Anthropology is the study of humanity. It is a unique academic discipline in that it considers humans from a holistic perspective. This means that it considers all aspects of human life, including physical, cultural, and social dimensions. It is also multi-disciplinary, meaning that it draws on knowledge from a variety of different fields, including archaeology, linguistics, and sociology.
In this series of essays, we will explore some of the most fundamental concepts in anthropology. We will discuss topics such as culture, evolution, language, and religion. These essays are aimed at anyone who wants to learn more about this fascinating field!
Marx’s theory of alienation is the most prominent idea in his early writings, where he discussed the four ways in which alienation is experienced by the wage labourer.
If one only looks at domination, without also considering the countering forces of resistance, one ends up with a one-dimensional view of the power relations in a society.
Caste discrimination and segregation were rendered illegal over half a century ago, yet its power inequalities continue to impact the lives and opportunities of millions of Indians to this day.
Over time, as structural power shifts and new forms of knowledge are created, these act together to construct the consciousness of people, and through that by changing their interpretation of events occurring around them and the way they react to them.
Bloch’s studies of the Merina society in Madagascar highlight how religion and ritual are used to maintain power structures and reinforce social hierarchies. Meanwhile, Lienhardt’s analysis of Dinka rituals emphasizes the transformative impact of ritual on the moral experience of participants.
This essay shows how very personal the political can be, since power impacts the life chances of people, dictating their access to resources.
The categorisation of people crossing borders as ‘forced’ or ‘voluntary’ has serious ramifications for the people who are pigeon-holed into one category as opposed to another. For the purposes of this essay I will be defining ’forced’ migrations as consisting of refugees escaping violence and war, and ‘voluntary refugees’ as economic migrants moving to find … Read more
What constitutes illness and health are constructs that vary depending on the cultural context in which they are experienced. By looking at various ethnographic examples from around the world we can show how these concepts are defined differently in various cultures and societies. In this essay I will first discuss the definitions of illness and … Read more
Said’s Orientalism, which is widely regarded as one of the most influential works in post-colonial studies, had a major impact on the way we view, discuss and understand Western perceptions of other cultures.Said’s Orientalism, which is widely regarded as one of the most influential works in post-colonial studies, had a major impact on the way we view, discuss and understand Western perceptions of other cultures.
Representation refers to how ideas, beliefs, values, and other aspects of different societies and cultures are imagined, expressed, shared, and understood by others, in both language-based or visual form. This is considered ‘political’ because of considerations linked to who holds the power to create representations; whose voices are heard and amplified; which cultural practices are … Read more
