Cultural Anthropology Essay Research Paper There are free essay sample

Cultural Anthropology Essay, Research Paper There are tonss of countries of survey out at that place but the one field that intrigues peoples and civilisations is the existent survey of themselves and how they interact with other human civilizations. I don? t think that I would hold enrolled for this category if it hadn? T been for the minor demand in my concern major. Although this category started early in the forenoon and required a batch from me, I am glad that I took it. I grew up in two civilizations at the same time and the experiences I incurred have made me the individual I am today. I think that it is of import to familiarise yourself with other civilizations non merely in concern but it will help in drum sander concern minutess. In the undermentioned paragraphs I will discourse the comprehensiveness of cultural anthropology. Anthropology and the huge Fieldss that are included in the survey can non be summarized in one paper. I will try to cover every bit much as I can in the undermentioned pages. I will besides associate Anthropology to college pupils today and explicate the importance of understanding other civilizations. Finally I will lucubrate on some of the presentations that I liked the most and offer helpful intimations and remarks on those groups.The subject of anthropology surveies humankind in the civilizations of the universe, both past and present. This survey includes humankind # 8217 ; s physical development and the broad diverseness of life styles people have created. The chief end of Anthropology is to understand objectively the grounds for both similarities and differences among worlds, their behaviours and thoughts. Using the cardinal construct of civilization, a system of shared beliefs, values, imposts, behaviours, and material objects that members of a society usage to get by with their universe, anthropologists investigate and gather informations on the human status. Cultural anth ropology is a wide topic and non merely includes different ethic civilizations but societal economic civilizations every bit good. Cultural Anthropology seeks to understand and depict each civilization in its ain position and in comparative position. Cultural anthropologists gather informations through first-hand field survey in other civilizations and make cross-cultural comparative surveies which provide penetration and apprehension of the manners and forms of human life. In the group presentations, the group that did the Italian Mafia intrigued me and got me believing about subcultures within civilizations. It showed how deep cultural anthropology truly is. Analyzing about Italian immigrants and their manner of life is interesting as it is, but including a subgroup, a group that was non mentioned in official text editions is astonishing. The Mafia, which stands for household was originally practiced in Italy as a manner of assisting people and vicinities out. I remember seeing th e picture that the Mafia group did and the interview with one of the group member? s male parents. He had the stereotyped New York speech pattern and spoke really extremely of the original beliefs of the Mafia. He did nevertheless note that he did non back or excuse the illegal actions of the Mafia. I think this group did a really good occupation in their presentation. Their layout was really smooth and the subject of the Italian Mafia is ever an attending grabber merely because of the nature of the subject. I think that the overall comprehensiveness of anthropology is meaningful to me because I think that the more a individual knows about a subject the less they are to prejudge person or something before acquiring to cognize about it. The presentations were an first-class manner to present each group? s subjects and civilizations in an entertaining and enlightening manner. I don? t think that I would hold of all time known anything about? Hindu Marriages? or? Single Family African American Homes? if it weren? T for the presentations. I think that bias would be lessened if people were more educated with the civilizations and traditions of other races. This would forestall possible cultural clangs when difficult times originate, for case the LA public violences. During the LA public violences in South Central LA, African Americans destroyed Korean concerns utilizing the Rodney King finding of fact as an alibi. A few months before, a black male entered a Korean owned convenience shop and walked out with a instance of beer without paying for it. The clerk, who was a household member shooting and killed the victim. When it went to test and he was found non guilty of slaying, the black community was outraged and therefore the hate of Koreans by African Americans was started. If both groups had been educated more about each other? s differences and civilization this could hold been prevented.Cultural Anthropologists seek to understand both the cultural and single ba ses for behaviour ; and how political, economic, and societal factors affect both the persons and assorted groups. Although statistical and other quantitative methods are used, much of Cultural Anthropology is qualitative-descriptive. Classical anthropological fieldwork requires drawn-out abode ( of one or more old ages ) with a peculiar group in order to understand their manner of life. Until World War II, Cultural Anthropology focused particularly on non-Western civilizations, including Native American Indians, deriving a alone position on human life and behaviour. More late this position and fieldwork method have been applied every bit good to Western civilization. Peoples with anthropological preparation are actively employed in many Fieldss in which their anthropological preparation and cross-cultural positions are valuable. Some of the Fieldss are: investing banking ; international and domestic selling ; wellness attention ; forces work ; authorities ; advertisement ; Br oadcasting; law; social work; and many areas of business. Cultural anthropology is extremely relevant to students today more than ever because the United States is becoming more and more inhabited by cultures other than Anglo-Americans. Statistics predict that the Anglo race will become the ?minority? in the next 30 years and that mostly Hispanics and African Americans will contribute the next ethic explosion in the US. Therefore it is crucial that the educated youth of today have a firm grasp of the cultures that are around them. International business will be improved and ethnic bonds will be formed through understanding the other?s culture. This might not have been possible without the education of that group?s culture. The presentation of the ?Veil? was very informative because it showed me a different side of women wearing the veil. Before the presentation I looked at the veil as unfashionable attire worn by Middle Eastern women. After the presentation I realized that the veil represents the culture and magnifies the women who wear them. The American culture today does not really emphasize being pure in body before marriage and thus is the major reason why over 50% of marriages end in divorce after one year. The rate of divorce in Middle Eastern countries was next to none until recently. I believe that there is deeper meaning in this. The veil, to me signifies a pure unseen and untouched woman. A woman that is only to be enjoyed by her husband. As traditional and old fashion as that might seem, Middle Eastern marriages outlast most other cultures marriages in not having divorces.I liked most of the presentations that I observed. They were all unique and informative in their own way. All of the groups put much effort and time in producing quality skits and presentations. My favorite ones were the Italian Mafia and the Second-Generation Vietnamese. I have always been intrigued and fascinated by the actions and way of the Mafia. Growing up I remember watchi ng John Gotti on television and going through trial after trial only to be acquitted. I couldn?t help but cheer him on even though he was a ruthless villain. Some of my favorite mob movies are Donny Brasco, Mobsters, and Godfather. They represented a different side of entreprenauership and business other than the Rockefellers and Vanderbilt?s of their time. They had a different way of doing business and loyalty was valued above all else. The main difference between the mob and other successful ?straight? businessmen was the mob acted like a family or group. They oftentimes helped out poor Italian immigrants in need and provided and found jobs for poor families. Most Italian immigrants saw the mob as a hero figure kind of like a Robin Hood. They rooted for the mob leaders when they were arrested by the law and backed them up when they could. The Second Generation Vietnamese group interested me not only because I am Vietnamese but also because I see first hand what the past two genera tions of Vietnamese people have gone through. When my parents came here in 1979 with no money and little knowledge of American culture and language, they knew that it was going to be a struggle to get our family back on our feet. My father worked two jobs to support my family and my mother worked 9-5 and raised us. My parents and other Vietnamese parent?s generations had a strong work ethic and pushed their children to go to school. Most of the earlier second-generation kids did well in school and excelled in their professional fields because they had a strong family background with support and help. Today?s Vietnamese generation is a little different however because while our parents were working 2 jobs and running businesses 18 hours a day they didn?t have much time to spend with the younger kids and consequently a lot of young Vietnamese youths today are involved in gangs and teenage girls are getting pregnant. I think in general, they will be fine but they have to go through a d ifferent struggle than what I had to go through. When I speak to most Vietnamese kids today, the majority of them cannot or barely speak the language much less read or write in Vietnamese. In general I think that this group did a good job in presenting the differences between our parents and our generation.Cultural anthropology allows students to look at other cultures differently and understand a little better what that group has gone through to get to where they are today. This course has been a great help to me as well as the people that I have spoken to. The instructor did a great job in laying out the course and although there were a lot of assignments to be completed I think that they were necessary in order to gain a full learning experience of the entire field. At first I thought the fact that most groups were composed of same ethnic groups would be boring and that they would only talk about how good their group was. After watching and attending all of the presentations I fo und that to be completely opposite. By having members of those groups of the same race, they were able to join and share different views and experiences and provide a better overall and complete presentation for the viewers. After reviewing and summarizing everything that I have learned during this semester, I can confidently say that I am more educated in other cultures than I would have ever dreamed. I believe that the understanding of the culture around you and the cultures that inhabit the same planet as you enables you to make better and more informed decisions in both business and social interactions.