Part I:Referring to Module 11 Content(see the attachment), discuss how migratory band level societies differ from sedentary chiefdoms in terms of concepts of property and political leadership and why there are differences (One brief paragraph [3-4 sentences], one brief paragraph [3-4 sentences] responding to another's post.)
Write a short reply to the following post:The bands used the concept of Usufruct which meant if the land was not in use it was up for grabs. The chiefdoms land ownership was in perpetuity unless sold. THe politcal atmosphere was very different as well. The bands had a mostly egalitarian system and leadership was based on achieved status. Also leaders could only persaude not force others. In the Chiefdom leadership positions were inherited and there was aranked society with different social classes and statuses. The two groups societies functioned in very different ways, possibly because of the size difference between the bands (small groups) and the Chiefdom (Thousnads).
Part II:Please answer the following.a. Which field project or virtual field did you choose and why? (One brief paragraph [3-4 sentences])b. Write the first paragraph of the Introduction to the field report, which discusses the project location's background objectively (One full paragraph [5-6 sentences] )
GETTING FOOD GETTING FOOD FORAGING -- THE SAN OF THE KALAHARI FORAGING – SAN WOMEN FORAGING – THE SAN OF THE KALAHARI FORAGING – THE INUIT FORAGING – NORTHWEST COAST HORTICULTURE – CLEARING FOR GARDENS HORTICULTURE – GARDENS YANAMAMO PASTORALISM – CAMEL HERDING IN S. ASIA PASTORALISM – YAK HERDING IN E. ASIA PASTORALISM – SMALL HERD IN SWISS ALPS PRE-INDUSTRIAL INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE – RICE PADDIES PRE-INDUSTRIAL FARMING– OLIVE GROVE In the beginning of this course, we quoted E.B. Tylor's definition of culture as " that complex whole". We went on to say that Leslie White defined human culture as having three layers: subsistence (food, shelter), social structure (economics, politics, kinship) and ideology (belief systems, including religious beliefs and other philosophies) and that the layers were connected in multiple ways. In the 1950's, anthropologist Elman Service developed the band-tribe-chiefdom-state classification system of living cultures. We will now start seeing cultures in those terms, first discussing the economics of bands, tribes, chiefdoms, and states and how these are logically consistent with the politics of bands, tribes, chiefdoms, and states.. We have also covered this to a degree by discussing food collectors (bands), horticulturalists and pastoralists (tribes), settled agriculturalists (chiefdoms), and urban civilizations (states) as they developed through time. We will now look at these societies from the information derived from ethnographic (as opposed to archeological) research. Bands Bands are small groups of humans (20-50) which undergo fission-fusion (breaking up and coming together) in seasons of scarcity (fission) and abundance (fusion). They practice mobile food collection, moving campsites seasonally or as food resources decline, plus daily movements for collection of food and other resources. Usufruct is a concept of resource use (including land use) which means that the resource is yours as long as you use it. This makes sense where people do not reside in a particular place year-round, and so, can not defend it against others. (We still have concepts of usufruct when it comes to parking spaces, seats in public places, shopping carts, etc.) This does not mean that there is no sense of property ownership, as there is personal property that is portable and there is a tie to the land when it is occupied. The economics of exchange is generalized reciprocity only. this means that I will give you something or do a favor and you will eventually give me something and return the favor. (We still practice this with family, friends and neighbors.) In terms of politics (who has power and influence), leadership is informal, based on achieved status gained through experience and wisdom. The leader can only persuade others; she or he can not enforce decisions. People may leave a band if there is a disagreement. These societies are largely egalitarian (people have equal status, except for differences in natural abilities and wisdom). Tribes Tribes are larger groups, with hundreds of people, arranged in kinship groups known as lineages. There are too many people for wide-ranging food collection as the primary source of nutrition. Semi-sedentary (settled some of the time, migratory some of the time) horticulturalists (subsistence gardeners with hand tools) move the gardens to new locations every few years as soil fertility declines; the village might move at times, as well. Pastoralists (herders) range from being highly nomadic, semi-sedentary, or sedentary in villages. They herd large grazing animals: camels, sheep and goats, and cattle. Their economy, therefore, is naturally based on animal products such as milk, meat, wool, and hides. Besides generalized reciprocity, tribes practice balanced reciprocity (payment or barter at once). Pastoralists and horticulturalists, despite very different economies and cultures, necessarily trade with each other to have access to each others' products. The politics of tribes is much like their economic adaptations, that is, halfway between one extreme and another. Along with semi-sedentarism, leadership is part-time or temporary, as in times of crisis. This is still achieved status (earned through experience), but there may be some power of enforcement of decisions in addition to the power of persuasion. (We have volunteer fire chiefs and jury forepersons who function in this way.) The society is still largely egalitarian. Chiefdoms Chiefdoms are large groups of lineages with thousands of people who do not know each other or know how they may be related to each other. They live in permanent towns. The economy is based on intense agriculture , with the fields often outside of the town. The population size and density may be so great that fields can not be relocated, but must be made productive with one or more intensification methods: fertilization, crop rotation, terracing, irrigation. Harvesting is done with plows. The agricultural products of the permanently farmed fields are for sale, rather than for the farmers' consumption. Animal products are important, as well. Some wild food collection, such as fishing, is still part of the society. There are other occupations besides food production, such as artisan trades. Land ownership is in perpetuity (forever), at least, until it is sold. It makes cultural sense that a family which has farmed the same plot of land for generations perceives the land as theirs, permanently, not to be shared; they are always there to defend it against outsiders. In addition to generalized reciprocity and balanced reciprocity, chiefdoms practice redistribution of resources, by the chief himself or herself. This may be in the form of taxation, with collected resources then transferred to other members of society. The chief is a political leader who is a member of a chiefly lineage (family with known descent from a particular ancestor). The position of chief is inherited, which is ascribed status (not achieved). It is permanent, like the town and land ownership. The chief must mediate disputes that arise among the numerous strangers who live in close proximity to each other. The chief must also redistribute resources (e.g., through taxation) to maintain order in the society. Chiefdoms are ranked societies, with people born into different classes, with different statuses. States States are essentially expanded chiefdoms, with towns having grown into cities, chiefs having become royalty, and the society having developed many specializations in many social strata, along with long distance trade, monumental architecture, mathematics and sciences, and writing.