ANTH 202 EXAM 1

Cultural Materialism A theoretical position that takes material features of life, such as the environment, natural resources, and mode of production, as the bases for explaining social organization and ideology Cultural Relativism the perspective that each culture must be understood in terms of the values and ideas of that culture and not judged by the standards of another culture. Participant Observation basic fieldwork method in cultural anthropology that involves living in a culture for a long time while gathering data. Kula a trading network, linking many of the Trobriand Islands, in which men have long-standing partnerships for the exchange of everyday goods, such as food, as well as highly valued necklaces and armlets Functionalism the theory that a culture is similar to a biological organism, in which parts work to support the operation and maintenance of the whole Medical Anthropology Considers the way economics and political structures shapes people's health status, their access to health care, and the prevailing healing systems. Evolutionary Theory A concept developed by Charles Darwin to explain the ways in which animals adapt to their environments. Anthropology A humanistic discipline that studies the diversity of human kind in its cultural manifestations.