ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE The Self Embedded In Culture

“The main purpose of anthropology is to make the world safe for The figure below illustrates a hypothetical self-concept of Mr.
human indifferences” – Ruth Benedict Juan Dela Cruz. Given the different roles he assumes, he may be
viewed in different ways by people around him. This demonstrates
At the end of the lesson, the learners will be able to: Mead‟s idea that the meaning or the characterization that we ascribe to
the self depends on our roles in the society. The self as a basic
1. Understand the various dimensions of anthropology and its psychological concept which is commonly assumed to be static and
influence on self-concept have a universal nature is therefore susceptible to changes depending
2. Identify how each culture develop a unique cultural lens; on social situations and cultural contexts. The self is malleable and can
3. Examine their own cultural identity from a global perspective; and act in different ways depending on circumstances; it is multi-faceted
4. Reflect on how culture influences our beliefs and behaviour. yet unified. As such, the self has to be examined as an entity embedded
in culture.
ANTHROPOLOGY
Having interest in cross-cultural understandings of the person,
- the study of the origin and development of human societies and French sociologist and anthropologist Marcel Mauss (1950)
cultures: physical, cultural, and existential substantiated on the notion of person as a cultural category. He used
the terms moi (refers to the concept of self) and personne (refers to the
- the word “anthropology” stemmed from two Greek words,
concept of person) but underscored the latter in elucidating about
anthropos meaning man and logus meaning study or science personhood. According to him, the person was considered primarily a
- science of man: concerned about the various aspects of the cultural conception, or a „category‟ of a particular community.
human species, irrespective of time and place, from ancient to
the contemporary

HOW DOES ANTHROPOLOGY EXPLAIN HUMAN NATURE?

The self is both biological and cultural entity. The traditional

anthropological understanding of the self is that the self is an animal
species, which underwent the process of biological evolution and has
shared characteristics with other living animals, the hominids in
particular. The self is believed to have evolved from apes some 33
million years ago and in the evolutionary process self-traced his/her
origin from hominid species „homo sapiens‟. Since the self has better
development in terms of brain with billion neurons and adaptation to
the environment for survival, the self develops a culture resulting in
behavioural changes.
 As a social category, the person is said to be socially and Culture has such greater influence on an individual‟s life
culturally constituted that can only be understood in relation to contributing majorly to the self-concept of an individual. The influence
everything else in the society and thus, may be subject to quite might either be negative or positive depending on the type of culture
substantial, if not infinite, variation. In the hypothetical self-concept that one has been brought up in. It is then important that individuals
map of Mr. Juan Dela Cruz, you might have noticed the different study and appreciate their culture and its contribution in shaping their
attributes of his personne or the person that he is depending on his individual personalities.
social situation. At home, he has to be the affectionate but strict father
that he is; he can be a very caring husband to his wife, yet may Studies have been carried out concerning the impact culture may
likewise be wary. At one point, he is regarded soft-hearted but at have towards self-concept. In a study of Erdman, he found out that
another, he is viewed as someone firm. This points out to the early childhood memories were big part of self-concept. The findings
malleability of his personne depending on his cultural context. demonstrated that different cultural memories are brought about by
early childhood years and persist into adulthood. The differences are
SELF CONCEPT refers to all understanding and knowledge of formed both in the extended cultural contexts which defines the
oneself. The components include psychological, physical, and social meaning of the self and the immediate family environment.
attitudes, ideas and beliefs that one has. The most influence in terms of
self-concept is family‟s history, basically referring to the culture one
has been brought up in, and the experiences he or she had undergone. MATERIAL CULTURE refers to the physical objects, resources,
and spaces that people use to define their culture. This includes homes,
neighborhoods, cities, school, churches, offices, factories, and plant
CHECKPOINT! tools, means of production, goods and products and the like. All of
THROUGH THE YEARS. List down your these physical aspects of a culture help to define its members,
characteristics, behaviors, ideas, and beliefs behaviors, and perceptions. For example, technology is a vital aspect
when you were in elementary, highschool, of material culture in the society. Students then must learn to use
and now. Create a table for this activity. computers to survive in college and business, in contrast to young
adults in the ethnic societies who must learn to build weapons.
CULTURE NON-MATERIAL CULTURE refers to the nonphysical ideas that
people have about their culture, including beliefs, values, rules, norms,
- the set of unwritten norms of conduct that guide the behavior of
morals, language, organizations, and institutions. For instance, the
a group.
nonmaterial cultural concept of religion consists of a set of ideas,
- the learned behavior of people, including their languages,
doctrines, beliefs and or ethics. Note that when considering
belief systems, social structures, institutions, and material
nonmaterial culture, sociologists refer to several processes that a
goods.
culture uses to shape its members‟ thoughts, feelings and behaviours.
- a complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art,
Four of the most important of these are symbols, language, values, and
morals, law, customs, and any other capabilities and habits
norms.
acquired by man (Edward Taylor)
The Concept of Culture The following pictures exemplify how our cultures are
projected through our bodies.
Cultural anthropology being one of the sub-disciplines of
anthropology underscores the concept of culture and its influence in
shaping the self. Culture is a broad construct which covers a wide
range of elements – from your clothing designs to your food
preferences, the dialect you use for communicating, the festivals you
enjoy, the religious beliefs and customs you observe, the set of values
you conform to, or even the kinds of books you read, or the jokes you
crack – all these illuminate your way of life and all these elements
form part of the culture you were raised to.

One of the most fundamental aspects of culture is symbol. As

people interact, they share a common set of symbols which represent
their identity. Cultural symbols aid in establishing the uniqueness of a
particular culture. When properly preserved and accurately passed on
A woman from the Karen Tribe (also A member of the Bagobo people
from one generation to the other, it continues to be an indelible known as Padaung People) of from coastal Mindanao in the
representation of one‟s personhood. Thailand with heavy brass rings on Philippines with filed and blackened
the neck. teeth.

TWO ANTHROPOLGICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE SELF

1.EGOCENTRIC – a concept of the self where the self is seen as

autonomous and distinct individual; each person is defined as a replica
of all humanity but capable of acting independently

2.SOCIO-CENTRIC – there is no intrinsic self that can possess

enduring qualities; self is viewed as dependent on the situation or
social setting

Our Bodies and Culture

Culture influences our body image. Consciously or A woman from the Mursi Tribe in Apo Whang-Od Oggay, the Living
unconsciously, your body image or your perception of your body or South Ethiopia, Africa with her Legend Mambabatok (Tattoo Artist)
profound lip and earlobe plates. of the Butbut Tribe in Buscalan,
that of others is largely influenced by your culture. Your bodies and
what you do with it is a reflection of the life you live and the culture https://tatring.com/piercing-types/Have-Mursi-on-the- Kalinga.
Lip-Plate
you were accustomed to. Body modifications and embellishments for
instance are regarded as part of the norms and representations of some CHECKPOINT! REFLECT. How does culture
cultures. influence our beliefs and behaviour?