Topic > How Cultural Anthropology Should Be Understood: A Brief Explanation

Cultural anthropology is the scientific and humanistic study of humans across time and space from a holistic perspective that enables and constrains learned cultural behaviors and l shared social interaction within a particular group of people. Although this term is defined broadly, the specificities highlighted are seen in everyday aspects of life and discussions; however, cultural anthropologists are everywhere, studying people from all walks of life. You can find a topic and find some type of study that an anthropologist has conducted on the topic. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Cultural anthropology challenges the normative processes of everyday life in a method that takes what is assumed to be common or usual from someone and evaluates it through what is understood as an unrecognizable perspective to determine internal and external references. Nacirema's article, written by Horace Miner, is an example of how culture challenges humans' natural instinct to believe that those who are described as far from another's norms are characterized as different or rather bizarre. The Nacirema culture demonstrates man's innate internal propensity towards atypical behavior. The article illustrated American cultural norms, using creative terms, with a twist that many would describe as barbaric behavior; when in reality they are the daily activities composed of the person reading the article. The countless examples of American cultural prejudices provided by Miner are a representation of cultural ethnocentrism. The article helps bring realism to an area that many often ignore when it comes to cultural intolerance. Cultural anthropology allows for the exploration of diffusion by communities across nations. Globalization increases the interconnections between media, technology, capital and international communications. Apple's iPod campaign is a great example of how globalization has spread cultures in a way that expresses diversity in a unified way. Steve Jobs, Apple's product, known as iPod, started its advertising campaign in 2003 which appeared globally on television, billboards, city buses and buildings. The black silhouette cultivates the different shapes and movements that represent individualism, and the iPod itself has united other societies by correlating a connection within differences. The silhouette campaign managed to attract multiple ethnicities and social classes without exclusively targeting one specific market at the expense of another. Although we often hear about discrepancies within cultures, anthropology helps to focus on these commonalities that help unite cultures. Cultural anthropology explores the hidden peculiarities of the human race. In general, most tend to generalize individuals within a country as a collective and think of them as a whole within a society. Tribes such as the Women's Kingdom of Mosuo, China, West Africa's Kotokoli, and several villages in the Himalayas are all places that practice the universal term of marriage in ways that contrast with most traditional practices within their countries . While these tribes may define marriage or understand, relate the ability to exist across a spectrum of ways, it is important to understand that there is no one defined approach to living justifiably; however, there is no denying the happier side that each culture shares within their societies, which can be overlooked, but is usually an ultimate ambition.