Ethnobotany Create individual contributions toward a collective ethnobotany. Create a collection of ethnobotanies that demonstrate the diversity of relations between various plants.
A Story by Bonnie L. Hewlett Divorce is a common feature of married life, both within our own culture and that of the Aka and Ngandu. How are their causes of divorce similar or different to causes of divorce in parts of the Western World? What would you consider to be potential benefits of polygyny? … Read more
Race García describes the reasons that race is considered a “discredited concept in human biology.” Despite this scientific fact, most people continue to believe that race is “real.” Why do you think race has continued to be an important social reality even after it has been discredited scientifically?Explain.
Magic, Belief, and Religion Durkheim argued that a distinction between the sacred and the profane was a key characteristic of religion. Thinking about your own culture, what are some examples of ideas or objects that are considered “sacred”? What are the rules concerning how these objects or ideas should be treated? What are the penalties … Read more
Race, Ethnicity and Class Based on what you have learned from readings and videos, how would you explain the concept of race? How has your own society’s concept of race shaped your life? Would your life be different if you were another race?
Social movements Answer the essay questions below. (12 points). The role of the police, as an institution, in society, including their relationships withsocial movements, is a central issue in contemporary American life. Are they a neutralforce who defend and protect the interests of the entire society? What is Alex Vitale’s argument with regard to this … Read more
Anthropological studies Anthropological studies of economic strategies challenges the assumption of conventional economics by analyzing societal behavior from a cross-cultural perspective. Anthropologists look at the relationship between economy and society in which it occurs through a critical examination by address factors such as exchange, production, consumption, property, and the social changes that have occurred in … Read more
Social stratification. Both race-based and caste-based systems of social stratification create barriers for some and opportunities for others. How are race and caste similar, and how are they different? And how do race-based and caste-based systems compare with respect to unequal treatment? Use specific examples from readings and lectures, and discuss Shah’s Nightmarch as part … Read more
Kinship What is kinship, and is it cultural or biological? Explain the differences between matrilineal, patrilineal, and bilateral kinship systems. Use specific examples from readings and lectures, and cite at least two course texts .
Gender and age. Are gender and age cultural or biological phenomena? How are gender and age used by different groups in different ways to organize society, the division of labor, and governance? Use specific examples from readings and lectures, and cite at least two course texts.
