Anthropology class notes

- Thick description – people’s own interpretation of rituals within their society – what
they think it says about their society
- Is anthropology the study of the ‘essential human character’ – or how different humans
are/how differently we behave – structuralism – structure of human thought processes
same in all societies
- Functionalism – how societies remain stable – not how they may fall apart – e.g.
according to Geertz - tendency to view ‘psychologically supportive’ aspects of religious
patterns rather than disturbing/’psychologically disturbing’ forms – stresses need to look
at ways in which religion destroys and transfroms

- Aiming to discover essential qualities/values of a society – tendency to ignore change

COCKFIGHT CASE STUDY

- Cockfight is a good example of this – Geertz himself acknowledges nothing changes as a
result of the cockfight – comparison to Macbeth – these are basically unchanging rituals,
have no influence upon the society
- Not at all diachronic – has no interest in causation, this happened then this happened –
language associated with cocks, the various reasons why its important – all happens in
the current moment – only brief reference to history as an elite sport

Fetishising ‘primitive’ cultures – they don’t want to see change, want ‘unspoiled’
cultures

What is culture
- Shared understanding

Anthropology is ahistorical

Idea of popular mentality as long running trend

Ceremonies/rituals important to anthropologists as collective interpretations of the

society by those who live in it

Culture develops through human agency

- Anthropology balancing history – where historians focus too much on teleological

perspective (our current society is the best, everything else progresses to this)
anthropology has opposite issue, ‘fetishises’ past societies
- Looks at different events to history – history to the ‘rational’, anthropology at the
‘irrational’
- Anthropology – tells the story, leaving interpretation open – historians impose a certain
interpretation
- Complement each other