Introduction to Cultural Anthropology (212)
Page Table of Contents
First Exam: Review Questions from Ethnographies
The Netsilik Eskimo: Preface, introduction and pages 1-22
What types of animals do the Netsilik utilize in their
everyday lives? How do they process these animals? What products come from them?
What four complexes compose Netsilik technology? Describe the important tools
associated with each complex
What changes has contact with outsiders brought to the Netsilik tool kit (i.e.
the types of tools they use), and their traditional way of life?
Describe the sexual division of labor among the Netsilik. Why do you think women
are allocated certain tasks and men others?
Yanomamö: The Fierce People: Forward, prologue, and pages 1-97
Forward and preface (v-xv); (1-3)
Geographically speaking, where are the Yanomamö discussed in Yanomamö: The
Fierce People located?
In what ways do the Yanomamö express themselves violently? What are the
repercussions of inter-personal violence in Yanomamö society?
In what ways is marriage a political process for the Yanomamö?
Chapter 1 (5-43)
Describe some of the difficulties faced by Chagnon during his field studies with
the Yanomamö.
Why did Rerebawä move from his home village of Karohi-teri to Bisassi-teri? What
anthropological term is associated with this kind of movement?
Why does Chagnon believe that it is important to study relatively uncontacted
tribal peoples such as the Yanomamö? What can they teach us?
Chapter 2 (45-97)
Describe the Yanomamo use of tools, their complexity and methods of manufacture.
What factors determine the size of a Yanomamo village?
What are the main ways in which the Yanomamo obtain food and which age-sex
groups participates in each?
What crops do the Yanomamo grow in addition to foodstuffs?
Why do headmen make larger gardens than other men in the village?
What pressures force certain Yanomamo villages make micro-movements?
What are some of the reasons behind village fissioning?
What is the “Great Protein Debate”? What are Chagnon’s views on it? What are the
Yanomamo’s views on it?
The Isthmus Zapotecs: Forward, preface, and pages 1-41
Introduction (1-5)
What does Chiñas mean when she describes the Isthmus Zapotecs as “matrifocal”?
Why is it important that the roles of women are focused upon in anthropology?
Chapter 1 (6-9)
In what ways has irrigation been important to the Isthmus Zapotecs?
Describe the variety of languages present on the Isthmus.
Chapter 2 (10-15)
How did contact with the Spanish in 16th Century affect the Isthmus Zapotec
population?
How have women been important politically to the Zapotec people, especially
prior to their independence?
Chapter 3 (16-22)
Describe the physical home of a typical Zapotec family.
What religion is practiced by most Zapotecs?
How is schooling different for girls than for boys? In what ways is schooling
used to benefit the household?
Chapter 4 (23-41)
What subsistence methods were employed by traditional Zapotecs? What changes did
Spanish settlers bring to the area?
Two varieties of land tenure are practiced on the Isthmus, private and communal.
Describe each of these and their functions.
In what ways is jewelry important to Zapotec women (and
their families)?
Describe the Zapotec sexual division of labor in terms of the tasks performed by
men versus women. What tasks are performed by both? Why?
What kinds of producing and selling are done by men? By women?
What economic spheres are open only to women?
Why are women often more important to a household’s economic stability than men?
Where do Zapotec compensinos see themselves on the economic ladder relative to
others in the area?
Second Exam: Review Questions from Ethnographies
The Yanomamö
by Napoleon Chagnon
Chapter 4/ Social Organization and Demography pages 121-137
How do women benefit from marrying cross cousins or men from within their home village?
How much influence do women have in selecting their husbands?
What are the differences between the activities of Yanomamö boys and girls and how do they change as each matures?
In political contexts Chagnon says that the headman Kaobawä "seems to "think" for others in the village". What does he mean?
What is the division of labor between Yanomamö men and women?
Social Structure pages 137-158
What is the relationship between Yanomamö marriage rules, kinship terms, and patrilineal descent?
How do parallel and cross-cousins figure in Yanomamö marriage and social relations?
Why do Yanomamö extend kin terms to unrelated individuals including Chagnon?
What are the differences between ideal and statistical (i.e. demographic) approaches to Yanomamö marriage?
What can village fissioning tell us about Yanomamö kinship and marriage?
Why do the Namowei-teri villages fission at a smaller population size than the Shamatari villages? You’ll need to understand the history of marriage in the two villages to answer this question.
Why is flexibility in kinship terms necessary among the Yanomamö? How is the concept of incest flexible?
How are marriage rules, inbreeding, and village size related?
Why do Yanomamö sometimes break their marriage rules? And who is
likely to be a rule breaker and what are its consequences?
Why do men and women differ in their knowledge of the kinship system
Chapter 5/ Political Alliances, Trading, and Feasting
pages 159-183
Describe the developmental sequence (trade, feasting, and inter-marriage) of village alliances among the Yanomamö.
What obligations do allied Yanomamö villages have to one another?
In what ways do stronger villages take advantage of their weaker allies?
How are feasts an important aspect of Yanomamö politics?
Zapotec Review Questions
What precautions do the Zapotecs take to protect themselves against social and personal problems?
What is the Zapotec's view of the world?
What role does co-parenthood play in Zapotec life?
What obligations do women have in honoring the dead?
Are sons treated better than daughters?
How is courtship and marriage handled by the Zapotecs? What does it have to do with the "honor-shame complex"?
Netsilik Review Questions
What sorts of dyadic relations do the Netsilik maintain and what role do they play in their social and economic lives?
Describe the nature of extended families and leadership roles therein.
Is the kindred an important group among the Netsilik?
How is the Netsilik kinship terminological system related to their social organization?
Third
Segment Review Questions from Class Ethnographies
Zapotec, Yanomamö, and Netsilik readings
The Isthmus Zapotecs
Beverly Chiñas
Chapter 8: Isthmus Zapotec Matrifocality
Chapter 6 - Religion and Ritual
Chapter 10: Conclusion
Images, Public and Private (113)
Demography (117)
What are some of the major demographic changes described by Chiñas?
Population, Modernization, and the Environment (118)
What are the major modernization projects and their affects on Zapotec
life and the surrounding environment?
Health (119)
Political Changes (120)
Chiñas discusses political protests and women’s political activism.
What is the motivation for these political changes?
Religion (121)
What are the consequences of fiestas becoming more commercial?
Social Aspects (122)
Yanomamö
Napoleon A. Chagnon
Chapter 3: Myth and Cosmos
What does "I possess the truth" refer to and why is this phrase significant?
The Cosmos (99)
Endocannibalism (114)
Shamans and Hekura (116)
Chapter 6: Yanomamö Warfare
Chapter 7: Alliance with Mishimishimaböwei-teri (207)
Chapter 8: Acceleration of Change in Yanomamö-land (227)
The Netsilik Eskimo
By Ansen Balikci
Chapter 8 - Suicide and the Individual
Chapter 9 - Conflict and Society
Chapter 10 - Elements of Netsilik Religion
Chapter 11 - Netsilik Cosmology
Chapter 12 - Religious Activities
Epilogue, 1989: The Netsilingmiut Today