people, and/or events that are remote in time or distance or even imaginary (Kottak, Mirror, 63).

F. Gudykunst identifies three distinct functions of language: informative, expressive, directive.

G. The contrast between high-context and low-context communication gets reflected in language (Gudykunst, 180).

1. “High-context communication can be characterized as being indirect, ambiguous, and understated with speakers being reserved and sensitive to listeners.”

2. “Low-context communication, in contrast, can be characterized as being direct, explicit, open, precise, and being consistent with one’s feelings.”

II. The relationship between language and culture

A.Sociolinguistics is the study of the relationships between social and linguistic variation (Kottak, Mirror, 72).

B.Such factors as region, class, and ethnicity give rise to dialects (variations in the grammar and in the pronunciation of a given language) in many cultures (Kottak, Mirror, 72).

1. Pidgin languages form under circumstances of acculturation and can eventually evolve into full-fledged Creole languages with systematic grammatical rules and native speakers (Kottak, Mirror, 67).

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2. “Culture shifts” is a term that designates the common practice of adapting one’s speech to distinct social and cultural contexts.

3. Diglossia is a phenomenon in certain cultures (such as in China and Germanic-speaking Europe) wherein people switch back and forth between two or more dialects (like “high” and “low” German) depending on the circumstances.

D.A focal vocabulary is a specialized sets of terms and distinctions that are particularly important to particular groups, such as an ethnic group, a profession, etcetera (common examples: Eskimo vocabulary for snow, Arab lexicon for camels).

III. Nonverbal Communication (NVC) as distinct from Verbal Communication (VC)

A.NVC is less subject to conscious control than VC is, partly because NVC occurs on several registers or levels at once while VC only occurs on one level at a time.

B. Kinesics is the study of ways in which body movement and position affect the communication process, as in such “body language” as posture, gestures, stance, and facial expressions (Kottak, Mirror, 63).

C.Oculesics is the study of how different types of interpersonal eye contact affect the communication process by conveying varying implications of honesty, forthrightness, impudence, brazenness, disrespect, etc. — all of which can vary by culture (Gudykunst, 189).

D.Proxemics is the study of how interpersonal space affects the communication process, as in zones of

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communication (intimate, personal, social, public), contact, touching, etcetera (Gudykunst, 187-188).

E. Paralanguage encompasses the role played by various voice cues and vocal characteristics in interpersonal communication, as in voice pitch, pace, intonation, clarity, accent, tremor, interjections, laughter, etcetera (Gudykunst, 173-175).

1. Silence can convey four different meanings in Japan: truthfulness, social discretion, embarrassment, and defiance.

2. Elaboration/animation: important usage of animation for emphasis in Arabic, French, and African-American cultures

F. Attire involves clothing’s role in interpersonal communication, as in formal versus informal, standards of modesty, folkloric aspects, etcetera.

UNDERSTANDING THE CONCEPT OF CULTURE (1/14/2014)

(Readings: Kottak, Mirror for Humanity, Ch. 2, 17-39; Hall, “The Power of Hidden Differences,” 53-67)

I. Introduction

A.A classic definition of culture from 19th-century British anthropologist Edward Tylor, cited by Conrad Kottak, is difficult to improve upon: “Culture…is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, arts, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society” (Tylor, 1871—cited in Kottak, Mirror, 23).

Compare Edward Hall’s definition: “Any culture is primarily a system for creating, sending, storing, and processing information” (Hall, 53).

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B.Culture relies heavily the human capacity to make use of symbols, which are entities that may be verbal or nonverbal, that come to represent something (Kottak, Mirror, 18).

1. Symbols are arbitrary; they have “no necessary or natural connection to the things they stand for or signify.”

2. Symbols are conventional — their effectiveness depends on recognition and acceptance by most people within a given society or even across cultures (prime example: red, green, and yellow components of traffic lights conveying identical meaning in cultures and societies around the world)

C.Culture is shared, which means that it is inherently a collective phenomenon that results in a distinctive cultural identity that uniquely characterizes a particular group, particularly insofar as its core values are concerned (Mirror, 19-21).

D. Culture is neither biologically nor genetically transmitted; instead, it is socially learned by means of socialization or enculturation, which is “the process by which a child [or even an adult] learns his or her culture (Mirror, 18); in other words, people acquire culture neither by means of inheritance nor by means of trial and error but through imitation, observation, communication, and inference.

E.Kottak observes that culture exists on several levels (Mirror, 36).

1. International (for example: internet culture, classical music, soccer/football, Olympic sports)

2. National (individual states or stateless peoples, such as the Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, and Iran)

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3. Subnational (distinctive ethnic or regional groups)

F. The technical term “ subcultures ” refers to “different symbol-based patterns and traditions associated with particular groups in the same complex society” (Kottak, Mirror, 31).

1. It reflects cultural variations that exist within a single society, based perhaps on region, ethnicity, religious affiliation, or occupation.

2. Some cultural anthropologists view the term “ subcultures ” as a potentially pejorative term, since the prefix “sub-” can connote “inferiority.”

II. Significant contrasts in cultural patterns

A.In his chapter “The Power of Hidden Differences,” Edward T. Hall focuses on how the subtle complexity of culture affects interaction between cultures (Hall, 54).

B. “We humans are guided by two forms of information, accessed in two entirely different ways: type A — manifest culture [also called “word culture”] — which is learned from words and numbers, and type B — tacit-acquired culture [also called “unconscious culture”] — which is not verbal but is highly situational and operates according to rules which are not in awareness, not learned in the usual sense but acquired in the process of growing up or simply being in different environments” (Hall, 54, 63).

D. Referring to “hidden differences,” Hall says “humans must take into account the existence of ‘out-of-awareness’ features of communication” (Hall, 58-59).

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1. “When interacting with each other, it should never be assumed that we ever achieve full awareness of all the implications of any communication” —particularly nonverbal communication.

2. “Culture hides much more than it reveals and...what it hides, it hides most effectively from its own participants.”

E. Hall points out a basic contrast between High-Context and Low-Context cultures (Hall, 61-62), which somewhat parallels the distinction that Sarah Lanier makes between “hot-climate cultures” and “cold-climate cultures” in her book Foreign to Familiar.

High Context Low Context

1. Context is equal in importance 1. The event itself is more to the event. important than the context.

2. Most of the information is 2. Most of the information is contained in the person doing contained in the coded the communicating. message.

3. The listener has primary 3. The speaker has primary

responsibility for communication. responsibility for communication.

4. Life is viewed holistically. 4. Life is viewed analytically.

F. This specific contrast regarding how context influences communication is actually a reflection of a broader intercultural difference that has been analyzed by many cultural anthropologists: namely, the contrast between individualistic cultures and collectivist, or group-oriented cultures (for example, see Patty Lane, A Beginner’s Guide to Crossing Cultures, 47-59; also Lanier, Foreign to Familiar,

Individualistic Culture Group-oriented Culture

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1. The individual is the basic 1. The group is the basic building block of society. building block of society.

2. Self-reliance, individual freedom, 2. Honor, respect, group loyalty and personal accountability are and saving face are highlyhighly valued. valued.

3. Direct communication (Low-) 3. Indirect communication (High Context) is preferred. Context) is preferred.

is preferred.

4. Social equality (egalitarianism 4. Social hierarchy, with with equal opportunity) is the ideal. universal recognition and

acceptance of one’s proper standing in society,

is the ideal.

5. Achieved status prevails over 5. Ascribed status prevails over ascribed status, thereby over achieved status, therebyprivileging competition.* privileging social ties and

personal references.*

6. More informal 6. More formal

*Achieved status is based on one’s own accomplishments and does allow for social mobility. Ascribed status is based on birth (one’s reference group) and is invariable over one’s lifetime, resulting in extreme social hierarchy and virtually zero social mobility (Lane, Beginner’s Guide to Crossing Cultures, 77).

Two important tips for people from individualistic cultures interacting with people from group-oriented cultures: don’t ever ask, “Do you understand?” and don’t ask for individuals to express their own opinion in a group setting.

G. Edward Hall also identifies two basic cultural orientations towards time (Hall, 60).

1. Monochronic time (also called “clock time”) is perceived as being tangible and capable of being spent: punctuality, schedules, and planning are valued, tasks more important than people (tends to

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be more characteristic of more industrialized, urbanized, and/or technologically oriented cultures).

2. Polychronic time (also called “event time”) is perceived as being flexible and unlimited: spontaneity is valued, and people and considered to be more important than the completion of tasks (tends to be more characteristic of more rural or less technologically oriented cultures).

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CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY: FOR CHRISTIANS OR NOT? (1/9/2014)

Reading: Kottak, Mirror for Humanity, 1-16; Kraft, “Why Anthropology for Christian Witnesses?” 1-13

I. The social science of anthropology and Christianity

A.The overall social science of anthropology is the comprehensive study of human beings, with multiple points of contact and overlap in regard to other social sciences (economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology), as well as to natural sciences and the humanities.

1. “The academic discipline that studies all humanity” (James Peoples and Garrick Bailey, Humanity, 7th ed., 2006, p. 1)

2. “The study of the human species and its immediate ancestors” (Conrad Kottak, Mirror for Humanity, 8th ed.), 2.

B. What distinguishes anthropology most precisely from other social sciences is not so much its subject matter as its focus and its methods.

1. The focus tends to be on relatively small groups and communities, though no longer just on small-scale, less technologically complex societies.

2. The preferred method emphasizes direct contact with those groups being studied — what is called “participant observation.”

3. Anthropology tends to have more of a non-Western focus than other social sciences do (Kraft, 3).

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C.Eminent Christian anthropologists Charles Kraft and Paul Hiebert frankly acknowledge the existence of longstanding tensions between Christianity and anthropology, with the latter’s “anti-Christian reputation” (Kraft, 2).

1. Non-Christian anthropologists have often accused missionaries of disrupting indigenous cultures and pressuring them to change their beliefs.

2. Christians should be aware of pervasive,

overarching evolutionary presuppositions in the field of anthropology that have both biological and cultural ramifications. (Examples in Kottak’s first chapter?)

D.However, both Kraft and Hiebert affirm that Christians can derive considerable benefits from the study of anthropology, particularly related to the area of missions.

1. Kraft argues that anthropology’s basic inclination toward nonwestern cultures makes it an ideal field of study to help prepare missionaries to “go into all the world” (Kraft, 3).

2. Kraft also sees anthropology helping westernized internationals gain a valuable perspective concerning their own cultures (Kraft, 3).

3. Anthropology’s cross-cultural perspective helps lessen Christians’ innate ethnocentrism, thereby helping them become “all things to all persons” (1 Corinthians 9:19-22) (Kraft 7, 9).a. A fresh perspective on our own cultureb. Deeper insight into the cultures of others

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c. Greater appreciation for the cross-cultural aspect of biblical interpretation

d. An enhanced capacity to communicate the Bible in a more meaningful way to people from cultures other than our own

e. “We are seeking learn how to be as open to cultural differences as God is” (Kraft, 2)

4. Kraft agrees with Kottak that anthropology adopts a holistic approach to its subject matter, meaning that it encompasses “the whole of the human condition: past, present, and future; biology, society, language, and culture,” which allows anthropologists to examine what people actually do and think, not just what they say they do (Kottak, 2; cf. Kraft, 4-5).

5. Anthropology emphasizes the crucial significance of a people’s worldview: i.e., their values, assumptions, and allegiances (Kraft, 11-12).

6. Anthropologists have developed techniques of participant observation, an effective method for studying another culture (Kraft, 12).

7. Anthropology provides a theoretical and practical framework for analyzing processes of cultural change (Kraft, 12-13).

II. Major subfields within the discipline of anthropology

A.Conrad Kottak says that anthropology in America has developed as a more unified, “four-field” discipline, in contrast to the situation in Europe, where the distinct fields tend to be more independent of each other; the four components in the U.S. are the following: archaeological, biological, linguistic, and sociocultural (Kottak, 4).

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1. Archaeology “reconstructs, describes, and interprets human behavior and cultural patterns through material remains” (Kottak, 7).

Specific example of “garbology” (“the

archaeological study of waste” (Kottak, 9-10).

2. Biological, or physical, anthropology, studies “human biological diversity in time and space,” focusing mainly on human evolution, genetics, human growth and development, human biological plasticity, and the biology, evolution, behavior, and social life of monkeys, apes, and other nonhuman primates” (Kottak, 10).

3. “Linguistic anthropology studies language in its social and cultural context, across space and over time” (Kottak, 11).

B.Applied anthropologists are those in any of the subfields of the discipline who are engaged full-time in using their expertise in such areas as education, economic and social development, medicine, and the business world (Kottak, 12-15).

III. The specific field of cultural anthropology (or “sociocultural anthropology”)

A.Cultural anthropology, or ethnology (the study of peoples) is the specific subfield that focuses on “the study of human society and culture…that describes, analyzes, interprets social and cultural similarities and differences” (Kottak, 7).

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B.Fieldwork is the fundamental method used by cultural anthropologists. This requires spending an extensive period of time at the site being studied to produce an account of that population called an ethnography.

1. Whereas ethnography entails actual field research, ethnology entails a comparative study of data from various ethnographies (Kottak, 7).

2. A recent trend has seen cultural anthropologists devoting more attention to groups in their own countries.

C.A basic principle of cultural anthropology is cultural relativism, “the viewpoint that behavior in one culture should not be judged by the standards of another culture”; it contrasts with ethnocentrism, which Kottak defines as “the tendency to view one’s own culture as superior and to apply one’s own cultural values in judging the behavior and beliefs of people raised in other cultures” (Kottak, Mirror, 31-32).

1. Cultural relativism is distinct from moral relativism, which rejects biblical standards of morality.

2. Cultural relativism prevents the attribution of absolute validity to human institutions within any given culture.

3. Think about the implications of this principle for a Christian worldview perspective.

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CA (S14)--Lecture Notes (to Date)(3

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