UNIT10 CONTEMPORARYTHEORIES

 Introduction to Paradigm Shift in Anthropology

• Paradigm Shift in the 1970s:
  • Shift from evolution to functional aspects in anthropology.
  • Recognition of human uniqueness: creativity and capacity to symbolize.
  • Infeasibility of mechanistic models of human behavior.

Major Transformations

• Diversification of Academic Community:
  • Inclusion of previously marginalized groups: women, native anthropologists, and others.
  • Shift from male and white-centric perspectives.
• Post-Colonial Critique:
  • Questioning of earlier positivist approaches and assumptions.
  • Recognition of multiple forms of colonization and marginalization.

Voices of the Marginalized

• Multiple Perspectives:
  • Mainstream and marginal women (e.g., Afro-American, Muslim, Dalit women).
  • Internal colonization affecting tribals and Dalits in India.
• Emergence of New Perspectives:
• Result of power shifts and diversification in the world.

Symbolism in Anthropology

• Culture as a System of Symbols:
  • Culture consists of symbols, each with specific meanings.
  • Symbols represent something without inherent physical relationships.
  • Language is a prime example of symbolic behavior unique to humans.

1. Understanding Symbols:

   • Symbols are representations without inherent relationships to what they signify.
   • The arbitrary nature of symbols leads to numerous languages and dialects.
   • Cultural symbols include dress codes, scripts for actions, signs, gestures, words, and actions.

2. Levels of Meaning:

   • Actor Level: Direct meanings understood by participants (e.g., national flag symbolizing freedom).
   • Higher Level: Broader societal functions requiring deductive reasoning.

3. Historical Context of Symbolic Analysis:

   • Analysts like Victor Turner, Edmund Leach, and Sherry Ortner led early symbolic analysis.
   • The prerogative of meaning was held by scholars, often positioning themselves in a place of privilege.

4. Victor Turner's Analysis:

   • Focused on rituals and their societal functions.
   • Example: Isoma ritual among the Ndembu, symbolizing obligations to ancestors.
   • Rituals serve to channel emotions and maintain social harmony.

5. Edmund Leach’s Symbolic Analysis:

   • Example: Symbolism of annual rituals like Holi, involving role reversals and societal reset.
   • Concept of reversal marking the beginning of a new cycle.

6. Van Gennep’s Life Cycle Rituals:

   • Three stages: Separation, Liminality, Incorporation.
   • Example: Marriage transitioning individuals to new social statuses.

7. Sherry Ortner’s Key Symbols:

   • Summarizing Symbols: Pack extensive meanings into a single item (e.g., national flag).
   • Elaborating Symbols:
     • Key Scenarios: Scripts simplifying social events (e.g., Ramlila in India).
     • Root Metaphors: Central aspects of culture guiding understanding (e.g., cattle for the Nuer).

8. Importance of Contextualization:

• Cultural traits, customs, and behaviors have underlying, multifaceted meanings.
• Ethnographic methods are essential to uncover true meanings.

Interpretative Theory in Anthropology

• Interpretative Theory (Clifford Geertz):
  • Cultures are systems of meaning interlinked and contextualized within the entire system.
  • Human beings are embedded in and reproduce these webs of significance.

1. Culture as a System of Meaning:

   • Entire cultures are systems of interconnected meanings.
   • Each part of the culture is explainable only by understanding its context within the larger system.
   • Example: Hindu cultural system includes sacred beings, places, and prescribed behaviors, all linked to a larger cosmology.

2. Enculturation and Reproduction:

   • Individuals are born into cultural systems and learn meanings through enculturation.
   • Everyday practices reproduce these systems of meaning.
   • Sacredness and behaviors in Hindu culture are examples of this reproduction.

3. Critique of Positivism:

   • Geertz critiqued the positivist approach, which sought laws in anthropology.
   • He argued for an interpretative approach focused on understanding meanings.

4. Thick Description:

   • Essential for interpretative theory.
   • Involves uncovering deeper layers of meanings in cultural acts.
   • Considers both the actor's intentions and the analyst's interpretations.
   • Questions to ask: What was the act meant to be? Why was it enacted? How does it fit into the larger cultural context?

5. Public Meanings:

   • Culture is composed of public meanings understood by the community.
   • Meanings make acts intelligible within society.
   • Culture is a context, not just physical acts, but their meanings.

6. Anthropologist's Role:

   • Engage with members of the culture to understand their perspectives.
   • Focus on the informal logic of everyday life to grasp cultural meanings.
   • Descriptions should retain the living aspects of culture, even if they are long and fuzzy.

7. Examples of Thick Description:

• Balinese Cockfight: Detailed cultural context and meanings.
• Markets in Java: Exploration of the informal logic of marketplace interactions.

Post-Colonial and Post-Modern Critique in Anthropology

• Modernist Anthropology:

  • Rooted in Positivism; belief in objective, immutable truths.
  • Dominated by Euro-American scholars.

• Post-Modern Anthropology:

  • Emerged post-WWII and decolonization.
  • Questions fixed truths, embraces deconstruction.
  • Emphasizes multiple perspectives and voices.

1. Modernist Anthropology:

   • Positivism:
     • Belief in objective reality, immutable truths.
     • Truth exists outside the subjective self.

2. Post-Modern Critique:

   • Philosophers & Thinkers:
     • Derrida, Foucault, Wittgenstein, Homi Bhabha, Spivak.
     • Challenged fixed truths, promoted deconstruction.
   • Decolonization Impact:
     • Rise of non-Western and female intellectuals.
     • Diverse voices replacing the white, male, Western dominance.

3. Post-Colonial Critique:

   • Non-Western Scholars:
     • Edward Said, Talal Asad, Gayatri Spivak, Lila Abu-Lughod.
     • Critiqued biases in the study of the 'Other'.
   • Western Critics:
     • Eric Wolf, James Clifford, Stephen Tyler.
     • Questioned established truths and methodologies.

4. Critique of Objectivity:

   • Subjectivity in Anthropology:
     • Recognition of the anthropologist's bias and emotional connection to the field.
     • Malinowski's Diary revealed personal biases and emotional responses.
   • Gender Bias:
     • Annette Weiner's restudy of Malinowski’s field revealed the importance of women's work.
     • Highlighted the significance of gender in anthropological research.

5. Doxa and Constructed Realities:

   • Pierre Bourdieu's Concept:
     • Doxa: Unquestioned aspects of life, taken as given but actually constructed.

6. Power Hierarchies and Terminology:

   • Colonial Impact:
     • Terms like ‘tribe’, ‘wild’, ‘modern’, ‘traditional’ served colonial administration and dominance.
   • Critique of Simplification:
     • Eric Wolf critiqued the biased use of concepts like modernity and development, often idealizing the USA.

7. Contemporary Critiques:

• Marginalized Scholars:
  • Dalit and tribal scholars in India critiquing mainstream scholarship.
  • Focus on experiential reality, reflexivity, and empirical data.
• Role of History and Identity:
• Importance of documented and oral history.
• Focus on self-identity and societal codification.

Feminist Critique in Anthropology

• Deconstruction of Male-Centric Discipline:
  • Anthropology in the colonial period was predominantly white and male-centric.
  • Feminism aims to transform women from objects into subjects.

1. Feminist Approach in Anthropology:

   • Focus on Power Differentiation:
     • Highlights power imbalances between men and women.
     • Assumes some form of universal subordination.
   • Critique of Cultural Relativism:
     • Early feminists were critical of cultural relativism.
     • Example: Margaret Mead's work showed that gender roles are culturally constructed, not biologically determined.

2. Challenges to Early Feminism:

   • Criticism by Diverse Groups:
     • Non-white, non-Western, LGBTQ+, and others criticized early feminist essentialism.
     • Highlighted the diversity of issues faced by different groups.
   • Examples of Diverse Perspectives:
     • African-American women criticized the focus on sexual liberation, emphasizing dignity and life quality.
     • Dalit women in India focused on poverty, lack of resources, and exploitation rather than issues like widow marriage.

3. Contributions of Feminism:

   • Alternative Worlds and Knowledge:
     • Showed possibilities of alternative ways of knowing.
     • Deconstructed taken-for-granted truths, including the concept of ‘science’.
   • Critique of Science:
     • Scholars like Donna Haraway and Susan Harding critiqued the male-centric bias in science.
     • Introduced the concept of ‘situated knowledge’ – recognizing the partiality of scientific knowledge.

4. Methodological Changes:

   • Humanizing the Object of Knowledge:
     • Recognizes the subjects of study as actors and agents, not mere objects.
     • Emphasizes an interactive process in data generation and analysis.
   • Contextualized Analysis:
     • All analysis is contextualized, avoiding sweeping generalizations.

5. Feminine Principles in Methodology:

   • Nurturing, Compassion, and Solidarity:
     • Feminine principles are now seen as life-giving and sustaining.
     • Embraced as desired qualities in both methodology and practice.