What kind of questions do anthropologists ask?
They tend to, or should, ask open ended questions. Unlike a reporter that are looking to confirm a theory or need something to paraphrase, an anthropologist is looking for something originating in the person itself. Too bad I do not have my old notes, about never ask leading questions, or phrasing questions in the negative (although not sure if that is the correct English term). In any case, the list was rather long. In my fieldwork I generally used small focus groups, asking questions such as 'what is the most important things when raising a child?'. And let the discussions commence. I would ask into topics of interest brought up, and half an hour of talk could go by. Hence it is not even necessarily to ask specific questions, but just bringing up a specific topic, and making sure the discussion stays on track.But the questions will obviously be very different depending on the situation and field of interest. Mine was about different groups of people, so using focus groups was pretty straight forward. Questions could also be as bland as simple questionnaires, but it depends on the work being done.But, at least from my background, there should be no preconceived theory or answer to a question, and thus all questions must be asked accordingly. I guess that would be the main difference between an anthropologist, and anybody else, asking a question.
What "big questions" does anthropology hope to answer?
Anthropology tackles a lot of big questions. I will give a few points on several elements of culture but know that these are not the only questions.Gender: How does gender manifest in society? Why do some groups have 2 genders and some up to 5? What is the relationship between gender and the wider culture and how do experiences change across genders? Transnational Tortillas: Race, Gender, and Shop-Floor Politics in Mexico and the United StatesPolitical Systems: How do political systems manifest and persist? What kinds of governance are there? How do different size societies organize themselves? How do different governments interact and communicate? The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist History of Upland Southeast AsiaViolence: How does violence manifest and persist? What conditions must be present for violence to happen? What is the relationship between economics and violence? Religion and Violence? Gender in Violence? Race and Violence? Why for example, would someone strap on a bomb and run into a civilian population? The Making of a Human Bomb: An Ethnography of Palestinian ResistanceReligion: Why do some groups believe in a monotheistic deity and others in nature spirits? What is the relationship between states and religion? What is spirit posession and how does it manifest? What is the relationship between religion and scientific rationalism? Ecstatic Religion: A Study of Shamanism and Spirit Possession Beyond Rationalism: Rethinking Magic, Witchcraft and SorceryRace: What is Race? What is the relationship between biology and Race? Where does skin color come from? Where does the modern concept of Race come from and why and how does it operate?White People Did Not Exist Until 1681 Race TechnologiesEconomics: Why is there money? How do different classes experience the world? What is subsistence and what kinds of economic systems are there? Debt - Updated and Expanded: The First 5,000 YearsThere are obviously many more questions to ask and explore, but anthropologists ultimately ask what it means to be human and what lay in the variety of that experience.
Why are there so many records of cannibalism/anthropophagy in Chinese history?
I don't know there were “so many records of cannibalism” in Chinese history, probably I didn't my own nation’s history as well as you do.Chinese don't have a hubby to eat another human, or have some weird traditions involving cannibalism.But history of Chinese is pretty much a history of struggling to survive. The records of cannibalism in the books, poems could be matched to several great famines and massive wars. That's all I can tell.
Cannibalism thoughts?!?
I'm not a cannibal but there are a variety of diseases that cause the nervous system to shut down that stems from the consumption of human flesh. And those cannibals that do exist usually do it because it is a cultural practice. A way of absorbing their dead ancestors into themselves. You'd be hard to find one that actually enjoys the taste. It also happens in times of desperation where no other food sources are available (the Donner Party). I think this fascination you have stems from the fact that is forbidden and thus you are fixated on it. I don't think you'd actually like it. If you find this impulse difficult to manage, I'd suggest just a little therapy. I'm not saying you are crazy, I'm just saying it would be a means of eliminating this distraction from your life.
Is it cannibalism to eat an ape?
no, different species. not cannibalism. We didn't evolve from apes. Humans and apes evolved from the same, now extinct species.
Strong thesis statement on the causes of cannibalism nowadays?
Religious directives: Eat this body and drink this blood...ever hear the phrase?
Is eating sperm cannibalism?
This is a serious question. I really don't think it could be cannibalism or people would've protested b***j**s more than they have. But it's sperm and that's half of a baby right?
Did the ancient Aztecs get Kuru from their cannibalism and how does cannibalism effect the human body?
Kuru associated with cannibalism has been documented in Papua New Guinea
Is there an underlying anthropological reason for why many religions ban the consumption of pork?
The Torah specifies the fact that pigs do not chew the cud - which suggests that it is the unclean diet of pigs themselves. They are opportunistic scavengers and will eat carcasses. And their dead flesh attracts parasitic worms.But all of this is true of humans too, so it points to a deeper reason.Pigs are very like humans in various respects - and many cultures traditionally compare humans with pigs, a tradition that continues today.And this works both ways.Pigs make us uncomfortably aware of our closeness to animals, and so we generally compare people with pigs to emphasise our unsavoury animalistic side - especially dirtiness and greed.But this is unfair - we are dirtier and greedier than pigs: after all, we kill and eat them to feed our greed.And they only live in filth and eat waste if we are producing it and living near it ourselves.So we are pigs, but also - pigs are us. They are highly intelligent and social - and these qualities are often emphasised in folk traditions too.Pigs makes us squeamish because they are furless pink animals with small, bright beady eyes, clever minds, and busy social lives, driven by hunger and curiosity. And when you kill them they scream.And there have always been strong prohibitions on cannibalism.Plus, living on sausagemeat is very unhealthy and really does tend to make you look increasingly like sausagemeat. You see it in England, Holland, Germany…People treat food taboos and phobias as irrational. But I am not so sure.Were the Jews wrong?When white Europeans travelled the world, many people compared our appearance with pigs, and suggested that we got our piggish look from eating human flesh. Our murderous, insatiable greed had turned us into red-faced devils.We weren’t cannibals, any more than they were. But murderous and insatiable?That does sound like most of human history.More than pig history, anyway.Think of Orwell’s Animal Farm, where the ultimate horror is not men becoming pigs.It is pigs becoming men.‘The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.’