Through the Lens of Cultural Anthropology

Laura Tubelle de González is a professor of anthropology at San Diego Miramar College.

• List of IllustrationsList of Boxes Acknowledgments About the AuthorPrefaceNote to InstructorsNote to Students 1. Introduction to Cultural Anthropology Learning ObjectivesIntroduction: The Lens of Cultural Anthropology?The Culture Concept The Field of AnthropologyFrameworks A Brief History of Anthropological ThoughtAnthropology and ColonialismThe Importance of Cultural Anthropology Today SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  2. Studying Contemporary Culture Learning ObjectivesIntroduction: Studying CultureWhat Are the Parts of Culture? Ethnocentrism and Cultural RelativismCultural Adaptation and MaladaptationThe Functions of CultureChild Rearing Fieldwork Methods and EthicsApplied Anthropology SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  3. Race and EthnicityLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Is Race Real?Human Race Is Not Biological Biocultural Connections: Prejudice and Health History of the Race Concept Defining EthnicityThe Privilege of Fair Skin Discrimination Based on Caste SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  4. LanguageLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Language and CultureDefinition of Language Language OriginsLanguage and Communication: Signs and Symbols What Does a Linguistic Anthropologist Do? Communication beyond Words EthnolinguisticsLanguage Use in the Digital AgeLanguage LossSummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  5. FoodLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Food-Getting PracticesAdaptive Strategies: Food Foragers and Food ProducersFood ForagersFood Producers: Horticulturalists Food Producers: Pastoralists Food Producers: Industrialism Globalization of Food  The Human DietSummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  6. Economic ResourcesLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Who Gets What and How?What Drives Economic Decisions? Production: Making the Things People Need and Want Distribution: How People Get the Things They Need and Want Consumption: How People Use the Things They Need and Want SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  7. Marriage and FamilyLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Marriage and FamilyDefining MarriageSpouses: How Many and Who Is Eligible?Family Residence PatternsMarriage as Economic ExchangeKinship SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  8. Gender and SexualityLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Social Roles Based on Sex and Gender Defining Sex, Gender, and Sexuality Sexual Identity Masculine and Feminine Gender Identity Gendered Body Modifications Gendered Speech Gender InequalityGendered Occupations SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  9. Politics and PowerLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Politics and Power Power, Authority, and Prestige Social Controls and Conflict ResolutionTypes of Political OrganizationSocial InequalityViolence and WarSummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  10. SupernaturalismLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Religion as a Symbolic System Defining Religion Reasons for Supernatural Belief Systems Sacred RolesReligious PractitionersReligious ResistanceSupernatural Beliefs and Cultural ExpressionSummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  11. Illness and HealingLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Studying Concepts of Illness and Healing Understanding Illness Cultural Concepts of Healing Health Inequality Disability SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  12. Anthropology and SustainabilityLearning ObjectivesIntroduction: Anthropology and SustainabilityHistory of Human-Environment IssuesDefining SustainabilityAnthropological Approaches to Sustainability StudiesIssues in Sustainability StudiesHow Can Anthropologists Help?SummaryReview QuestionsDiscussion Questions  GlossaryReferences Index