The Yanomamo

                                           Art and Culture

1.      Functions of Early Art: In this assignment folder is a link to a walk-through of the Lascaux Caves in France. Access the link and explore the cave paintings. There is also a link to background information on the cave site and I encourage you to review this as well. Then answer the following questions :

      a.      What were the cave artists trying to say?
Based on the art work inside the caves I would have to agree with earlier interpretations that the art is somehow tied into the ‘magic ‘of hunting. They were trying to show images of their hunting abilities and powers. It was depictions of their daily lives. The video of the Lascaux Caves in France show many images of animals that were hunted during that time. One scene in particular that makes me believe these images are tied into the hunting rituals of the people is the finding by Jacques Marsal. He found in the cave a scene where man is confronting a bison. Most of the figures within the cave are of animals such as bison, horses and cows. In particular we see the scenes of the ‘falling cow’.

b.      Why do you think that there were so many animals and not as many people in the paintings?

I think that the animals were a great part of the life of the hunters at the time. Possibly it was more significant to show images of the animals they had hunted as opposed to images of the hunters. There are over six thousand images of animals at Lascaux, yet there is one image of what seems to be a human figure. It is rare for most these sanctuaries to have many images of humans. I think that humans are not as represented simply because the life of the hunter revolved around the hunt, and the animals represent that. They depended on these animals for survival, therefore the animals were very important to the Paleolithic people.

c.       What can the paintings tell us about other aspects of the life of cave dwellers or Paleolithic people?

I believe the paintings tell us just how important hunting was to the cave dwellers. It gives us insight into their daily hunting rituals. The fact that there are not any paintings of plant species also tells us a lot. The paintings suggest that the animals like the horses, bison and cows were very important to the Paleolithic people.

d.      What difficulties did these early humans navigate in order to paint these pictures?

One major difficulty for the artists must have been the amount of space needed to actually do the paintings. Another factor would be that the artists would have to able to switch techniques when needed. Of course the limitations on tools also made it difficult for artist to make these images. They depended on the “mechanical properties and morphological characteristics of the wall”. They were in caves that are rough and they had to work around these difficulties. For this reason I think we find a lot of silhouettes of animals as opposed to full blown paintings.

     e.       Speculate as to three (3) possible functions of this art to early humans?

I think the art provided a lot to early humans. First I think it allowed the artists of the Paleolithic period to show the hunting abilities of the people. The paintings show the importance of the hunt for the Paleolithic people. It also shows the animals that they were interested in such as the bison and horses. The people of the time were able to see and learn from these paintings.  Second, I think the cave paintings allowed for the early humans to pass down through generations the importance of hunting and their ritualistic hunting methods. The paintings would forever remain the voice and the story of the Paleolithic people. Third I think the ability to do the paintings allowed early humans the ability to express emotions and express their culture in a sense.

2. Commonalities in Function: Compare the possible functions of the art from the Lascaux Caves to modern art, in all of its various forms. What are some commonalities in function you can find in how the art of early humans and modern humans?

I believe all artwork serves a purpose. Some have physical functions, social functions, and even political functions. The art at the Lascaux Caves definitely had social functions. The cave paintings portrayed the lifestyle of the Paleolithic people. The function of the cave paintings was to address the hunting process that was very important to the Paleolithic people. These cave paintings give us a glimpse into the hunting rituals of the Paleolithic people. The cave paintings also express the importance of the animals which were painted.
I think modern art also has many functions. I find that there are a lot of artists that portray social and political functions within their art work. I find artists are very talented in painting concepts around the social and political struggles of today. I read online that “Political art always carries a social function”. I agree with this statement. I think both the early humans and the modern human artists are trying to convey a message through their arts. The message may be different, but it generally is involving social function and politics.

3. Introduce Us to Your Favorite Art: Include in your post at least one image and/or a link (5 pts) to a video depicting an art form you would like to explore. This could be a specific type of art (i.e., ceramics, photography, etc.), music (classical, blues, grunge, etc.), performance art, or any other type of art you might want to present. Then answer the following questions:

I have always been interested in performance art. I like that there are many aspects to it. It was originally used to describe artists like poets, musicians and film makers. Today it encompasses a much larger amount of art forms like dance and media.
One of my favorite performance artists is Suzanne Lacey. I have included a link to some of her art pieces.

http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=yfp-t-701-1&va=performance+artist+suzanne+lacy

       a.      For those who practice this form of artistic expression, what function does it serve?  What are they trying to communicate?

In performance art the audience is presented with a performance. The performance is sometimes scripted, and sometimes random. The main aspects of performance art include four “basic elements: time, space, the performer's body and a relationship between performer and audience”. Performance art can serve many functions depending on what the performance is about. I have seen a lot of performance art surrounding social and political concepts. I think that there can be messages in performance art regarding almost any idea. I think for those performing the art, they are trying to send a message through their poetry, music, dance or film. Most performance art I am interested in is done silently. It is the images and the performers that convey the message, and not the words. What they are trying to communicate is a message regarding a social, economical and political issue.

 b.      Is there a complete culture surrounding this art form, i.e., a language, a set of behaviors, form of dress, etc.? Describe and identify the features of this culture?

I would think that there are so many concepts and ways of doing performance art that there is not one specific culture that surrounds this art form. However through research I learned that ‘performance art has its roots in the cabaret performances of dada and the spectacles of the Surrealists, and grew up around the heyday of high Modernism’. Obviously this art form has been around for a while, although there have been some changes to it. In performance art the artist can be dressed in anything and their behaviors are not limited.

      c. How does this art form (and its culture) benefit society? Are there any detrimental affects?

I think that there are no real detrimental affects due to performance art. I realize that the messages that are portrayed can be shocking and offensive to some people, but not detrimental.
Performance Art definitely has its benefits to society. To begin, performance art has been around for many years, and its longevity provides room for growth. Although it originally was used to describe any live artistic events like poets, musicians and film makers. Throughout the years performance art has incorporated technological media into its art form. Another benefit of performance art is that it is live and has no rules or guidelines. ‘It is art because the artist says it is art’. In terms of benefiting society, performance art allows for people of society to voice or display their ideas and beliefs regarding political, economic, religious, and social views through the many different available avenues. I think performance art is entertaining and sometimes shocking, and it is able to send a message across.

                                         Yanomamo Revenge Killings

1. Rules or laws against killing are essentially a cultural universal, meaning all cultures have rules regarding the killing other people and the punishments for breaking these rules. How do the Yanomamo rules regarding killing and the consequences for breaking these rules differ from the rules in Western cultures in general?

The Yanomamo have a very different idea in regards to killings and breaking rules than most of the Western cultures. Conflicts and killings can occur for many reasons, including sexual issues such as infidelity, seducing another man's wife, and jealousy. Another reason why killings happen is because of retaliation from one tribe for the death of a tribe member by a different tribe. As stated in the article, “avenging the death of a kinsman is such a commonly reported cause of warfare in primitive societies”.

This is different than in Western cultures simply because murder is not acceptable in western cultures regardless the reason behind it. In western cultures revenge killings are considered murder and are punished by a prison sentence. The Yanomamo see these revenge killings as something that is almost expected from the kinsman of the murdered. Needless to say, that this does sometimes happen as well in western cultures, but it is not accepted as a legal form of punishment. In western cultures when rules are broken there are monetary fines placed as well as jail/prison time. We are not taught that killing is a form of punishment.

 2. Describe the process of revenge killings as it is expressed in Yanomamo populations?

If killing occurs within a village the two groups will raid each other. Usually these raids are because of a previous killing.  The raiders are usually between 10 and 20 men. Sometimes they travel four to five days to get to the enemy village. On the night of a raid the warriors will make an ‘effigy (no owa) ‘of the person they most want to kill. However they generally end up killing the first person they see.  They usually strike at dawn and will try to shoot the victim with their bow and arrows. Then they retreat fast to get as far away as possible before the kin of the victims can find them.

3. Revenge killings are dangerous for those who take part. What are the benefits of obtaining the status of unokais? How do they compare to the benefits of being a non-unokais? Why would a man choose to become an unokais instead of being a non-unokais?

Unokais are the men that have killed. After they have killed they go through the unokaimou ceremony. They become well known within the village and its neighboring villages as unokai. It is important for these men to obtain unokais status because it a symbol of being a powerful man. If they don’t kill they are considered weak. In fact the article stated that when men chronically drop out of raids and killings, they are ridiculed and their wives are targets for sexual attention by others. The unokais have higher reproductive success because they can find mates easier.  They are considered to be more attractive as mates than non-unokais.

Another important reason for becoming a unokais is that all headmen in the villages are unokai. In order to reach such positions within the tribe it is important to have a killing under your belt.

4. Identify and describe the relationship between revenge killings and these aspects of the Yanomamo culture. How do they influence and affect each other?

a.      Political structure:

As stated before the study shows that all the headmen in the villages were unokai. Thus means they had participated and killed somebody during a revenge killing. As stated by Clauzewitz “warfare is the conduct of politics by other means (31), in the tribal world warfare is ipso facto the extension of kinship obligations by violence because the political system is organized by kinship”. This is a strong message indicating that the kinship and the revenge killings are a great part of the political structure of the Yanomamo.

b.      Social Status/Social Organization:

The social status among the Yanomamo is related to revenge killings. As stated earlier, all the headmen in the villages were unokai. The revenge killings would place these men in higher social positions. Some unokai have a reputation for being a waiteri (which means fierce) because they have participated in many killings. In social organizations the men that participate in revenge killings are likely to be more attractive to the women in the village as well.

c.       Kinship:

The Yanomamo consider a person to be related to another if ‘at least one genealogical connection between them exists’.  Most of the villagers are related to one another in kin in multiple ways. As individuals age they begin to lose a lot of their close genetic kin due to violence, and in particular the revenge killings.

Kinship is important because when conflicts occur each individual relies on his own skills and more importantly support of his close kin.

d.      Marriage & Reproduction:

Men that are killers and participate in the revenge killings gain more marital and reproductive benefits.

The data obtained in this study shows that reproductive success among the unokais is much greater than among the non-unokais. The unokais have a higher reproductive success rate because they have better chance of mates, which can be done by force or customary marriage arrangements. The women of the villages are more attracted to the unokais than the non-unokais.

5. Behaviors that are usually labeled as “anti-social”, such as killing other people, are generally thought to be a bad thing to do under most circumstances, other than defense. Why do we need laws against something that no one should want to do? Use your reading of the article to help you explain your answer?

Laws are needed in Western civilizations because although killing others is considered a bad thing, it still happens all the time. Sometimes it is in revenge, other times for monetary gain, and sometimes there is no reason. Therefore these laws are created to help control the number of killings that do occur. If these laws and punishments were not implicated, imagine how much more murders we would have even here in the United States, which we consider a civilized nation.

In the case of the Yanomamo, we see in the article the young Yanomamo man who wants laws and police to be available to his people so that they don’t have to have wars of revenge. Many of his kin died in these violent wars of revenge. He is refusing to take part in raids, yet fears he will be targeted by his own people for this decision.

Kinship

                                                                    Kinship

   For this assignment I chose to interview my Aunt Virginia. This interview was conducted on a Wednesday afternoon. I had a list of questions to ask her. As an anthropologist I felt it my responsibility to guide her, yet as her niece I tried not to agree or disagree with any of the answers. I felt that she was excited to tell her story. I felt very comfortable throughout the interview. Only a few times did I feel awkward. I felt this way in particular when she discussed a hidden family secret. The thoroughness of my interview was not affected in any way. Even the awkward moments were followed by laughter. I believe that if this was someone unrelated to me, I probably wouldn’t feel awkward about anything they said. However I also believe the fact that the interviewee was my aunt, I was more daring and bold in my questions and quest for answers.

 Aunt Virginia is my mother’s oldest sister. She was born in Tehran, Iran.  She is of Armenian descent and speaks the Armenian language. Her family practiced traditional Armenian customs. She was raised in a home with both her parents and four other siblings. She is now sixty three years old and resides in Northridge, California. Her mother (my grandmother) came from a very wealthy family, yet her father (my grandfather) came from an extremely poor family. However her father was able to get an education at Oxford University and was making a great living. Only her father worked, her mother was a stay-at-home mom. They are of the Christian faith. In particular they are Eastern Orthodox. During her youth her family belonged to an elite social class. When speaking to my aunt I was surprised to learn how little she knew of her father’s side of the family. She knew only her grandmother, since her father had no siblings. She had very vivid stories to tell about her grandmother, in particular that her grandmother was once the oldest living person in the village in which they lived. She was 104 years old. My grandfather was a child of the Armenian genocide, yet he rarely spoke about it. My aunt said she can see the pain in his eyes when he did tell a few stories. This is really all the family she could describe on her father’s side. However when it came to my grandmother she knew every uncle, aunt, second cousin, and third cousin alive or dead. She knew just where they were born, where they lived, how much money they made, and in some cases when they died. She said all first and second cousins were very close, and she felt as if they were her siblings and not just cousins. She explained that my grandfather ran an oil company back in Iran, so he worked long hours. For this reason, my grandmother always had people visiting, and they were always her relatives. She explained that during the Islamic revolution my grandparents sent my oldest uncle to America to establish a business. Shortly after that all the other siblings came to the United States, including my mom (with my father). She wanted it to be clearly understood that family comes first. Although her husband was very successful back home, she would rather be poor and have her family around her. This was her support system and the people she relied on for money and child care. When I asked my aunt who were the people in the family she depended on, she answered “My kids, my sibling, and their kids”.

 My aunt Virginia says she has carried a lot of her tradition into her life today. She is married now for over forty years, and has two children and six grandchildren. As in typical Armenian households, her kids live fairly close by. I see that the family has been able to maintain the closeness between the siblings. They are just as close knit as ever. I recall my aunt saying to my mom just a short while ago “In the end, we are all each other have”. Although throughout the years I have seen changes in social levelsthis has not altered or affeceted relationships at all. When one family member is doing well, they seem to provide for everybody else. The common beliefs be it religious, moral standards, ethics, and in terms of life in general has remained the same throughout the years. There seems to be an equal importance placed on maternal and paternal lines. The mothers and women are much respected. In fact it’s the women that tend to run the households. However the fathers are respected for their hard work and dedication to family. There is a great respect for the elderly, and in particular the oldest living adult. We were taught at young ages to adhere and serve the elders. The younger kids were always admired and well taken care of by all family members. For example I have all authoritative rights when it comes to my nieces and nephews. They are taught to respect adults. The family sizes have definitely been cut down. Small families (of 4-5 people) seem to be the trend. The ethnic backgrounds are the same for all of my family; however I find that those cousins that are recently come to America do have a little different belief system than we do. This is naturally done to our assimilation into the American culture.

Through this experiment I have learned just how similar my beliefs and morals are to my aunt. It seems the traditions have been successfully passed down through the generations. I think it’s ironic that like my aunt, I feel a much more closeness to my mother’s side of the family. Although I know most of my father’s relatives, I’m not particularly close with any of them. However I know every cousin on my mom’s side very well. Sometimes I know a little too much about them. I definitely socialize with my mother’s side of the family a lot more. In recent years I have tried incorporating my father’s side of the family in regards to holidays. It just doesn’t have the same atmosphere. I am at ease when it comes to my mom’s side of the family. There is genuine love and admiration within cousins.

When it comes to decision making within the household both my parents value each others opinions. In terms of the larger family unit, we really rely on my oldest aunt and particularly my oldest uncle to be the decision maker. He is a very kind and honest man. He loves all the kids (even his sibling children) as if they were his own. He makes decision for the better of the whole family, and not just for his self. Family members for us include those that are married into the family as well as those born into the family. I have to say (not that I agree), it is a lot easier for the elders in the family to accept a spouse has the same cultural and religious background. Being that my grandfather lost his father to the genocide, my family places a large importance on marrying within the culture and maintaining all traditions and customs. However, we love anybody regardless. The males and females are really not treated differently. The only difference is that the boys feel it’s their job to massacre any boyfriend the girls bring around. Yet they expect the girls to be kind to their significant others.

his exercise has really given me a great appreciation and understanding of my family. The ties between the siblings on my mom’s side of the family are amazing. I realize this is why my brother and I are very close. I realized that being his older sister, I was taught to always look out for him. Yet as the male figure, he was taught to protect me as well. I learned how much culture, ethics and religion have influenced my large family. I also learned just how important my family is to me.

Week 4

Hunters and Gatherers vs. Agriculture:

     1.    Identify the benefits of both subsistence patterns:

The hunter-gatherer subsistence pattern provided many benefits. It’s important to understand the food supply of the hunter-gatherers is obtained from wild resources. They do not rely on domesticated plants or animals. It is also important to state that this has been the dominant means of subsistence for 99.5 percent of the 2.5 million years of human existence. One of the benefits of hunter-gatherer lifestyle is the fact that the food supply was rich in nutrients. The hard work that was placed into hunting and gathering allowed for the people to be in good physical shape. In recent years we have learned that the hunter-gatherers actually only worked between 4-5 hours a day, allowing them more leisure time.
 
Agriculture also has its own benefits. Farmers are able to provide food both locally and globally. Without their crops and livestock, the world's food supply would be extremely limited. Some people believe that agriculture can improve air quality. The crops are release oxygen into the air, which as humans we need to survive. Some scientists also believe that agriculture can lessen the chance of flooding because the areas of grass that used to raise livestock can reduce the amount of soil erosions by fifty to eighty percent. Agriculture (early on) also allowed populations to grow and diversify by creating civilizations.

2.    Identify the costs (or disadvantages) of both subsistence patterns:

Being a hunter-gatherer also had its disadvantages. First of all they were small populations that generally had to move from one place to another in order to sustain. There were a lot of tribal wars to gain territories for food supplies. The wars and the moving around made it difficult to survive.

Agriculture presents its own share of disadvantages (in particular modern agriculture). First of all there is the removal of buffers to make large fields. These fields provide for maximum efficiency and lower food costs. Yet by doing this we are taking away from the natural habitat of some wild creatures. This can lead to soil erosions. The use of fertilizer is another issue. These fertilizers are harmful to the environment. The same is true for pesticides and other chemicals that end up in our rivers and lakes.

     3.    Which subsistence pattern provides a healthier diet? Explain.
 
I believe that agriculture (although has many disadvantages) provides a healthier lifestyle. With our advanced technology we are able to add nutrients to our food sources as needed. I simply don’t believe that the world today with all its inhabitants could survive on a hunter-gatherer lifestyle. Although there are fears of contamination within our food sources all the time, we still have a much larger ratio of producing non-contaminated products.

4.    Discuss why you think some human populations made the transition into agriculture?

I think there are a few reasons why many human populations transitioned to agriculture.I think that the hunter0gatherer lifestyle consisted too much of moving around and that was not appealing to the people. Also I think they believed that agricultural life is inherently superior to foraging. Another good reason with be the constant environmental changes, that didn’t allow for moving around as often.

Economics and Trade:

1.    There is a direct relationship between the availability of surplus and the ability to trade:

This statement is trying to explain that there is a definite connection between excess supplies and trade. In other words whenever a person or society has more supply of one item than needed, they can trade with others for supplies which they don’t have, but need. This allows for populations to use their surplus of items to their advantage by means of trade.

2.    Identify and describe two (2) social benefits of trade:

One of the social benefits of trade is the ability to learn and obtain items that are not common to our own culture and society. In other words we can get food, clothing and even medicinal products from other societies through trade. We can also learn technological advancements from other societies.

Another social benefit of trade is the amount of travel and connection it has created amongst the peoples of the world. There is a large amount of people that travel for business and trade, and there are those that will return for vacations.  

3.    Identify and describe two (2) negative social results of the development of trade:

One of the negative aspects of trade is that some societies get too involved politically with the other societies. Sometimes wars have occurred in history because one culture wanted to take over the land and supplies of other cultures. Another negative is that some societies depend on others for their supplies, and this can be detrimental to a society’s welfare.

4.    Given your answer in the question #1, explain the relationship between the development of agriculture and the development of trade:

I believe that the birth of agriculture also allowed for the advancements of trade. In fact with agriculture there was a definite more stable environment and the ability to create surplus. Then the surplus is what can give way to trade with other societies.  With agriculture there was room to create a lot more products, and therefore a lot more to trade.

Language Barriers:

I have to begin by saying this was truly an interesting experiment. I decided to use two different people for each experiment. My friend Ashley only spoke English, and my friend Anna spoke to me in Armenian.  I wanted to see if there was any difference in either experiment when the language was different. For the first part of the experiment the other participants were able to use language, whereas I was only allowed to use body language and non-verbal vocalizations. I began with Ashley. She spoke to me for fifteen minutes. Although I could not respond to her with words, I was able to keep her talking with just the hand gestures, smiles, and nods. Neither of us found this exercise to be difficult. I tried the same experiment with Anna in Armenian. We also had a lengthy conversation with each other. I didn’t find it hard to engage in the conversation, however I could tell there was times she was looking for me to react (with words) and I couldn’t. This made me think of my grandparents. They came to this country about thirteen years ago. I remember they felt so stupid because they couldn’t speak English. They had gotten lost one time by getting on the wrong bus, and they said they had a very difficult time getting home. They couldn’t communicate with anybody, and all they got were blank stares when they asked for directions. It did however encourage them to learn English at a much faster pace than all their friends.

In the second part of the experiment again my friends Ashley and Anna were the participants. In this part of the project I was able to speak to my participants, however I was not allowed any hand or face gestures or head movements of any kind. This was particularly interesting and difficult. Although the conversation should be easier with two people actually using their voices to communicate, it was not. Ashley had a much easier time speaking to me in English. She said my single tone was annoying. She didn’t like that I didn’t smile at her happy news. All in all it was not that bad. Now the conversation in Armenian was a whole other story. Anna was so frustrated with me for being monotone. She kept saying “say something”, what she didn’t realize was that I was saying a lot. I just couldn’t use my facial expressions and hand gestures as I normally would in our conversations. I actually found this to be amusing.

In order for me to understand Anna’s frustration she made me go through another conversation where she spoke to me in monotone and with no gestures. I have to say, it was pretty annoying. From this experiment I learned just how important language is to communicate. I was surprised to learn how much I depend on gestures and facial expressions during conversations.