American Anthropologist 1962
Anderson, Robert T. & Gallatin Anderson. The Indirect Social Structure of European Village Communities. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):1016-1027.
The article opens with the authors’ statement of the concern: thinking about European classes has been dominated by urban, national or continental entities, while the study of classes and hierarchical strata as part of the social structure of small rural communities has largely been ignored. The authors address their concern through a comparative study of small rural European communities in terms of their indirect social structure and hierarchical strata.
In terms of methodology, a sample of 11 European villages, representing diverse geographical and linguistic communities and reflecting a range of variability in rural social structures was selected. Monographs from the 1930s through the 1950s provided holistic information for comparative community studies. Statistical and descriptive data provide evidence to support the paper’s main point, which is that, in terms of social organization, some form of hierarchy or stratification – whether based on economic or other factors – does subdivide each village community in the study.
The authors identified a universal characteristic of every sample European village: that hierarchical stratification was largely, but not entirely, explained in economic terms. Anderson and Anderson note that aside from economics, class differences were in some cases attributable to a “distinction of local-village from national-non-village orientations”.
The authors make a fundamental distinction between “classes” and other types of social groups based on the fact that an “authority structure to provide for leadership” does not exist in a class, and thus, classes do not have a formal structure. Classes do, however, have an indirect (and usually incomplete) structure. Whether this takes the form of individual leadership, or leadership by a representative body, those individuals who constitute local government come from a single village class, thus creating a “de facto leadership for their class group.” This form of class organization, although universal, is also incomplete, in that it typically provides leadership for only one class, and this is usually, but not always, the highest one. A second observation of the “incompleteness” of this form of political structuring of classes is that it does not embody a chain-of-command for the class body, and, thus, no structure for lower level organization.
Anderson and Anderson make other observations from the data, noting the separating out of class bodies for institutionalized occasions, such as social gatherings or meetings, and in “voluntary associations”. Voluntary associations were particularly significant in providing the most complete and powerful structuring of class strata, the introduction of which was “part of the larger process of urbanization”.
The authors conclude “that the European village, in which class divisions are the least manifest of all institutions, has a tendency to be at its heart a social group dominated by the relations of super-ordinate and subordinate strata”. They suggest that the concept of “indirect social structure” has the potential for wider application beyond small rural European communities. This approach to class behavior might be considered as a continuum ranging from stratification systems with no previously recognized structure to those with developed social structure, one pole representing “a hypothetical society of completely amorphous strata having no capacity for directed class activity”. The other pole would contrast a system such an Indian caste system with a formal structure where castes were able to mobilize themselves to the extent of raising the class status.
CLARITY: 4
CHRISTINE MILLER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Baker, Paul. The Application of Ecological Theory to Anthropology. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol. 64 (1):15-22.
Paul Baker’s article The Application of Ecological Theory to Anthropology presents in a clear format the application of human biology to the study of culture in the past, present, and future. The problem that the article addresses is the assumption in anthropology (in 1962) that human behavior and social structure are exclusively products of autonomous cultural phenomena, that human biology and environment play no significant role. Although past anthropologists held biology as a crucial factor in the study of our species, anthropology by 1962 had excluded biology and the ecosystems in which culture develops from the concept of culture. The main body of the article focuses on mid-century anthropologists’ dismissal of biological study in reference to culture, and Baker’s rebuttals. He claims that the statements made are reflections of current anthropological trends and do not provide an adequate explanation for studying human behavior apart from human biology. The future relationship of biological theory and cultural anthropology is more promising. At the time of the article, physical anthropology was emerging as a respected sub field of anthropology. Baker closes the article with three rather abstract reasons why ecological theory has much to offer cultural anthropology: theory developed from plant and animal studies which can be applied to humans; a frame of reference within anthropology which anthropology began; and escape from conceived “cause and effect”.
Taking advantage of notable sources and reflecting on the relationships between anthropological sub fields, Paul Baker’s article is a starting point for the modern introductory physical anthropology student. With its good use of basic definitions and examples, the article is an enjoyable and easy read for cultural anthropologists as well.
CLARITY: 4
CHRISTIAN VANNIER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Befu, Haruni and Plotnicov, Leonard. Types of Corporate Unilineal Descent Groups. American Anthropologist June, 1962 Vol. 64 (2):313-
In this article along with their 1960 presentation to the American Anthropological Association, Befu and Plotnicov introduce an analytical model for identifying and evaluating unilineal corporate descent groups. The authors seek to show a correlation between the specific corporate function of the group and its structure in terms of size and settlement pattern.
This study was prompted , in some measure, by a perception of definitional vagueness in the existing published reports. No new research was undertaken and the team relied on previous studies and ethnographic literature as the basis for their conclusions. Befu and Plotnicov assert that corporate descent groups can be defined, at least for theoretical purposes, as functionally economic, political or religious and structurally as minimal, local and dispersed. Structurally, the smallest units were seen by these researchers to be economic in function and even limited to a single family. Mid-sized groups, which could be a number of families living in close proximity or a village, might function as a corporate entity both in the economic and political arenas, through more than likely the predominant function would be political. Larger groups, particularly those that were geographically dispersed, were likely to perform corporate functions only in the area of religion or ritual.
In conclusion, the authors suggest the concept of “corporateness” in a discussion of unilineal descent groups is incomplete without “specifying which structural unit of the descent groups is corporate and in what functional sense.”
CLARITY: 5
MARTHA DOWLING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Berreman, Gerald D. Pahari Polyandry: A Comparison American Anthropologist February 1962 Vol.64(1):60 –74.
In this comparison the author, Gerald Berreman is trying to study marriage in its total cultural context among the non-polyandrous system of Garhwal and the polyandrous system of Jaunsar Bawar, which are part of the Pahari culture in India that is found in the lower part of the Himalayas. He looks at several factors that he thinks are some of the reasons why the Jaunsar Bawar community is polyandrous and Garhwal is not. Berreman states that, economic, demographic and social structure, have a great deal to do with each of the villages marital practices
The article starts with the definition of different related terms. The author then describes the marriage practices of the two villages separately and finds that there are more similarities than differences. The only difference that he found was that in Garhwal the children had only one father even though the mother could have sexual relations with her husband’s brothers. In Jaunsar Bawar all the brothers were fathers of the children. Using statistics that were available from that region and first hand on observations he compared the two villages in the following factors economic, social, socio-economic, traditional, psychological, and demographic factors. He noticed that none of these factors alone was the reason for each village having different marriage practices. In his research and article he ends up going through a process of elimination and stating at the end that there are no set reasons or factors why the two villages differ in marriage practices but that there are conditions that vary within each culture that practices polyandry. Berreman then concluded that “within the family, sexual and interpersonal connotations of the two systems are very similar… polyandry and monandry in the Himalayan Hills appear not to be polar types of marriage system”, and that probably certain “conditions take the form of effects of the functioning of polyandry, or prerequisites for polyandry, rather than specific causes which inevitably lead to polyandry.”
The article overall is good, clear and informative. He uses citations from other written works on the subject of polyandry in a very persuasive tone.
CLARITY: 4.5
IVONNE CALITO Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Burling, Robbins. Maximization Theories and the Study of Economic Anthropology.American Anthropologist August, 1962 Vol.64(4):802-821.
Author Robbins Burling brings to light the various problems resulting from anthropology, during the early 1960’s, lacking a definitive response to what is the meaning behind or the definition of the term “economics”. Burling feels that by tightening this definition, the two fields of anthropology and economics can begin to work effectively with one another.
Burling first points out that when defining “economics” the terminology used is muddled and ambiguous. He finds that some anthropologists believe “economics deals with the material means to man’s existence” (p. 802). Yet as Burling finds, not everything related to studying a cultures economic systems deals with material, much is nonmaterial. The author also notes that one definition implies that the line between the social organization of a culture and their economic system is blurred; hence not all services and their “production, distribution, and consumption” are economically based. Also, anthropologists have imposed Western notions of economy onto non-Western cultures and confused economic systems with exchange systems. Burling also discusses the idea of “means and ends” and how “economization” of resources can help achieve these “ends” or what he calls “goals”.
Lastly, we learn of “maximization theories” which examines how a person “maximizes” the resources they have (food, sex, power, time, etc.) to achieve the “desired end”. Burling states that humans rationally economize these resources. Maximization and looking at systems of exchange rather than “economic systems” can be useful to both anthropologists and economists. Examples from Leach, Homans, Zipf, Freud, Polanyi, etc. are used as evidence, and his critique of these examples provides support. His arguments are occasionally bogged down by thick terminology; however, Burling presents real life examples that help clear up the ideas behind these arguments.
CLARITY: 4
LINDSEY MARTIN Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Cowgill, Ursula M. An Agricultural Study of the Southern Maya Lowlands. American Anthropologist April, 1962 Vol.64(2):273-286
Ursula M. Cowgill discusses Mesoamerican prehistory in an area she refers to as the Southern Maya Lowlands of present day Yucatan. While there has been much archaeological research and work in this area, Cowgill points out the need for an adequate explanation for the sharp decline in population at the end of the Classic Period (ca. 300-900 A.D.). This phenomenon has evidently been established by recent (1956; 1959) archaeological work, however despite numerous scholarly explanations Cowgill feels much more investigation is required in understanding the complete story behind the sudden change. Cowgill briefly mentions a few of these explanations as she highlights this problem. Adding to her argument, Cowgill also mentions that not only are the explanations inconsistent and conflicting, but also irrelevant. She states many observations were inappropriately based on research done in northern Yucatan, which can differ agriculturally from the environment of the Southern Maya Lowlands.
To begin answering the question, Cowgill remains in the agricultural perspective as she details research carried out by agronomist J.A. Hester Jr. (1954), who, according to Cowgill, did carry out relevant studies in northern Yucatan. This article discloses the methods and results of Hester’s research. He carried out his work near Lake Peten. Forty farmers in this area were interviewed on a variety of agricultural questions such as yield, method and time of harvest, and fallow periods. Other repercussions, such as animals and weather, were also included. According to Cowgill, this research is applicable to conditions during the Classic Period noting a few exceptions. She supports her argument by cross-referencing numerous works and by gathered data from Hester’s research in the Lake Peten area.
CLARITY RANKING: 4
LEN LOVING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Curtis, Freddie The Utility Pottery Industry of Baitén, Southern Spain. American Anthropologist June, 1962 Vol.64(3):486-503.
According to Freddie Curtis, much has been written on the finer Spanish ceramics but little attention has been paid to Spanish household pottery. This area is important because of its influence on indigenous American pottery after the Spanish conquest. She states that this subject has importance as an area of handicrafts or small-scale industry, an area undergoing cultural change, and is good for analysis of the economics and social organization of single-industry towns.
To gather data, Curtis and her husband visited a small village in Southern Spain in April 1955, where unmechanized pottery-making was the only industry in the village. The visit was limited, to four days and interviews were conducted in Spanish. Problems, due to the very limited time available, included language barriers and a lack of definite information on measurements, formulae, dates, costs, payments, etc. There are photographs included that aid in documentation.
Curtis describes the village and its industry, the shops, workers, division of labor, the common types of pottery, the clay (i.e., its mining, storage and preparation) the ceramic manufacturing process (shaping, drying, decoration, firing), and the merchandising of the completed items. She contrasts this with information from another Spanish village where the ceramic industry had become more specialized. The information contained in this article is clearly presented. Hopefully someone has returned to the village since this was written to do a more in-depth study.
CLARITY: 5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
D’Azevedo, Warren L. Common Principles of Variant Kinship Structures among the Gola of Western Liberia. American Anthropologist June, 1962 Vol.64(3):504-520.
Warren L. D’Azevedo describes a particular kind of system in an African society, a situation of a society that is not organized in terms of unilateral principles of descent, and where kinship groups are not segmentary or exogamous. This is a society where variant forms of structure can “direct attention to the dynamics of social integration and change” (p. 517). He demonstrates the necessity of reference to the contradictory values and the range of opportunistic deviation that is permitted in real social relationships as opposed to the idealistic version. Related to d’Azevedo’s purpose is the problem of taxonomy where conventional models of analysis are used to interpret organizations. The conventional kinship terms do not fit the changing, highly stratified kin groups.
To demonstrate the problem the author describes the kinship system and social organization of the Gola of Western Liberia. He methodically describes the people, presents assumptions and generalizations of previous scholars on descent, inheritance, and succession. He states that these do not “contribute any clarification to our understanding of the region” (p. 506). D’Azevedo describes kinship and descent among the Gola, the organization of Gola societies and their sub-groupings, and the structure and function of the Poro secret society. His conclusion demonstrates how current (in 1962) terminology is inadequate for the identification of complex systems of this nature, and how the society structure is beginning to weaken and change. It is well written, very understandable and he proves his argument.
CLARITY: 5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Dundes, Alan. Earth-Diver: Creation of the Mythopeoic Male. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):1032-1049.
Alan Dundes attributes the failure of anthropologists to make headway in the study of myths to the rigid adherence to two fundamental principles: “a literal reading of myth and a study of myth in monocultural context.” The reason for this insistence, he states, was twofold: first, a reaction against 19th century thought, which argued for universal symbolism in myth, and secondly, the influence of Franz Boas and Bronislav Malinowski, both of whom favored the study of one culture at a time, and contending that “myth was essentially non-symbolic”. Dundes proceeds to develop his argument suggesting instead a symbolic rather than literal interpretation of myth, and raising the possibility that “it is precisely the insights afforded by advances in human psychology which open up vast vistas for the student of myth.” He states that in order to understand the “products of the human minds” (myths) one must also understand something of the “mechanics of the human mind” (psychology), and that through symbolic interpretation, students of myths might also move towards the discovery of universals in myths.
Dundes cites numerous sources and authors to support his argument, including Ruth Benedict and Margaret Mead (both students of Boas), the noted psychologist, Sigmund Freud, along with evidence available from folklore scholarship. He deals extensively with issues raised in the study of myth, such as determining the actual origin of a myth, and analyzing different versions of the same myth that exist in different cultures, always returning to his argument for a symbolic interpretation of myth, and the existence of universal themes. He uses the earth-diver myth to make this point, quoting Earl Count who considered this myth “easily among the most widespread single concepts held by man.” Dundes states the assumptions on which his hypothesis depends: (1) the existence of a cloacal theory of birth (birth through a discharge chamber, similar to that found in birds, reptiles and amphibians; a common sexual theory of children) and (2) the existence of pregnancy envy on the part of males. At this point he draws heavily on observations from psychology to support his argument that the widely diffused earth-diver myth reflects a universal cultural theme, that of pregnancy envy in males from every culture in the world.
Dundes states: “Without the assumption of symbolism and universals in myth, a vast amount of mythology remains of little use to anthropologists.” He concludes by quoting Kluckohn: “…the anthropologist for two generations has been obsessed with the differences between peoples, neglecting the equally real similarities – upon which the ‘universal cultural pattern’ as well as the psychological uniformities are clearly built.” He calls for anthropologists to take off the traditional blinders that keep them from collecting all pertinent material, even if it borders on the obscene by the ethnographer’s own standards.
CLARITY: 4
CHRISTINE MILLER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Dunn, Stephen P. and Ethel. Directed Culture Change in the Soviet Union: Some Soviet Studies. American Anthropologist. June 1962 vol. 64(2):328-339
In their survey of Soviet ethnographic literature on “directed cultural changes” in the post WWII – 1959 period, the authors focus on four geographic areas: the Far North, Central Asia, the Caucasus and European Russia. Intrinsic to their review is an appreciation for the context of ethnographic study in the Soviet Union. Within the materialist tradition, history is seen to be governed by discernable laws which can be predictably applied to produce a desired outcome. Within this paradigm, culture has a limited definition, being a particular expression of a specific time, country or class rather than a broad set of universal human values. The sources for the study were Soviet Ethnography Transactions of the Institute of Ethnography (30 Vols.) and other incidental publications of Soviet ethnographers.
In the non-Russian areas the authors found a pattern of essentially two cultural systems at work; one which applied to the domestic arena and one which functioned in the political-industrial sphere. In the former, the old familial order remained intact with men and women performing the traditional roles, while in the latter, women were beginning to “take their full part.” Formal religion, was further reported, as being in decline, but superstitions and animism were still very much a part of life. In assessing European Russia, the dominant culture area, the Dunns, along with Soviet scholars, anticipated a greater reflection of the economic reorganization in the cultural practices. However, the findings showed “the cultural matrix remains constant despite all efforts to change it. This is especially true of the family.”
The Dunns conclude that the post WWII period represents not a radical transformation of values, as in the 1920’s and 1930’s, but rather a “cultural expansion.” “The complexity and prosperity of the social order is increasing, but values remain relatively constant.”
CLARITY: 4.5
MARTHA DOWLING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Elmendorf, William W. Lexical Relation Models as a Possible Check on Lexiostatistic Inferences. American Anthropologist August, 1962 Vol.64(4):760-770.
Elmendorf first presents his problem in the context of linguistic theory and the ideas of language change. The overall concern for this article involves whether some languages change faster than others and the factors involved in the change of a languages “basic vocabulary”. The change of this “basic vocabulary” is the main idea behind lexiostatic theory.
The main argument is a critique of the findings of Swadesh’s 1952 article on three Native American languages in the state of Washington; Columbia, Bella Coola, and Twana. Elmendorf argues, “languages with word taboo have changed faster in basic vocabulary than languages which lack this factor” (p. 760). Swadesh on the other hand disagrees with this notion. To support this argument, Elmendorf provides five models that illustrate the possibilities for language change in this area. He feels that Swadesh’s model is linear and synchronic, thus the language change between all three groups is equivalent. Elmendorf’s model is diachronic, illustrating how the proto languages underwent a divergence prior to the 19th century through the factor of “word tabooing”. Thus, the Twana and Columbia languages are more related than Twana and Bella Coola.
Elmendorf feels his evidence illustrates that the synchronic model of Swadesh ignores possible factors that create differences between the languages. As shown by Elmendorf’s model, “antecedent conditions”, such as language divergence, provide information to dispute the apparent equivalence between these three languages. The author found that “Basic vocabulary change may, it seems, be affected by special nonlinguistic cultural factors” (p. 769). In 1962, the debate over language change continued with Elmendorf’s call for further research. This article appears to be exclusively written for those with a background in linguistic theory. At times the article becomes muddled with the theoretical models Elmendorf applies to his argument.
CLARITY: 2
LINDSEY MARTIN Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Ember, Melvin. Political Authority and the Structure of Kinship in Aboriginal Samoa.American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol. 64(5):964-971
Melvin Ember examines the political organization of Aboriginal Samoa and its lack of central government. He argues that the particular kinship structure of the “sept”, as an adaptive response to the environment, gives rise to a system of diffuse political power and authority. Ember alludes to previous work on the “sept” which might assist the reader.
He begins by describing a system lacking in a hierarchy of political officials. With the exception of temporary integration for purposes of war, political organization is limited to the village level. This consists of a council of chiefs, each representing a portion of the village in individuals and land, able to affect change only through unanimous vote. Next, he describes the structure of Samoan kinship as a series of non-unilinear descent groups, the largest being the “sept”. The entire “sept”, while having the majority of its members scattered as members of other clans, contains only one local segment or clan, which consists of a group of members who live and work together on land traced to ancestral beginnings in a village. An important feature of this system is that membership in one “sept” may overlap with membership in other “septs”. Ember contends that these permanently overlapping memberships result in similar clan size. Uniform clan size, combined with the fact that a chief, while elected by the whole “sept”, can only rely on the support of the people with whom he lives, results in a fairly equal distribution of power and authority.
Ember’s speculation as to what gives rise to this type of kinship is an ecological one. He cites scarcity of land for permanent cultivation as favoring a kinship system that has fluid membership, allowing for regular readjustments in the man-land ratio. This adaptive response to the environment is expressed in the configuration of a decentralized and diffuse system of political power and authority.
CLARITY: 4
ANNE KATZ Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson / Sherylyn Briller)
Frake, Charles. Cultural Ecology and Ethnography. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol.64(1):53-59.
Frake writes this article to discuss cultural ecology as an ethnographical research tool . First, Frake defines an ethnographical description as, “…a description of cultural behavior is attained by a formulation of what one must know in order to respond in a culturally appropriate manner in a given socio-ecological context”. (Goodenough 1957; Frake 1962:54). Furthermore, he emphasizes that ethnographers should seek to capture the semantics that the natives use to describe and order their world. To demonstrate this ecological approach to describing cultural behavior, Frake uses his own data on the Eastern Subanun of the Phillipines to offer this alternative approach to interpreting ethnographical data.
Frakes offers a description of the Subanun’s settlement pattern on the island of Mindanao. The Subanun use swidden farming or the slash-and-burn techniques to cultivate land for food. Frake has discovered that the Subanun establish and settle nuclear households in areas that will not interfere with their swiddens; thus, a form of environmental protection. Within this paper, Frake adds that the interpretation of foreign cultural practices can no longer be interpreted using Western ideology as a standard. Finally, he offers the value of such ecologically based ethnographical sketches as not only the telling of the Subanun’s ecological adaptation, but analyses for cross-cultural comparisons in the future.
CLARITY: 5
ALLISON MUHAMMAD Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Fried, Jacob. Social Organization and Personal Security in a Peruvian Hacienda Indian Community: Vicos. American Anthropologist August, 1962 Vol.64(4):771-780.
Jacob Fried’s article involves examining how individuals cope with the stressors of illness, the inability to remain working on a hacienda, and how this affects personal security. He focuses on the types of support systems available to assist those who are unable to work and how they do or do not provide ample personal security for survival in Vicos, Peru.
His main argument illustrates how the “trinity of basic values, family, land, and animals” (p. 779) are the most important values for personal security. He constructs his argument by employing ethnographic evidence in the form of two case studies of individuals who succumbed to illness as well as a description of the hacienda community social structures.
There are six forms of social structures: “the outside world” (mestizos and those not living in Vicos), the hacienda itself, “the Indian community” (cultural unification), mestizo godparents (“prestigious godparents”) of Indian children, “the partrilineal lineage”, “bilateral kindred”, and “the nuclear family”. Some of these social structures can provide personal security in the form of “work aid” (kin working the family members hacienda land while they are ill), however Fried found that “kin can never be completely relied upon for work aid” (p. 774) most likely due to each nuclear family fighting for their own personal security in the competitive and isolative atmosphere of the hacienda environment. Jealous extended family members (as well as those in land disputes) put their survival above that of their ill kin. Having many children in the nuclear family to work the land as well as to make up for the loss of some to army service, mestizo godparents who provide money and work, and animals often leads to greatest security. Being of “good health” embodies personal security; it is something that cannot afford to be lost.
CLARITY: 4
LINDSEY MARTIN Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Garn, Stanley M. The Newer Physical Anthropology. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):917-918
In this piece, Stanley Garn gives a “state of the union” like message on the status of the field of physical anthropology. It also serves as a preamble to the first two articles in this particular journal volume, in which “race” as a concept is dealt with.
Garn begins by comparing the methods and focus of a pre World War II physical anthropology with post World War II, and cites modern technology and the acceptance of “problem oriented research ” as responsible for the field’s new breadth and direction. He points out that anthropometry, typology and craniology are virtually gone, as well as the “old-fashioned anomaly-anatomy, once a respectable mainstay of anatomical physical anthropology” (pg 917). Garn points out that at one time the description of the morphological characteristics of a population was considered to be sufficient research, and now, would hardly be publishable. At this writing, studies of populations include the effects of ongoing evolution and long bone growth studies include nutritional problems and genetics. As a result, physical anthropologists have gained colleagues from a wider arena of disciplines, disciplines concerned with understanding the meaning of human variability.
In addition to noting changes in areas of research, Garn describes the impact of these changes on the training of physical anthropologists at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Before, physical anthropologists received a minimal exposure to the biological sciences and now the fields of human genetics, biochemistry and physiology are viewed as basic requirements. He questions whether the existing educational system is capable of providing for an adequate Ph.D. program and sees the necessity of pooling together existing resources.
In summation, Garn reiterates that while the theory of natural selection, biochemical genetics, biophysical research methods and the experimental approach all give new freedom and range to directions “nascent” in American physical anthropology, there now exists new challenges in the preparation and teaching of these new professionals.
CLARITY: 5
ANNE KATZ Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Grimes, Joseph E. and Barbara F. Semantic Distinction in Huichol (Uto-Aztecan) KinshipAmerican Anthropologist February 1962 Vol.64(1):104–112
In this article the issue that is being addressed is that of the study of culturally defined kin classes in terms of common features in the semantic field and that larger semantic groupings of kin classes are also recognized. The article wants to use the structural dimension of distance in relation to kin.
In the study of kinship Grimes begins with the way that the Huichol live, in relation to each other. The following terms are defined, household, ranch and community, to let us visualize the relationships later on in the article when we encounter the fact that the Huichol use more than one term interchangeably to mean the same relationship. Within this terminology, it states that incest restrictions apply only to the nuclear family but that nonkin normally, do not marry. The way that the Huichol live is also very interesting and has a lot to do with how each individual is related to the next. The article goes into detail about the meaning of each of the kin terms, what they mean, and how the terms are related to Ego. Each kin term is in a set that has some type of generational distance from Ego. In this grouping of kin the Huichol have included what we call extended family as well as the gods that they believe are their ancestors. How the terms of the gods come in is when they have ritual ceremonies of naming the offspring. These are called the ritual kinship terms. In conclusion the article states that in recognizing the dimension of distance in the semantic system makes it possible to group kin terms in accord to the function and usage of the kin term.
CLARITY: 3
IVONNE CALITO Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Harner, Michael J. Jivaro Souls. American Anthropologist April, 1962 Vol.64(2):258-272
Michael J. Harner’s article addresses some basic elements of Jivaro superstition and belief, referencing them as Jivaro soul beliefs. He believed this angle of research into Jivaro culture, which at that time (1962) had yet to be systematically studied, would provide greater insight into Jivaro behavior. Indeed, the Jivaro (eastern Ecuador) were known for their warlike practices, however, according to Harner, there was a problem with a lack of knowledge and understanding into Jivaro superstition and belief. Harner took two research works (Karsten, 1935; Stirling, 1938) into the field to go over in detail with informants in an effort to clarify any points of difference as far as the Jivaro were concerned while establishing fresh insight into Jivaro soul beliefs. On page 259, Harner makes an interesting comment that supplements the purpose of this article: “…what is presented here should be viewed as a progress report on our knowledge of Jivaro soul beliefs.”
Starting with the aforementioned research works he took to the field, Harner outlines the specific details of time, places and contacts of his own research among the Jivaro. He also maintains two reservations for presenting the research on soul belief: first is the high degree of personal variability among the people in contrast to the “consensus of male informants looked upon as experts”, whom he interviewed; second is the need to view this work as a progress report on our knowledge of the Jivaro and his disclaimer for not having “completely mastered the intricacies of Jivaro supernatural concepts.” Harner states Jivaro soul beliefs constitute one of the four major autonomous systems of verbalized thought, the other three being systems of crop fairy beliefs, witchcraft beliefs, and the kinship system. He further states there are three types of souls: the Arutam soul (ancient specter), the Muisak soul (avenging), and the Nekas soul (true/real/ordinary). Harner’s research is supported by his own firsthand contact in addition to the previous works of Karsten and Stirling, which were carefully questioned through direct query with reliable informants in addition to linguistic critique.
CLARITY RANKING: 5
LEN LOVING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Hulse, Frederick S. Race as an Evolutionary Episode. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):929-945
In considering the origins of Homo sapiens, Federick Hulse draws on evolutionary theory and observations of human diversity in modern day populations and invites us to question the accuracy of the traditional renderings of our phylogenetic tree. He suggests that while this rendering may do well in representing the descent of species, it does not show sub-specific diversification. He favors the designs of Weidenreich and Hooton in the forms of grids and trellises and vines to depict the genetic variety as well as continuity that exist within species. He cites examples of similarities found in skeletal remains as well as examples of interbreeding among current populations, without evidence of diminished “fitness”, to demonstrate this potential variety and continuity. He compares some of the sub-specific taxonomies to modern “races”. He asks if it would not be reasonable to see the differences in the populations of the lower Paleolithic in the same way that we observe differences in the “races” of modern times.
Hulse defines “race” as populations that are distinguishable on the grounds of distinctive gene frequencies. While he acknowledges the term’s misuse and the objections raised by those such as A. Montagu in the implications of “un-changeability”, he sees “race ” as a valid taxonomic category. He believes that the conditions, which promote the evolution and flow of these sub-taxa, have been in existence for most, if not all of human history. Factors, such as geographic isolation and culture, assist the forces of evolution to produce “episodes of evolution” or “races”. Hulse states that gene frequencies, longer lasting than social units, can give the illusion of permanence to “racial” groups. He further states that these groups, with their inherent plasticity and ability to diversify, are hardly unchangeable but temporary adaptations to their environment. Exposure to the concepts of “evolutionary theory” and “population genetics” is most helpful here.
CLARITY: 5
ANNE KATZ Wayne State University ( Beverly Fogelson / Sherylyn Briller)
Krantz, Grover Sphenoidal Angle and Brain Size. American Anthropologist June, 1962 Vol.64(3):521-523.
In this very short article Grover S. Krantz is critical of Franz Weidenreich’s interpretation (in 1943, The Skull of Sinanthropus pekinenis. Sinica, New Series D, No. 10) of the evolutionary changes in the base of the human skull as an adaptation to erect posture. Krantz states that Weidenreich postulated that this adaptation causes, among other characteristics, an expansion of the brain case and a shift of the occipital condyles to a more forward, central position under the brain case. Krantz feels that Weidenreich over-simplified the causal relationships.
In his argument, Krantz presents and examines the pertinent measurements (sphenoidal angle, generally accepted cranial capacity, and cranial module), where available, of four European Neanderthal skulls. He found these cranial capacities to correlate in the opposite direction to the findings of Weidenreich. Krantz concludes that there was not any necessarily direct connection between the evolutionary phenomena of 1) absolute increase in brain size and 2) alterations in cranial architecture.
CLARITY: 4
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Landar, Herbert. Fluctuation of Forms in Navaho Kinship Terminology. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):985-999.
The frustrations that Landar encountered in collecting data for an analysis of Navaho kinship led to the publication of this article, which was written in large part to “identify a problem not well confronted in anthropological literature”. His frustrations were caused by widely recognized “variations and inconsistencies in published and unpublished materials” covering the Navaho. Landar quotes Bellah, who describes the Navaho as a group “far greater than all other Apachean groups put together” in terms of population, size and diversity of areas inhabited. Consequently, it is very difficult to discern when inconsistencies in kinship terminology are “attributable to temporal or areal differences, and when to error.” Referring to the problem cited in the opening sentence, Landar argues that the existence in the Navaho kinship system highlight “what Bloomfield has called ‘fluctuation in the frequency of forms’ and raises the possibility that disagreements of kinship terminology reported in other systems are reflecting the existence of similar fluctuations.
Landar approaches the problem by subjecting a set of set of kinship terms to linguistic analysis of the type suggested by Lounsbury in a 1956 article on the Pawnee. Landar uses data from numerous ethnographies, including one by Edward Sapir, and his own field investigation that began in 1956 to construct his argument. Data was crosschecked in interviews with informants from multiple sites including Shiprock, Rough-Rock-Many Farms and the Fort Defiance-Window Rock area. Collected data was subjected to linguistic analysis involving “specification of such terms as are currently in use, certification of complementary fluctuation in the frequency of these forms, and delineation of salient morphological and syntactic patterns.” The concerns of the author are not only to reconcile conflicting reports, but also, to examine “the relevance of complementary fluctuation to the theory and analysis of structured systems of social relations.”
Evidence was used to support the legitimacy of Navaho kinship terminology usage, and to note regional, clan and other variations. Being a linguistic analysis, this article requires that the reader be familiar with abbreviations and terminology, such as “eclitics” and “relative expression”.Much of the paper is devoted to examining variations in the usage of specific terminology. In doing so, the author also exposes the individual’s options in selecting kinship terms, concluding “A Navaho’s linguistic resources, which equip him to show subtle gradations of sentiment towards his kinsmen in the mere act of address, are more ample than has hitherto been supported. ” In this paper, Landar is concerned not only with the reconciliation of kinship terminology usage, but also, with the existence of what her calls complementary fluctuations. Landar’s linguistic analysis of the Navaho kinship system, based on the analysis of the Pawnee by Lounsbury, suggests:
The mode use of kinship terms extends beyond customs
More is implied in the linguistic structure of a term than morphological labels (elementary, derivative and descriptive), and
The Navaho system, and probably other kinship systems, challenges the implicit assumption “that a term is either denotative or classificatory, but not both.”
CLARITY: 4
CHRISTINE MILLER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Levy, Jerrold R. Community Organization of the Western Navajo. American Anthropologist August, 1962 Vol.64(4):781-801.
Jerrold E. Levy frames his article with the idea that when studying Western Navajo Culture, anthropologists and other researchers need to grasp the idea of “community” in order to effectively understand the social organization of the Navajo. He states that researchers need to “arrive at some definition of the concept ‘community’ which fits the social reality of the present day Western Navajos” (p. 781).
His main argument involves the need to synthesize the various ideas/theories behind some of the definitions set forth on Navajo “community” (i.e.: whether environmental boundaries, kin/clan affiliations and/or “interrelations between social organization and environment” define Navajo “community”) (p. 781). Levy presents a literature review as well as his own ethnographic fieldwork (participant observation, open-ended interviews and structured interviews) as evidence for this argument. He also argues that social change affects Navajo communities in very different ways and that by examining leadership among the Navajo, important ideas about the meaning of “community” surface.
The ethnographic evidence lends strong support to his argument that the idea of “community” involves the interplay of many factors. Thus the factors of environment, kin group, interrelations between groups, etc. work together to define community. The Kaibito (rural population) are united by the environmental boundaries and kinship, and despite the social change that occurred when the population increased and environmental resources became scarcer, the “community boundaries have not disappeared” (p. 800). This is in contrast to the Tuba City population (“wage work community”) where social and environmental pressures have caused divisions amongst groups, thus it is lacking a definitive “community”. The social structure of Tuba City has been affected by the new “wage work” economy where the Kaibito “overflow population” can leave the reservation for wage work and return later (preserving community), unlike the Tuba City population.
CLARITY: 4
LINDSEY MARTIN Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Lieban, Richard W. The Dangerous Ingknatos: Illness and Social Control in a Philippine Community. American Anthropologist April, 1962 Vol.64(2):306-312
Richard W. Lieban uses Talcott Parsons’ thesis of illness and social control to begin an article looking closely at the medical aspects of social stability in a Philippine community named Sibulan. Here Lieban homes in on the supernatural concept of ingknatos, referring to spirits of illness that can assume human form. He mentions that while Sibulan is a Catholic community, the spiritual concept is very alive in the contemporary society. He adds that the ingknatos generally appear as attractive Malaysian Filipinos, Mestizos, or Caucasians, who are generally assumed to be of American or Spanish origin. They are rich and powerful. They are also dangerous, according to Lieban. He adds that contact with them can lead to illness or death. It is on this point Lieban is concerned with: the human experiences with ingkantos and the aftermath of these experiences.
Lieban’s 22-year-old male informant provides a graphic account describing an encounter with ingkantos and what followed thereafter. Among other details, a beautiful woman offered an expensive watch for exchange to the frightened young man. Lieban discusses three consistencies associated with such encounters. First, the ingkantos are generally seen in the opposite sex bearing sexual motifs with such intensity that even sexual intercourse with ingkantos has been reported. Second, contact is followed by illness. Contact can be overt or covert; covert encounters with ingkantos are generally found out after the onset of illness. Third, illnesses caused by contact with ingkantos are treated by a mananambal, a folk healer. Lieban also discusses social control. Certain socially accepted morals, such as avoiding greed as in the aforementioned case, are apparently tied into the belief of ingkantos. Evidence supporting Lieban’s article comes directly from his own field data (1958-59) in addition to cited references.
CLARITY RANKING: 5
LEN LOVING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Livingstone, Frank. Population Genetics and Population Ecology. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol.64(1):44-53.
Livingstone writes to demonstrate how a population’s gene pool is effected by the ecological niche it occupies (Livingstone 1962:46). Livingstone wrote this article in direct response to his contemporaries’ ideas on population genetics and ecology. Specifically, he uses the frequency of the sickle cell gene in Liberia as the basis for his study. Apparently, Livingstone’s research (1958) has led him to view agricultural techniques specific to certain environments within Liberia either support or undermine the frequency of the sickle cell gene and malaria related deaths.
To add support to his claims, Livingstone uses data from his contemporaries in neighboring regions to Liberia, such as: McFie’s study (1960) on sib mortality rates in southern Uganda; and Lehmann and Raper’s report (1956b) on environmental factors that lend to sickle cell related deaths. Though the equations Livingstone offers may look complicated, he carefully outlines and defines all of his mathematical terms. Ultimately, he concludes that the mortality rate influences the malaria rate and consequently the sickle cell gene. As carriers die from other environmental factors exacerbated by limited sources of nutrition, with them die their genetic donation of sickle cell. Livingstone began this article discussing the relationship between developed agriculture and population density with a high frequency of sickle cell. He concludes with admitting the circular nature of his own findings(Livingstone 1962:50-1) along with other issues that will plague future studies.
CLARITY: 3
ALLISON MUHAMMAD Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Livingstone, Frank B. Reconstructing Man’s Pliocene Pongid Ancestor. American Anthropologist April, 1962 Vol.64(2):301-305
Frank B. Livingstone’s article aims to retrace the steps of transition from ape to man. Mentioning that strong lines of evidence support the anatomical ties between man and the great apes of Africa, Livingstone believes there is a problem as to how such a generalized category could have evolved into our early ancestors. The article’s purpose ultimately is to attempt reconstructing these evolutional steps with certain consideration for the various pieces of evidence such as ecology, behavior and anatomy.
Livingstone’s argument is based on two assumptions: 1) the need for an open grassland or woodland environment and 2) geographic isolation. He relies on E. Mayr (1959) as evidential support for the latter. He also relies on J.R. Audy (1957) to provide sound ecological principle to support later commentary on the types of areas the apes lived in and the role of these areas on their inevitable development. The article also turns towards behavior. Livingstone includes a few redrawn figures based on photographs from Life Magazine (1960) to emphasize discussion on the apes’ bipedal tendencies during certain activities. He carries this line of thought into S.L. Washburn’s 1960 postulation that Australopithecines were not fully capable of bipedalism. The anatomical aspect of Livingstone’s argument leaves a question at the end of the article: “Did a change in lifestyle with respect to diminishing jaws and forearm predation play into trends of development that produced the hominids and the trend of hominid evolution from a generalized ape similar to the mountain gorilla?”
CLARITY RANKING: 3
LEN LOVING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Mathiot, Madeleine. Noun classes and Folk Taxonomy in Papago. American Anthropologist April 1962 vol. 64(2):340-350
The article takes a brief, albeit sophisticated look into linguistics. The author makes it clear in the beginning that not only is she testing the Whorf hypothesis, but also questioning, whether a pilot study is adequate for tracing affinities. For the purpose of the article, she limits the study to nouns within Papago, the Uto-Aztecan language of Arizona. Two questions are raised by Mathiot in the article are 1) “What is the function of the linguistic distinction within a taxonomic class?” and 2) “Does the linguistic distinction between two clearly distinct classes (individual vs. aggregate) have cultural correlates similar to that between two partially distinct classes (aggregate vs. mixed)?”
Utilizing standard linguistic methods of analysis along with comparison tables, Mathiot attempts to illustrate various points within the diagnosis. Finding no clear correlates, she falls back on H. Conklin’s (1960) definition of folk taxonomy. In addition, she also uses E. Nida’s proposed technique for semantic substitution to maintain her bearing in this argument. During her analysis she concludes that living things tend to be rendered in individual nouns, while items such as plants are “preponderantly aggregate nouns.”
In conclusion, Mathiot points to four inferences established by her study: “One relating to implicit folk taxonomy, one relating to the geometric rather than the arithmetic conception of the number category, one relating to the sliding-scale rather than two-value nature of Papago thinking, and finally, one relating to the predominance of perceptual over conceptual criteria in the Papago classification of experience.”
Mathiot uses her own data in addition to several references to support her argument and relevant findings. However, despite the specific references and attempts at relatively clear explanations, Mathiot’s article academically challenge the student Anthropologist understanding of the field of linguistics.
CLARITY RANKING: 3
LEN LOVING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Mayer, Philip. Migrancy and the Study of Africans in Towns. American Anthropologist June 1962 Vol.64(3):576-592.
Philip Mayer is concerned with the practical and theoretical issues arising during a study of migrancy in a South African town between 1955 and 1959. He argues that when studying migrancy, one must begin with the individuals and map out their networks of relations and note their parts in the structural systems. He states that it is necessary to pay close attention to the extra-town ties of the migrants living in town. Mayer compares the studies of the Rhodesian Copperbelt towns and his own study of migrancy in East London, Cape Province in South Africa.
First, Mayer discusses how appropriate existing modules (in 1962) for studying Africans in towns are for studying migrancy. These are models of alternation (switching back and forth between two systems) and of change (where the migrant abandons the extra-town roles and norms). He compares two local situations, those of Copperbelt and East London, looking at within-town ties and extra-town ties. In his discussion of types of people living in African towns he distinguishes between “real townsmen”, those who are adept in and value “town ways” and migrants who remain adept in their rural culture ways and easily slip into them on visits and on retirement there. In East London, migrants are further split between “Red” (traditionalists) and “School” (“mission and school products” [p.586]) people.
Mayer then discusses the categorical relations between and among three categories. Contrasts between them are only visible in non-work situations in town. He concludes that it is a worker’s personal choices and decisions that determine his social category. The two aspects of this study were the investigation of networks of personal relations and of behavior patterns, values, and attitudes. It is the extra-town ties and the migrant’s organization of life that create the migrant’s type. “This study of migrants … is a study of such choices and of the determinants that lie behind the choices” (p. 591).
CLARITY: 5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Montagu, Ashley. The Concept of Race. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):919-928
Ashley Montagu examines the history of the term “race” and its use by biologists, anthropologists and the lay public. Ultimately he advocates for the total cessation of any use of the concept, arguing that at its very outset, “race” is so value-laden a term as to make impossible any accurate description of the conditions or facts regarding specific human populations. Here, exposure to the concepts of “evolutionary theory” and “population genetics” is most helpful.
He uses quotes from earlier anthropological writings to show he is not alone in his objections and that others before him have suggested alternative terminology. T. Huxley (1865) preferred “stocks” or “persistent modifications.” Joseph Deniker (1900) used “ethnic groups,” a term later accepted by J. Huxley and A.C. Haddon (1936). Montagu further expands this definition as one of a number of breeding populations within the species Homo sapiens. These populations individually maintain differences by various isolating mechanisms. His chief objection to the term “race” is that it “takes for granted as solved, problems which are far from being so and tends to close the mind to problems to which it should always remain open”(pg. 920). He argues that taxonomies and terms should be designed to fit the facts and that “ethnic group” as a more general term leaves open possibilities for discovery. He takes issue with any use of the word “race” and cites examples of its inclusion in the works of Dunn and Dobzhansky and Coon and Garn. He asks why they can’t simply describe populations in terms of gene frequencies for “all that is necessary is to state the facts with reference to those populations”(pg.923).
In his conclusion, Montagu outlines the debate over whether using a term such as “ethnic group” says anything different than the term “race”. Does it present the possibility of a more accurate description of human diversity? He believes so. This debate continues.
CLARITY: 5
ANNE KATZ Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson / Sherylyn Briller)
Moss, Leonard. and Cappannari. Stephen C. Estate and Class in a South Italian Hill Village. American Anthropologist June, 1962 vol.64(2):287-300
In their study conducted between 1954-1956, Moss and Cappannari examine the pattern of social stratification in an agrarian hill village of Southern Italy. The study considers the current social roles of the villagers as compared to the patterns of feudal hierarchy indigenous since the dissolution of Imperial Rome.
In contrast to much of Southern Italy, Cortina d’Aglio (a pseudonym) had adopted individual land ownership under the reforms of the Code Napoleon in 1806 and thus offered the researcher the opportunity to observe the social mechanism through which class stratification continues, even after the dissolution of the hereditary landed estates, which formed the economic foundation of the feudal order. Significant land reform has been introduced in Southern Italy since WWII.
Using data from government records, focused interviews and a survey of household utilities as determinative of status, the authors discovered an agrarian economy largely concentrated on production for need rather than for a market; the absence of a viable bourgeoisie willing to invest in the local economy; the drain of young men to Rome, the U.S.A or Canada; a rigid bureaucracy; the monopolization of technology by the wealthy and the ideology of Roman Catholicism. Further, they observed that while no actual nobility remained nor was their a class of landless day laborers, the residents of Cortina d’Aglio still viewed their world as one of fixed class status and unalterable patterns prescribed by birth. “…the contemporary pattern is not a basic departure from the past,” Moss and Cappannari conclude and observed that la miseria, the seeming futility of individual endeavor, remains the pervasive malady of South Italy.
Leonard Moss is the former Chairperson of the Department of Anthropology at Wayne State University.
CLARITY: 5
MARTHA DOWLING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Munn, Nancy D. Walbiri Graphic Signs: An Analysis. American Anthropologist Vol. 64(5):972-984
Nancy Munn outlines an approach to the analysis of graphic signs of the Walbiri people of western Australia. She believes that it is possible to extend this analysis to signs found in Central Australia because, although they have been richly described, little is understood of their semantics and relation to larger contexts of usage in Australia. Exposure to linguistics will be helpful to the reader.
She begins with a brief description of the Walbiri cultural and social structure. Religious ideology centers on totemic beings that emerged from the ground during the ancestral period and traveled the country. Graphic signs stand as surrogates for these ancestors and are identified with particular patrilineages. Each element in these designs has meaning and conveys information about ancestral events. Munn describes which members of the society use certain signs and when. For example, men’s signs are kept secret from women and children and appear in body painting, sand and on ceremonial objects, in contrast to women’s signs, which have little secrecy and are shown to both sexes. She states that despite the differences in use, these signs all share certain structural features and that the recognition of the unity of the system is essential and critical to the interpretation of the semantics.
In order to demonstrate the unity of the system, Munn devotes much of the article to the explanation of the various elements contained within the designs. She states that although the concern of her paper has been with graphic structure, an interesting anthropological question to ask is how these designs or end products came to acquire socio-cultural significance. She gives examples of how these designs are combined with other forms of communication such as narrative story telling and use of metaphor, however, she only hints at the possible relationships. Her aim was to present some general features of a single graphic system in order that they be applied to the analysis of similar systems.
CLARITY: 4
ANNE KATZ Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson / Sherylyn Briller)
Newman, Marshall. Ecology and Nutritional Stress in Man. American Anthropologist February, 1962. Vol.(64)1:22-34.
Ecology and Nutritional Stress in Man is not just a tale of gross morbidity, but an excellent address of the factors that humans contend with for more than just a quality life but their very survival. Marshall Newman expounds upon three factors that effect the quality of human life: 1- ecological factors, 2- cultural factors, and 3- biological factors. Within the latter categories are a host of interconnected facets that Newman argues lead to a gamut of health crises and high mortality in human beings.
Within the ecological factor, are the nuances of how climate effects the dietary needs, the disease environment, and carrying capacity of the living area (Newman 1962:22). Relying on researchers like Clarke (1953), Newman begins his article with the well established dietary needs of individuals based on whether they live in a warm or cold climate . In addition, he discusses the opportunistic nature of diseases when it comes to these dietary needs. Finally, Newman lands on the development of agricultural technologies as the element that tips the scale in favor human health(Newman 1962:24).
Newman’s article rests on the premise that agricultural technologies improve human health. Though Newman alludes to cultural factors impacting nutritional stress, he does not discuss in detail socio-economic status, cultural history, colonialism, war or industrialization (Newman 1962:26) in the distribution of food sources. Specifically, he cites studies conducted by Howe and Schiller (1952) on the economic conditions that effected the stature of school children in Germany;also, Ivanovsky’s study (1923) on the effects of famine in Russia. He accredits abnormalities and retardation to malnutrition and undernutrition; both of which makes humans susceptible to diseases. Yet, Newman still does not address cultural factors as part and parcel of nutritional stress. He spends more time discussing the actual nature of the various biological conditions that result from war, famine, underdeveloped agricultural technologies, etc. Though the article lacks some of the ethnographical details contemporary writers tend to include, this article is excellent for student who are unfamiliar with the biological conditions resulting from varying degrees of nutritional stress.
CLARITY: 4
ALLISON MUHAMMAD Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Newman. Marshall T. Evolutionary Changes in Body Size and Head Form in American Indians. American Anthropologist June, 1962 Vol. 64 (2): 237-257
Newman’s 1961 presentation to the Association of Physical Anthropologists evaluates the evidence for evolutionary or genetically-based changes in stature and head shape among American Indians. Newman’s specific concern is to determine a pattern of correlation between climate and stature as well as an overall trend toward brachycephaly (round headedness) in the Indian populations of the New World, exclusive of those changes which are the product of gene flow (population intermarriage) or which may be mainly attributable to acclimatization.
Using data from previous studies which could be adjusted for environmental and cultural anomalies (the practice of head deformation), Newman focused on four areas where cultural continuity could be established from the Archaic Period to the living populations of the present: the Eastern United States, the Pueblo area and Sacramento Valley of the West, the Valley of Mexico and Highland Guatemala and portions of western South America. The study statistically demonstrated increases in stature among peoples whose ancestors had previously been shorter and decreases in stature among populations whose predecessors had formerly been taller, with populations closest to the equator evolving toward shortness while those in temperate areas evolved toward greater height. Newman further observed a general tendency in New World populations away from dolichocephaly and toward brachycephaly. The study also ruled out the strict correlation of depression of stature and brachycephaly as increased roundness of the skull was shown to occur in instances of increased rather than depressed height in the data.
In conclusion, Newman proposes that documentary evidence supports change over time within New World populations which clearly represents long-term genetic adaptations to environment. Further, the practical ramifications of such an evolutionary history would suggest that rather than many separate migrations to the New World there may have been as few as two with those populations being transformed in the Americans, as Newman characterizes it “made in America.”
CLARITY: 4.5
MARTHA DOWLING Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Norbeck, Edward, Donald E. Walker, Mimi Cohen. The Interpretation of Data: Puberty Rites. American Anthropologist June, 1962 Vol.64(3):463-485.
The authors write that it is necessary, when making assumptions and interpretations about societies or when doing cross-cultural comparisons, that researchers be attentive to the significance of traits studied within their own cultures, that they be aware of the cultural context of the traits. The categories formed should be derived from a meaningful cultural context. They examine the publication of Whiting, Kluckhohn, and Anthony ( Whiting, J. W. M., Richard Kluckhohn, and Albert Anthony, 1958, The function of male initiation ceremonies at puberty. In. Readings in social psychology, E. E. Maccoby, T. M. Newcomb, and E. L. Hartley, eds.) as an example of a specific interpretation used to “account for the presence and absence of these ritual events and generalizations on the significance of the rites that presumably apply to all societies” (p. 463). Whiting’s study was also, according to the authors, an example of a trend of quantified research, then current, they felt was plagued with difficulties.
Norbeck, Walker, and Cohen examined the methods used, reviewed the presented interpretations for the societies covered, and discussed the validity of the assumptions made and the presented conclusions. Available data from the Human Relations Area Files for seven individual societies also in Whiting’s study was used to compare interpretations of ethnographic data. The authors state that by not examining for the cultural context of the concerned variables, phenomena of different universes may be included in a single category. They also examined the methodology and the problems of verification, questioning the definition of puberty rites, the statistical techniques used, and present alternative hypotheses. The conclusion reiterates the need for close attention to the cultural context of selected variables, consideration of ideal versus actual behavior, and acknowledges the fact that adequate data on an exotic culture is rare and that events need more than a single set of circumstances to be explained.
CLARITY: 5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Opler, Morris E. Two Converging Lines of Influence in Cultural Evolutionary Theory.American Anthropologist June 1962 Vol.64(3):524-547.
Morris E. Opler disputes a statement made by Betty Meggers in her essay published in 1960 (The Law of cultural evolution as a practical research tool. In Essays in the Science of Culture. Gertrude E. Dole and Robert L. Carnerio, eds. New York, Thomas Y. Crowell Company), that the view of the relationship of energy and cultural evolution was first stated in 1943 by an American Anthropologist. He states that evolutionary scientism and Marxism were doctrines already well established by the turn of the 20th century.
Opler supports his argument with a detailed examination of the writings of Wilhelm Ostwald, a neo-evolutionist, and G. V. Plekhanov, a Marxist. He points out in Ostwald’s writing where he taught that the amount of energy controlled and the efficiency of the technology of using this energy is that which culture and cultural evolution depended upon; that Ostwald emphasized the social and collective rather than the individual; that science would overcome human difficulties and provide for needs and that organized religion clouds the mind due to its static and non-evolutionary nature. The other line of influence Opler refers to is Marxism as represented in the essays of G. V. Plekhanov on the origin and development of art which is based on anthropological materials. Opler states that Plekhanov gives a very clear view of the Marxist view of “the dependence of the social organizational and the ideological upon the technological” (p. 541).
CLARITY: 5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Parker, Seymour. Eskimo Psychopathology in the Context of Eskimo Personality and Culture. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol64(1):76-96.
Seymour Parker writes to explore the socio-cultural basis of hysteria amongst Eskimo populations (Parker 1962:76). Initially, Parker did a literature search to build a model of the Eskimo personality and culture. He used the work of several researchers including: Weyer (1932) and Jenness (1959) who attribute Eskimo hysteria to geo-environmental causes (i.e. Prolonged winter darkness, isolation); Ehrstrom (1951) who attributes levels of acculturation to types of psychotic episodes; Ackernecht (1948), Aberle (1952), and Yap (1951) write hysteria appears more in non-literate societies than in Western societies; and finally, Peary (1910) and Brill (1912) attribute hysteria to Eskimo women that were abused. These studies stigmatized the poor, women, non-literates, and ethnic minorities as more apt to display psychotic tendencies, such as hysteria.(Parker 1962:80); beyond the obvious offensive nature of such characterizations Parker attempts to find the socio-cultural basis for such behavior.
Ultimately, Parker finds links between child rearing and religious practices and hysteria. He writes that because Eskimo children are breast fed and comforted at the slightest sign of discomfort, Eskimos grow to be adults that have a high expectation for instant gratification from their community. Hysterical fits, like a child’s tantrums, brings immediate attention from the community and gratification. Furthermore, Eskimo religious practices seem centered around responses to misfortune ( i.e. use of protective amulets) rather than the maintenance of a relationship with a deity. Possession of a shaman, termed religious hysteria, in communal settings draw in other participants in order to ward off a foreign spirit, drive off misfortune, and control the supernatural (Parker 1962:89). Parker concludes by stating that “hysteria-like” behavior is permitted in Eskimo culture. Individuals are trained from birth to expect gratification after a fit from discomfort (1962:93.
CARITY: 5
ALLISON MUHAMMAD Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Plotnicov, Leonard. Fixed Membership Groups: The Locus of Cultural Processes. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol.64 (1): 97-103.
The topics of Leonard Plotnicov’s article Fixed Membership groups: The Locus of Cultural Processes is an analysis of social groupings that facilitate cultural change. The article defines two kinds of social groupings. The first analyzed is flexible membership groups, social groups based on an ideology or goal as its reason for existence, where members are of secondary importance as instruments in obtaining the group’s goals. In the other category, fixed membership groups, membership is generally lifelong and preservation of the group and satisfaction of its members is valued above all else.
After defining and contrasting both social groupings, the article successfully argues that cultural change occurs more readily in fixed membership social groups. Flexible membership groups may alter members and experiment with social structure. However, manipulating the groups goals and value systems would change the group’s reason of existence and by definition destroy the group. In contrast, members of fixed membership groups may influence and adjust the group’s culture without fear of losing membership. This membership guarantee permits cultural experimentation and facilitates cultural change, whereas experimentation in a flexible membership puts the member at risk of losing status in the group.
Plotnicov’s article argues in systematic format with sensible examples. The article’s basic argument and comprehensive reasoning make it an excellent selection for the introductory cultural anthropologist.
CLARITY: 4
CHRISTIAN VANNIER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Reining, Conrad C. A Lost Period of Applied Anthropology. American Anthropologist June 1962 Vol.64(3):593-600.
This article is concerned with the views of the practical values of anthropology (i.e., applied anthropology) that were current during the 1860’s in England and Europe. Conrad Reining argues that the practical values of anthropology were referenced at the time that anthropology and ethnology were being recognized as scientific fields of study in the early 1830s. The early anthropologists felt that the field held “limitless potentiality for the betterment of man[sic]” (p.595). The article is very short, so review is difficult.
CLARITY: 5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Sanders, William. Cultural Ecology of Nuclear Mesoamerica. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol. 64 (1): 34-44
Cultural Ecology of Nuclear Mesoamerica by William Sanders outlines in a very unembellished manner the value of ecological theory applied to archaeology. By first defining the ecological conditions necessary for the development of pre-Iron age “Old World” civilizations, the article attempts to apply those conditions to the independently developed “New World” civilizations of the Mesoamerican and Andean regions. In the analysis, the article examines the principle imperfection of such a comparison, that the New World civilizations developed under much more ecological diversity than the Old civilizations. However, focusing on a defined area of “nuclear” Mesoamerica, the article proceeds to outline the growth and spread of civilizations in this area within the context of suitable ecological conditions for intensive agriculture. Intensive agriculture, Sanders argues, leads to urbanization and specialization, these are the base conditions for civilization. The beginnings and development of complex cultures are similar in both the Old World and the New. However, differing ecological conditions prevents Sanders from linking environment and agricultural systems to the development of large-scale complex societies such as the Inca or classical Egyptian civilizations.
The article begins straightforward and in an outline format. Combined with the tendency to present a definition for every concept, the article is very easy to read. However, the author has a tendency to tangent into his own work and stray from the articles main argument.
CLARITY: 3
CHRISTIAN VANNIER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Shepardson, Mary. Value Theory in the Prediction of Political Behavior: The Navajo Case.American Anthropologist August, 1962 Vol.64(4):742-750.
Mary Shepardson’s article is set within the theoretical context of societal change. Shepardson focus on Evon Z. Vogt’s ideas of social change and the “directional processes in a society” (p. 742). Both Shepardson and Vogt are interested in “values systems” of the Navajo and the author builds her argumentation around Vogt’s statement that the Navajo value system “…may have a decisive effect upon the direction the processes (“of change”) will take” (p. 742).
Shepardson’s basic argument involves a historical approach. In this case the author hoped “…to see if this change could have been predicted or was predicted from an identification of the value system of the society” (p. 742). This social change involves “…the institutionalization of a modern political system (the Navajo Tribal Council)” (p. 742). The authors own research and a review of the literature provide the necessary evidence.
Shepardson takes this evidence and poses six questions regarding Navajo values and social change. She found that “…the value system has not had a decisive effect on the direction of political change” (p. 748). The “traditional” value system of the Navajo was influential in politics, however some of these values have changed due to “…the need to comprise with Anglo values” (p. 746). The author concludes, “situational factors bring about changes even in the value system itself” (p. 748). For example, the Navajo value Tribal Council due to the ability it provides for them to remain as a Tribe. It fosters “peaceful co-existence with non-Indians” (p. 748), and this represents a “situational factor” that influenced traditional values. Traditional values changed by “rationalizing” the usefulness of the Tribal Council. Thus one cannot completely rely on values to predict political changes since values change over time. Other factors (economy and environment) also cause social change. Hypothesizing about changes in political systems is suggested.
CLARITY: 5
LINDSEY MARTIN Wayne State University (Dr.Beverly Fogelson)
Shirley, Robert W. & A. Kimball Romney. Love Magic and Socialization Anxiety: A Cross-Cultural Study. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol.64(5):1028-1031.
The proposition that “love magic is most elaborated in societies with high sexual anxiety”, central to theories presented by Malinowski, Rosenthal, Siegel and others, is being tested in a cross-cultural investigation of the relationship between anxiety and magic.
A quote by Malinowski provides the starting point: “Magic is based on specific experience of emotional states in which man observes not nature but himself, in which the truth is revealed not by reason but by the play of emotions upon the human organism.” The authors clarify his statement, stating that “(Malinowski) is suggesting that magic is helpful to the individual in reducing painful anxiety. The magical structure of a culture reflects the basic anxieties of that culture, much as dreams may reflect the internal anxieties of an individual.” (cf. D’Andrande 1961)
The authors proceed to define “love magic” as “magical activity designed to win a desired sex object.” They specify later in the article that love magic is a ritual that does not use any physical or psychological mechanism, such as rape, bribery or aphrodisiacs. They observe that cultures having the greatest amount of sexual anxiety have the most elaborate magical means of indirectly stimulating a member of the opposite sex. The authors hypothesize that in cultures that do not allow direct solicitation, or produce personalities that exhibit high levels of sexual anxiety that make direct solicitation impossible, “coping and compensatory magic should develop to reduce the anxiety.” To test the hypothesis, Shirley and Romney use a quantitative method, applying Whiting and Child’s ratings of sexual anxiety as the independent variable, and the authors’ own rating of love magic as the dependent variable. Their findings are consistent with other related studies, suggesting severe sex training, associated with elaborate menstrual taboos and prolonged sex taboos during pregnancy, correlate with the presence of elaborate love magic rituals.
CLARITY: 5
CHRISTINE MILLER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Troike, Rudolph C. The Origins of Plains Mescalism. American Anthropologist October, 1962 Vol. 64(5):946-963
Rudolph Troike examines past data and conclusions in order to more completely define the main form of Plains mescalism. On the basis of ethnographic and archeological evidence, he attempts to show mescalism’s origins and diffusion patterns and its relationship to peyotism, another form of North Mexican ritual narcotism. This article assumes a knowledge of and familiarity with various Native American groups, their associations, histories and geographic locations. While organizationally clear, without this necessary background, the author’s arguments can be difficult to follow. It was for this reader.
Troike reviews the research of Howard, La Barre and Campbell on mescal bean use and attempts to classify various ritual uses into four categories. Of these, he describes the “mescal bean medicine society” as being the most elaborate and important. The ritual consisted of a dance that was associated with harvest ceremonies, war and hunting and deer and elk symbolism. A drink, made from the mescal bean, was taken as a purifying emetic, intoxicant and as an amulet. By comparing and contrasting the presence or absence of the ritual’s significant features in surrounding Native American groups, Troike comes to view the ritual as representing a “syncretism of elements from diverse sources” (pg. 949). He also maintains this ritual to be a more recent development in comparison to the far longer history of general mescaline use.
Of the relationship between mescalism and peyotism, Troike again examines available research data. He argues that there is no data to support the idea that one complex derives from the other. Rather mescalism and peyotism were “similar regional manifestations of North Mexican ceremonial narcotism” (pg. 960). When peyote entered the Plains it was adapted into existing ceremonial patterns, just as the mescal bean had been adapted before it.
CLARITY: 4
ANNE KATZ Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson )
Weingrod, Alex. Reciprocal Change: A Case Study of a Moroccan Immigrant Village in Israel. American Anthropologist February, 1962 Vol. 64 (1):115-131.
Alex Weingrod’s article Reciprocal Change: A Case Study of a Moroccan Immigrant Village in Israel is exactly that. The article is a lengthy study of the mutual effects of culture contact. Weingrod argues that too much study of culture contact and change focuses on the change of a dominated minority in a society without examining the effects on the culture of the dominant majority. The article calls for anthropologists to study different sorts of change and develop a more adequate theory of contact and cultural change. The article, as support for Weingrod’s argument, uses the case study of Judaic Moroccans immigrating to farming cooperatives in Israel. The article categorizes the cultural adoptions immigrants underwent in a new environment; in particular, cultural reinterpretation of a government sponsored and supplied cooperative village system into something more representative of their own cultural ideals. The government cooperative system itself underwent, in the article’s terms, “institutional adjustment”, that is adjusting the cooperative system as the villagers reinterpreted it. Although the case study thoroughly documents cultural adaptations by the immigrating villagers, the article spends little time documenting changes by the government cooperative village agency, and the reader is left wondering if an agency is able to change its own culture.
There is little doubt of the reciprocal aspects of cultural contact and the article succeeds in making its point. However, the article is as a well-documented case study of cultural adaptation to a cooperative economic system, how the people adapt and how the system itself adapts.
CLARITY: 4.5
CHRISTIAN VANNIER Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Willey, Gordon R. The Early Great Styles and the Rise of the Pre-Columbian Civilizations American Anthropologist February 1962 Vol.64(1):1-10.
Gordon Willey sets out to find out what the two styles of art, Chavin and Olmec, had to do with the first stirrings of civilization in the Peruvian and Mesoamerican areas. If indeed, they held a role in the rise of civilization in these two areas of the world.
Willey first begins the article with a description of the Olmec and the Chavin style of art and his appreciation for both. Olmec art has a central theme of a jaguar-human being. There are several anthropomorphic representations, and they have found stelae and monuments of some elderly men with aquiline noses and that have some feline feature. This art style had little to no detail and this style is the one that depicts the human body the most. With the Chavin style of art the theme is about the same, only that there is an emphasis in the animal attributes rather than in the human body. There is also detail in the free empty space, and is filled with secondary heads. Both Peruvian and Mesoamercian villages were farming societies. Willey states that it all began when the Olmec ceremonial center of La Venta was founded in Tabasco, while this was going on similar developments were happening in Peru. The evidence that he uses to state that there was communication between the two places was that, the Mesoamerican Maize appeared in coastal Peru and, the maize was assimilated into the local agricultural economies of the community. The second piece of evidence that he uses to establish this communication tie is that soon after the maize showed up, that the Peruvians started to build ceremonial mounds similar to the Olmec. He goes further and states that the Chavin art style came shortly after these two events. The village farming societies were now undergoing a transformation to become temple center-and -village societies which could be the threshold of Pre-Columbian life. The area between Peru and Mesoamerica did not posses great style of art and, that may be the reason why they did not flourish into civilizations. This gave the evidence needed to state that the art styles had a role in the rise to the status of civilization. The article also talks about the fact that the art styles had to be religious expressions, and religion is what lies at the base of the civilization. Willey concludes his article by saying that religion and art styles maybe the beginnings of a civilization that there is not for sure telling to that fact since anthropology is about understanding the continuous change rather then find the exact beginning.
CLARITY: 5
IVONNE CALITO Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)
Yallman, Nur. The Structure of the Sinhalese Kindred: A Re-Examination of the Dravidian Terminology. American Anthropologist June 1962 Vol.64(3):548-575.
Nur Yalman is concerned with the function of Dravidian kinship categories (often associated with exogamous unilineal descent groups) that regulate marriage and sexual relations in bilateral and endogamous kindreds. He states that the Dravidian terminology has a connection with a “prescriptive, bilateral, cross-cousin marriage rule” (p. 548). Yalman uses the Sinhalese kindred as the example and feels this argument is relevant to other groups in South India and Ceylon also. The categories form an “ideal” structure and specify “correct” marriage partners for members of a kin group. “Wrong” marriages are fitted into the structure. He suggests that the kin group provides the greatest impetus for conforming to the prescriptive mating rules and formal categories.
Yalman uses data gathered during his own fieldwork in Ceylon and data of other ethnographers of relevant groups in South India and Australia. He thoroughly describes the Sinhalese kinship of peasants of the dry zone of Ceylon, claims on property and the rights of women, the kindred as a “Micro-caste”, and the rules and categories of kinship. The kindred forms the foundation of all factions in a village, influences its members and is formed around the expectation of mutual support and assistance. Yalman discusses the rules of marriage that are embedded in the terminology. He discusses how the form of the terminology serves the function of regulating marriages in the internal structure of Sinhalese kindreds. In the last section Yalman discusses comparative data from other groups and castes in Ceylon and South India. He concludes that because kindreds of the Sinhalese type exist in Ceylon and South India the function of the terminology applies in those cases and may also be relevant to Australia where similar rules are used. He felt that more discussion of these points would be valuable.
CLARITY: 4.5
JUDITH FLECK Wayne State University (Dr. Beverly Fogelson)
Zengel, Marjorie Literacy as a Factor in Language Change. American Anthropologist February 1962 Vol.64(1):132-139.
The main idea of the article is to test the impact that mass literacy has on the stability of the vocabulary of language. Zengel begins by first stating that literacy is what holds the language in a conservative form and that the literacy of people should reflect this fact. She goes about proving this setting up two test lists, where words will be analyzed as to their retention rates. The first list consists of 32 words called the Swadish List. The second list consists of legal words. She then managed to have retention rates for the words that did survive. How she went about this, is not clearly stated. She has set up a bad example for her evidence, she states so herself, that there are to many issues against this example since we do not know how often outside of the legal content these words were used. She ended up proving something different other than her original thesis, and that is that vocabulary changes at different rates of speed in different semantic categories. There were tables provided but there was no legend on how to read or interpret this information. There were citations that were not relevant to the reader. You would need more background knowledge in linguistics, to understand many of the ideas that she is trying to convey. Overall this article was not clear and the example was not the best, she did not talk about the effect of literacy on the change in vocabulary rather she took a tangent route.
CLARITY: 2
IVONNE CALITO Wayne State University (Beverly Fogelson)