History of Anthropology, study of Culture, ethnocentricism

1. Topic 1 | Parts 2
INT-450
Cultural Anthropology

2. When Daniel took INT-450

3. In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah,
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and
besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah
into his hand, with some of the vessels of the house of
God. And he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the
house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of
his god.
(Daniel 1:1–2 ESV)

4. Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to
bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family
and of the nobility, youths without blemish, of good
appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with
knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to
stand in the king’s palace, and to teach them the literature
and language of the Chaldeans.
(Dan 1:3–4 ESV)

5. The king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the
king ate, and of the wine that he drank. They were to be
educated for three years, and at the end of that time they
were to stand before the king. Among these were Daniel,
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. And
the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he
called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael
he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego
(Dan 1:5–7 ESV)

7. What was Daniel’s cross-cultural
experience?

8. What is culture?

9. What is culture?
The languages, customs, beliefs, rules, arts, knowledge, and collective
identities and memories developed by members of all social groups that
make their social environments meaningful.
American Sociological Association https://www.asanet.org/topics/culture

10. Study Culture

11. Visible
Invisible

12. Behaviors
Traditions
Cultural Artifacts
Values
Political Beliefs
Religious Beliefs
Worldview
Visible
Invisible

13. Behaviors
Traditions
Cultural Artifacts
Values
Political Beliefs
Religious Beliefs
Worldview
Exegete

14. Behaviors
Traditions
Cultural Artifacts
Values
Political Beliefs
Religious Beliefs
Worldview
Exegete
Making
Meaning

15. Anthropologists Study Tangible Things
1. Cultural Artifacts
2. Roles
3. Rituals
4. Sacred Texts
5. Social Organization (Family, Societal Roles)

16. Intangible Things
1. Cultural Values
2. Religious Beliefs
3. Historical Narratives

17. “The Pie”. 1994. Seinfeld

18. Ethnographic Study of Seinfeld’s “The Pie” 1994
1. What cultural artifacts were in the scene?
2. What were people’s role in the scene?
3. Describe the social organization participants.
4. What rituals were done in the scene?
5. What values were in conflict?
6. Describe the two cultures depicted and their differences.

19. History of Studying Culture

20. History of Culture
Kultur German word meaning “to develop & grow”
Early scholars believed culture grew from simple to complex
“High Culture” v “Low Culture

21. History of Culture
Societies were primitive or advanced

22. Frank Boas
1858 - 1942
Father of Cultural Anthropology
Tax, S. (2021, December 18). Franz Boas. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Franz-Boas

24. Culture developed
with relation to its
environment &
history
Tax, S. (2021, December 18). Franz Boas. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Franz-Boas

25. Cultural Relativism
Cultures develop relative to the
community’s history, geography, and
natural conditions
Tax, S. (2021, December 18). Franz Boas. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Franz-Boas

26. Cultural Relativism
The view that various
cultural practices and
beliefs are best
understood in relation to
their entire context.

27. Cultural Relativism
NOT moral relativism
Moral relativism
The idea that something is only right or wrong according
to context-specific criteria.
OR
Epistemological relativism
The belief that the validity of knowledge itself is limited
to the context in which it was produced.

28. Think of some examples of how
a culture developed relative to its
environment & external forces

29. Ethnocentrism

30. Varieties of Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism
Putting one’s own culture (ethno) at the
center (centrism) of interpretation, typically
devaluing the other culture.
Varieties
1. Xenophobia/racism
2. Cultural superiority
3. Tacit ethnocentrism

31. Varieties of Ethnocentrism
1. Xenophobia
(Aka Nativism) intense, irrational antipathy
toward people of other countries or cultures.
2. Racism
The belief that humans are organized into race
groupings that are different from one
another in intelligence and worth.

33. Interpersonal
Racism

34. Institutional
Racism

35. Structural Racism
Implicit, not Explicit

36. Internalized Racism
Internalized sense of inferiority, often
perpetuated within an ethnic group

37. Varieties of Ethnocentrism
3. Cultural Superiority
The belief that one culture is more
enlightened, advanced, civilized, or
intelligent than another.

38. “The First Thanksgiving” Jean Ferris, 1932

39. Varieties of Ethnocentrism
4. Tacit Ethnocentrism
The assumption that one’s own way of
life is just normal, not cultural.

40. The Culture Concept Today
Howell’s Definition of Culture
The total way of life of a group of
people that is learned, dynamic,
shared, power laden, and
integrated.

41. Describing Culture
Metaphors for Culture
○ water in which we swim
○ lenses through which we see the world
○ Christ and culture
○ rules of the game
○ a map
○ a many layered onion or a parfait
What are the problems with each metaphor?
What does each get right? What does each leave out?

42. Culture as Conversation
Howell’s Preferred Metaphor:
Culture as a conversation
The metaphor of culture as conversation
captures the learned, dynamic, shared,
power laden, and integrated aspects of the
culture concept.

43. All expressions of the gospel
are going to be “culture bound”

44. Cultural Self-Test

45. https://myworldabroad.com/quizzes/gsa/10290

46. Describing Culture

47. Geert Hofstede
Cultures & Organizations: Software of
the Mind

48. Culture is Learned
•Personality is the hardware
•Culture is the software

50. Edward T. Hall
The Hidden Dimensions

52. Frons Trompenaar
Riding the Waves of Culture

54. Trompenaar’s Six Dimensions

55. Compare National Cultures

56. https://www.hofstede-
insights.com/country-comparison/