New Job

I believe that starting a new job is a rite of passage because it may change someone's lifestyle completely. The amount of sleep, what you eat, and times you are able to see your friends are just a few ways in which your life may alter once a new job is started. I know when I started my new job, my lifestyle changed with everything from the amount of homework I would get accomplished each day to the amount of time I was able to see my family. I was forced into redeveloping my schedule in order to accomplish and manage my life in a equal manor

Apartment passage

I think that getting an apartment has a rite of passage to it.  Moving from a dorm to an apartment is a big deal. Your parents move you in, and then the first stage is to be alone from your parents and your school community. You are separated from having all your friends right next door to you, and are alone in your building most likely. Then you have to learn how to pay bills and make your own food. You also have to clean more rooms and become self-sufficient. This is the liminal period. Then in the period of re aggregation, you become more independent and start having dinner parties and learning to live on your own and be alone. 

The assembly of a young Adult

Every year that leads up to your High School graduation is a rite of passage in itself. The three stages being very simple: Grade School, Middle School, then High School, the ultimate result ideally being adulthood. By the end of these three phases of school you are to be considered an adult and should be able to make decisions on your own, whether that may be to attend College, or to go straight into the work force. Whatever decision you make should be influenced by the rite of passage you have just completed and should be able to make an educated decision determining the rest of your life. For me this was my main rite of passage. Every phase preparing you for the next, progressively getting more difficult as you matured and grew into being more of an adult. The phases act somewhat as an assembly line, starting with the basics and growing more complex when more parts are added, to ultimately create a quality end product, which is ready to be released into the world. Some abuse this passage, and some take full advantage of it, which is all part of the process. In the end, the only goal is to create an educated adult, capable of making his or her own decisions in pursuing their ideal life.

the scouts

The scouts have played a large role in my life growing up.
Being in the scouts really was a right of passage. After completing the three steps, manhood is achieved; The first being Tiger Cubs, then Cub Scouts, and finally Boy Scouts. Tiger Cubs was an introduction program. This was set up for young children, (in kindergarten) to learn how to work together. This will be important for the future, Boy Scouts is not only about one's self, but about teamwork. After Tiger Cubs comes Cub Scouts. Cub Scouts meet once a week. Children learn how to be trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, curdius, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. Boyscouts was the ultimate test of patients. From 5th grade till 12th grade, this taught a child to become a man. Not only was the progress noticable physically, but also mentaly. Boy Scouts led up to the final rank; becoming an Eagle Scout. As an Eagle Scout, one is concidered a man.

Driven

One right of passage I think most to all young people go through is getting their drivers license. The first phase could be having to take drivers ED, so we can take the written test and hopefully pass. Once you do pass, you then get to do your behind the wheel with some old batty man or woman telling you how to drive. After all the practice and preparation you turn 16 and can take your drivers test. 

Now not everyone passes there drivers test on the first shot. Specking as someone who had to take the test twice I know the trauma that goes into taking the test but it is something everyone must do if they want to get there drivers license at the age of 16. But once you do pass it has to be one of the greatest feelings of your 16 year old life. You could wait till your 18 and just take the test then but that would mean waiting.......

way over there compared to right over here

i found the article comparing rituals and taboos of the fishermen in southeast asia to those of american baseball to be super interesting. The more i thought about it i found comparisons in my own life, like very time i play a show i have to change the strings on my guitar regardless of how many times its been used or when i played hockey i had a similar ritual of retaping the blade of my stick before each game. i can even think of instances of other people being this way. i have a close friend who tightens the straps on his bike pedals even if it appeared they were nearly too tight for him to get his foot in initially. The comparisons between a culture on the opposite side of the world and my goofy friend are uncanny even those in which i take part in.  

Posessions as a coping method

Sita, being posessed by a ghost, was able to manage her fears and apprehensions about sexual relations and child birth, as well as adapt to her new life in her husbands village. Sita had many traumatic experiences in her short fifteen years, the death of multiple siblings, and the violent murder, raping, and suicide of her fellow classmates as well as her cousin. These past events along with her fears and the stress of marriage and a new life allowed for Sita to be posessed by the ghost of her cousin Taraka. In north Indian culture, people who have died by murder or suicide are the most likely to become malevolent ghost, and also more likely to linger and haunt their families and villages. After the birth of her first child, Sita's possessions turned into fits and became less and less frequent, having been possessed allowed for Sita's workload to be lightened, extra support from her marital family, and permission to visit her retired father every summer. It seems that while Sita's possessions may have been real in her own mind, that they also allowed her certain benefits and acted as a coping method to adjust to her new life at such a young age. When the writers checked in with Sita many years later they found her to be a confident woman managing her family and her childrens education. Sita herself said that her fits only came about "whenever there is a fight in the family or I see a dead body". 

Ghost possession or psychological distress??

 Most people, at some time in their lives, have some sort of a midlife crisis. Other people have continued stress throughout their lives that they have to deal with. Different people find different ways of dealing with the stresses that present themselves. Sita is a prime candidate for ghost possession in her society because she has had many stressful things happen to her in her life. She had many friends and siblings that have died, and she was married into a family of higher status in society than herself. All of these things make her susceptible to ghost possession in their culture. Tarekas ghost possesses her because of her stress in her life, which could mean that the ghost possessions are only psychological. It seems from the reading that they happen only to gain something. Sita was possessed on the night that she was supposed to consummate with her husband, but it seems that the possession was a reflex of her brain as a way of handling with stress, because consummating was a stressful thing for Sita. Also, Sita was worried about her husband's family liking her, and the possessions are a way for his family to care for her so that she can feel their affection. I do not know if I really believe that the possessions are true, because since people believe that it happens, Sita can also make herself believe she is possessed as a coping device for her life. 

Gypsies: Hiding in America

2. How did the police interpret the lists of social security numbers and other evidence found in the young man’s apartment? How did their interpretation of this evidence differ from the Gypsy’s?
When the police found the lists of social security numbers, they immediately saw it as criminal activity. They considered the lists to be evidence of a “ring” of criminal activity, and that these numbers were being used for identity theft or fraud. This however, was not the case. Anne Sutherland wrote that in Gypsy culture, Gypsies tend to use the identities of family members and friends on purchases and in daily life as a way to keep them out of the non-Gypsy society. This is a common practice between Gypsies and has been for many centuries due to a large amount of prejudice against them. The defendant in this case did not intend on harming anyone or defrauding anyone by using their social security number, it is just common practice.

ice cream social security

3a. What is the argument advanced by cultural relativists for their position? Note: There is a quite specific and clearly defined answer here.


The term 'cultural relativists' was established by Franz Boez. This means that what is 'right' and what is 'wrong' is culture specific. Reading about the United States v. Sonny Nicholas, the Lawyer has to figure out how to support his client. The lawyer goes to an anthropologist for help understand the Gypsy culture. Gypsies are a lot different than you think they would be. They have a different belief system and a different way they opperate in general. I personally do not agree with everything they say for personal reasons. By taking somone elses private information, a social security number for example; they could cause pain for the victim. My mother had her social security number taken from her and she had to go through a lot of pain and suffering. The gypsies dont see why its wrong that they take other peoples information. In this chapter Sonny Nicholas took a social security number and payed off the car that he wanted. When he got in trouble he gave the car back. This may not seem unfair that he had to give the car back, but legally, he was a felon for taking this social security number.

I do not believe that he did the right thing by taking someone elses social security number. I know it was in his culture for him to use a false identity to avoid marime, but I dont think stealing should be right in any culture.

id first like to just respond to the article 'Life Without Chiefs.' The way the author goes about discussing the top at hand is clear and concise, without confusion, but what i found most interesting was the last section 'In the End,' here in the conclusion he turns the original idea of a big man on its head by reversing the big mans original intent from being selfless and helpful to conceded, wicked and presenting a caring side as a front to achieve his greater goal, full power. This said, i'd like to raise an idea, that the step from big man to chief was the worst of all the power transitions because it was a complete flip in the way things were conducted. Every power transition after, although allowing for greater control of the people, does not match this initial power shift. Not emperors, kings, prim-ministers, mayors or generals due to the unmatched changed of this entirely new way of group living. 

Secondly, i would also like to touch on the case of the gypsy offender. It was recently brought up in the federal courts ruling that a form a christianity which branched out of south america was allowed to drink the sap of a tree native to that region while practicing in the united states. the reason this went through the federal courts system is due to the fact that this sap has hallucinogenic powers. this case in mind, we are able to see how the courts can make rulings based on other cultural beliefs and allow things otherwise outlawed to stand. 

Anthropologists in everyday life

This is the first I have ever learned about gypsies. I've never honestly given the topic any thought, but having learned how they are constantly changing their names and identities definitely
surprised me. They are sticking to their culture in attempts to remain anonymous in America. Even though they stole other people's identity, they did not use it in a harmful way; they paid their bills on time, and didn't abuse their potential abilities to ruin other people's lives. From a situation such as this, a cultural anthropologist would come of good use on a police force in order to analyze similar situations of reasoning for a crime committed by someone who has strong beliefs, is dedicated to their religion, or people whom are just not fully aware of the laws they are breaking and see if it relates to their culture. I believe that having an anthropologist on the police force would help a great deal with creating conclusions for crimes that involve immigrants or culturally different people.

Question Number Three.

This case shows how important it is for there to be American anthropologists involved in everyday life. There are so many different cultures in the United States and when they get caught up in the court system it is great that they have the proper representation. Many people are unaware of the differences between themselves and other groups of people. For example, in a court a jury who is uneducated about the ways of a gypsy life might jump to the old stereotype that gypsies are law breaking criminal. However, when an anthropologist can show them the dynamics of the gypsy culture then the case would be judged more fairly.

Gypsy Misfortune and Being the Bigger Man

"The Case of the Gypsy Offender"
3.) It is quite apparent after reading this article the practicality and usage of anthropologists in similarly applicable every day situations. It is quite unfair and unreasonable to assume that everyone would think and act the same from across the globe. I understand their is some degree of necessity to law, however particularly in a country as diverse as our own a higher level of tolerance is required, as well as simple logic to understand that no two situations are the same. Obviously either method of going about it presents problems, but a higher degree of cultural understanding, something anthropologists can offer, would be highly beneficial and I believe necessary to truly make things just. Not implementing laws that have no room for gray scale, since everything is really a matter of ambiguity and not as simple as black or white.

"Life Without Chiefs"
1.) Harris basically explains the evolution of the headman to the big man, and then to the role of chief. We essentially started with this headman individual who gave the most and took the least, who then as a result of ego, feeling challenged by others (specifically males) who gave more at a muminai feast had to compete to give most and take least. This resulted in a competition for power of who was the bigger man. Once one could establish himself as a big man he has essentially raised himself to higher level than everyone else. In this position he had the largest surplus of food, the most wives, and eventually a monopoly of the resources. As he gained more and more he gave more too, building walls and moats to help and protect the people. After he died his son would inherit these things, establishing a sort of family bloodline predestined to rule. He had now become a chief thanks to the power and resources he had obtained and separated himself from his people and created a hierarchy. To some this makes logical sense for the evolution of humanity as a result of male ego, to others this seems tragic when juxtaposed with the present and how out of control its become, and to others it has happened necessarily due to population growth and diminishing resources, but that we will inevitably evolve beyond it.

Super Laywers

I would like to focus primarily on how we might be able to use anthropology in today's legal system; a link between cultures, which I feel, is becoming more and more necessary. Laws and rules are set in place for a reason, but than what is right to some obviously is not to others. How can we blanket out country with laws, which are set in stone for every person residing in our country's boarders? This relates greatly with giving the death penalty for mentally challenged individuals who have committed crimes which would lead to the same punishment outcomes had they been of reasonable mind. Rulings like this just don't work, people aren't the same and though our system would be blanketed instead of with black and white, with grey it would actually make our court system affective and not largely destructive as it is. If we could incorporate anthropology into the legal system in such a way that everyone could be spoken for by a representative who understood and respected their culture the scales might just begin to balance themselves. But instead we continue to have a majority of white male lawyers, and what happens? White males get away with heinous crimes where non-white males have a harder time because they are not being represented (commonly) by people who understand their lives on a more intimate level. Although when crimes from on culture affect another culture there is not as easy of an answer, but when we look at the case of S.N. I believe most of us would understand that he is innocent, especially since the car had been paid for and was even returned. If we understood and respected anthropology in the court system that whole debacle could have been avoided instead of making it worse. Food for thought at the very least, but I rather like the idea of super lawyers. - Bryan

Police and interpretitions

I think I see why the police thought the young gypsy was a thief. He had a lot of other people's social security numbers and identification cards. They just knew they had an identity thief in there clutches. If you look at it from an American view, identity thief i in America till this day is on the rise and with the ailing economy it seems the thing to do to some thieves. In the gypsy culture it is tradition to hide and use false identification for a cultural reasons. One to stay hidden from the persecution of Gypsies in Medieval Europe, two to survive the Holocaust and the early part of the 20Th century.

The American way of law considers these acts to be fraudulent. while the gypsies consider it a way of life and survival.

When I read I answer Questions

Reading Question: P.272 Cross Cultural Law
1.) The “crime: committed by the young Gypsy man was due to the cross-culture idea of establishing and using an identity through a number vs. having your identity only known by you and people close to you. In America every person is given a social security number to establish residence and identity. In Gypsy culture it is custom to keep your true name and identity a secret to the larger society. So the young Gypsy man was caught using a social security number that was not his, while trying to buy a car. He was then put on trail for intent to deceive. Which then lead to the clashing of two cultures at the hands of laws created by one culture.

Reading Question: P.292 Life with Out Chiefs
1.) A Headman, is a man, who is given all the food by the people that is gathered, then pools it together and then redistributing the food into portions back to the people. But also the Headman does his own hunting and gathering too. The Headman is known to work harder then any other person and receives the least amount of goods. Because they are giving greater amounts to their followers, in the end leaving less for themselves. Keeping redistribution to keep the economical and political stand of the people in the culture.
A Big Man came into view when a lot of Headman decided to compete on who produced the feast to the followers/people in the group. The Big man could almost be seen as the next level from the Headman. The Big Man still works very hard and sometimes goes hungry himself just to be abel to produce the largest gift of food.
The Chief would be the first on the scale of power, he now does not do any work in hunting and gathering food. He would have come to this status due to the fact his food supplies had become so great he no longer needed to worry about it. People would soon come to the Chief with questions and in need of help. The Chief would also take care of all the political issues and ties now. He would also live a finer and more grand life then others that followed him, by building bigger houses and wearing nicer things.