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Carol Ember and Anthropology

Carol Ember (1978) states that, because of research conducted on a worldwide basis, there are three commonly held misconceptions among anthropologists concerning the typical nature of hunter-gatherers:

(1) Hunter-gatherers are typically bilocal; (2) gathering is the most important subsistence activity in hunter-gatherer economies (and the related idea that women contribute more than men to the economy); and (3) hunter-gatherers are typically peaceful (p. 439).

Research conducted for this ethnology (the systematic comparison of different societies and cultures) proves Ember is correct on all three counts.

The differences and similarities between the Bergdama and Vedda cultures will be used to express how Ember's research supports the existing facts about these cultures. In addition, the main focus in proving her conclusions will be on the economic structures of the two tribes. Various cultural aspects (such as kinship, social structure, male and female division of labor) will also be addressed in order to show that these misconceptions are indeed invalid. Comparisons to the Ju/'hoansi will also be made in support of Ember's research. A conclusion will discuss the importance for modern cultures of studying cultures of the past, and how this research shows primitive cultures to be a link to understanding the origins of communism, feminism and the division of labor in today's society.

Hunter-gatherer societies normally can have two assumptions presumed about them in advance of study: (1) they live within small groups; and (2) they move around a great deal (Price & Brown, 1985, p. 3). However, while most of the major anthropological models fail to expand this conception, there are some differences between primitive and complex hunter-gatherer communities. One of the biggest distinctions for a more complex hunter-gatherer society was the ability and capacity to store food. In addition, as much as mobility and relocation w...

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Carol Ember and Anthropology. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 11:29, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1688016.html