What is Anthropology?

Anthropology is the study of humankind in all times and places.

Focuses on the interconnectedness and interdependence of all aspects of the human experience in all places, in the present and deep into the past.

Anthropologists use the “holistic perspective,” which asks anthropologists to look at the “whole picture” to see all of these interconnections.

The Anthropological Perspective

Physical Anthropology- Focuses on humans as biological organisms; Deals with a much greater time span than other branches of

anthropology. Paleoanthropology Human Growth, Adaptation, and Variation Primatology Forensic Anthropology

Archaeology- Focuses on details of material and environmental remains in

order to reconstruct a cultural story.Linguistic Anthropology- Study human language to determine the past and present, and

the relation between language and culture.Cultural Anthropology- Study of customary patterns of behavior, thought, and feelings as

humans are culture producing and culture re-producing beings. Ethnography Ethnology

Fields of Anthropology

Paleoanthropology- study of human evolution; how, when, and why we became the kind of organisms we are today.Takes a biocultural approach– focuses on

interaction of biology and culture Human adaptation:

Environmental Extremes

Developmental AdaptationsEx: Why eyebrows?

Physiological AdaptationsEx: Changes in responses when moving into high

altitude.

Physical Anthropology

Primatology- study of living and fossil primates

Studying the anatomy and behavior of primates helps us understand what we share with our closest living relatives and what makes us unique.

Physical Anthropology

Asian and African Apes Monkeys

Lemurs Lorises Tarsiers

What is a Primate?

Forensic Anthropology- the identification of human skeletal remains for legal purposes. Called upon by law enforcement authorities to

identify murder victimsInvestigate human rights abuses like genocide,

terrorism, and war crimes

Use details of skeleton to determine age, sex, stature, race, right/left-handed, children, etc.

Physical Anthropology

Studies human cultures through the recovery and analysis of remainsI.e. tools, pottery, cultural remains, fossils, etc.

What people say they do versus what they actually do.

Contemporary-prehistoric findings; prior to written history, creating our own story.

Archaeology

INDIANA JONES AND ARCHAEOLOGY

INDIANA JONES

Myths of Indiana JonesThese things are not (always) hidden in

pyramids with trapsThey take many long days to uncoverArtifacts need delicate care and proper toolsTreasure? Nah. Not the kind we all think it

is.

Archaeology

Most distinctive feature of the human speciesNo other creature has established such a

complex system of symbols, gestures, sounds, and words quite like us.

Work out relationships among languagesHistory- where and how the speakers of

ancestral languages originatedHelped revive surpressed minority languagesHelped create written form of oral languages

Cultural slang

Linguistic Anthropology

What aspects of language are universal in every language?What are the first things you learn when

learning a new language?

Hunter-Gathering Societies vs. Americans

Linguistic Anthropology

Describe what you see….

Study of customary patterns of behavior, thought, and feelings as humans are culture producing and culture re-producing beings. Culture- Conscious and unconscious standards

by which societies operate socially learned

Has two main components:1. Ethnography2. Ethnology

Cultural Anthropology

Ethnography- Uses participant observation (submerging

themselves in a culture in order to gain information)Example: By living with war-like people, an

ethnographer should be able to understand how warfare fits into the overall cultural framework.

Discovers how all aspects of culture relate to one another in order to truly understand a society’s cultural system.SocialPoliticalEconomicReligious

Cultural Anthropology

What is Ace trying to uncover?Why go live with the culture?

Guano

ACE VENTURA PET DETECTIVE

Ethnology- Uses the raw data from ethnography in order

to make comparisons and connections across cultures.

Helps explain differences and similarities among separate groups.

Helps determine the function and operation of cultural practices in all times and places.

Cultural Anthropology

Anthropologists Working Together

What three fields of Anthropology are used in this clip?

Combining Expertise

In groups of 4 or 5, work collaboratively to create a movie poster for one of the fields of Anthropology.

Your movie poster must have the following:1. A captivating image that is either literal or

metaphorical explaining the duties/importance of the field.

2. A slogan or phrase that cleverly describes the field.

*** Added Bonus: ***Use a pre-existing movie/TV show

to alter and mold into a field of Anthropology.

ACTIVITY