1.3.b Socio-cultural Anthropology branch : meaning , scope and relevance.
- Social Anthropology
- Cultural Anthropology
- Socio-Cultural Anthropology
- Social Anthropology and Sociology
- Social Anthropology and Psychology
- Social Anthropology and History
- Social Anthropology and Economics
- Social Anthropology and Political Science
2.1 The Nature of Culture :
- Concept and characteristics of culture
- Culture and civilization;
- Ethnocentrism
- Cultural Relativism
- Explain why culture is integrated or patterned ?
- Describe and give examples of how cultures change through discovery and invention, diffusion, and acculturation ?
- Inorganic , organic and super organic view of culture
- Additonal concepts on culture
2.2 The Nature of Society:
- Concept of Society;
- Society and Culture;
- Social Institutions;
- Erving Goffman’s Total Institution
- Social groups;
- Communities
- Associations
- Organizations
- Social stratification.
- Status and Roles
- Social Structure and Social Organization
- Evolution of human society
- 2.1 & 2.2 Previous Year Questions
2.3 Marriage
- Marriage vs Mating
- Why do humans practice marriage universally ?
- The problem of universal definition of marriage;
- Kathleen Gough – Nayars Marriages
- Functions of marriage;
- Ways of Acquiring a Mate
- How does one marry – Marking the Onset of Marriage
- Types of marriage
- Marriage regulations
- Underlying reasons for emergence of cross cousin marriages
- Laws of marriage
- Marriage payments
- Understanding Love, Sexual and Reproductive Behavior among tribes
- Marriage instability and Divorce
- Deviations in Marriage Rules
- Previous Years Questions
Optional :
- Marriages in India – Kathleen Gough
- Himalayan Polyandry: Structure, Functioning and Culture Change: A Field Study of Jaunsar-Bawar By D. N. Majumdar
- Notes on Love in a Tamil Family by Trawick
- Dowry System in India
- Strange sexual customs and adulthood rites
- Videos
2.4 Family
- Definition and universality;
- Family, household and domestic groups;
- functions of family;
- Changes in the family in 21st century
- Major world trends in family patterns
- Types of family (from the perspectives of structure, blood relation, marriage, residence and succession)
- Nuclear Family
- Joint family or Extended Family
- Types of families among Indians
- Different types of family in the tribes in India
- Impact of urbanization on family
- Impact of industrialization on family
- Is nuclear family suitable for Industrialization ?
- Impact of feminist movements on family
- Stability and change in the family – direction and factors
- Stability and change in the family- Anthropological models
- Patriarchy and domestic violence in family
- Gender and Family
- Previous Years Question
2.5 KINSHIP
- Concept of Kinship
- Difference between Kinship and Descent
- Principle rules of residence
- Importance of Kinship in primitive , peasant and advanced societies
- Principles and types of descent
- Forms of descent groups
- Sigmentary Lineage
- Evolution of family forms
- Matrilineal Puzzle
- Kin Categories
- Kinship terminology (descriptive and classificatory);
- Kinship Systems
- Criteria for Kinship terms
- Determinants of Kinship Term
- Kinship Usages
- Descent, Filiation and Complimentary Filiation;
- Descent Theory
- Alliance Theory
- Kinship organization in India by Iravati Karve
- Kinship in changed situation
- Social Categories among Australian Tribes
- Previous Years Questions
3. Economic Organization
- Meaning, scope and relevance of economic anthropology
- Formalist and Substantivist debate
- Principles governing production, distribution and exchange (reciprocity, redistribution and market) , Consumption in simple societies
- Modes of Exchange (Also discussed in as part of above question)
- Ceremonical Exchange : Potlatch , Kula Ring
- Characteristics of economic organization of
- Traditional economic systems
- Discuss the socio-cultural and economic functions of tribal markets
- globalization and indigenous economic systems.
- Previous Years Questions
Further Reading :
- Hunters and Gathers
- Why do Anthropologists interested in Hunters & Gathers ?
- Defining Hunters and Gathers
- Classification of Hunters and Gathers
- Modes of transformation or Future of Hunting and gathering tribes
- Beginning of Pastoralism
- Definition of Pastoralism
- Transformation and Future Challenges of Pastoralism
- Theoretical interpretations of Agriculture by Anthropologists
- The Theories of origin of agriculture
- Modern Agriculture: Contract and Corporate Farming
- Sustainable agriculture
- Agriculture among Indian Tribes
- Issues of Agriculture
4. Political Organization and Social Control
- Meaning and Scope of Political Anthropology
- Types of political organizations
- Uncentralized / stateless political organizations
- Band
- tribal level political organizations / multicentric P.O
- Kinship based political organization
- Non-Kinship based political organizations
- chiefdom
- Centralized / unicentral political organizations
- Comparison of state and stateless societies
- Uncentralized / stateless political organizations
- concepts of power
- Concept of authority
- Relation between Power and Authority
- Concept of legitimacy
- Structure of the Primitive government in Tribal societies
- Primitive Society and the traditional customary law
- law and justice in simple societies.
- social control
- Nation building process in a State
- Previous Years Questions
5. Religion
- Meaning and definition of religion
- The Universality of Religion
- Anthropological approaches to the study of religion – Introduction
- Monotheism and Polytheism
- Sacred and Profane
- Myths
- Rituals;
- The Structuralist theory of ritual
- Nature of Religious Practices (Religious rites and Rites-de-Passage)
- Religious Symbols
- Forms of religion in tribal and peasant societies
- religion, magic and science distinguished
- Variations in Religious Beliefs
- Taboo in primitive societies
- Variability in religious practices
- Magico religious functionaries
- Discuss the religion in terms of adaptation
- Religion and Economy
- Religion and Political System
- Religion and Social Control
- Religious Change
- Some ethnographic works on religion
- Previous Years Questions