Ruth Benedict

Ruth Benedict was a pioneer in the field of anthropology and brought disability forward, as she studied cross-cultural conceptions of epilepsy in the 1930s. Jane and Lucien Hanks wrote a cross-cultural study that looked at social factors that influence the status of people with disabilities in variety of cultures: Native American, Asian, Pacific, and African populations; and Margaret Mead, who studied under Ruth Benedict, spoke about people with disabilities as members of the “normal” American population, and said the study of American national character had to include all types of Americans (Reid-Cunningham 2009:101). Taking an example from racial, gender, and other civil rights movements of the 1960s, disability was brought to the forefront…

In the book “Patter of Culture” by Ruth Benedict exams the concepts of cultural relativity. She careful study the differences between three cultures the Pueblo of New Mexico, Dobu of Melanesia and Kwakiutl of the Northwest Coast. By closely study how each individual group act in certain ways and different choices have been made upon the same problem between the groups. However, from her study, Benedict has found that there is a patterns of culture, which is half of her book explained the…

She recognized that individual behavior “…exemplifies the motivations of that culture.” (1934 (1985) 147). She investigated how personalities adapt or fail to adapt to cultural norms; and through her fieldwork, Benedict was able to observe “The dilemma of the individual whose congenial drives are not provided for in the institutions of his culture.” (1934 (1985) 152) Benedict evaluated the role of eccentricity within a society, and she observed that every society possessed a unique set of values…

connected to psychology on the premises that both sciences are attempting to see things from another perspective. As humans we are naturally curious about things we do not possess, this is what makes these fields so interesting to me. Modern Anthropology and American Anthropology have relatively recent history compared to most scientific fields. They were largely shaped by a man named Franz Boas also known as the Father of Anthropology (“Franz Boas”). It is Boas that coined the term culture and…

anthropological scholars who studied human behavior with a camera share an interest in the cultural mechanics of body movement, locomotion, motor skills, gesture, posture, dance, the display of emotion, and space use” (Ruby 2000, 47). Therefore, as an anthropologist one should keep in mind that “the camera can only record bodies occupying space through time, it is these dimensions of culture that must be emphasized. At various times, this field has been paralinguistics and nonverbal…

“Preservation of one's own culture does not require contempt or disrespect for other cultures,” says the late civil rights activist Cesar Chavez. In other words, although it is easy to stay within your own culture, you can gain the most benefit by learning to appreciate and respect the ways that others live their lives. Culture was the topic of the book Patterns of Culture by Ruth Benedict. It offered an anthropological look into culture and how it affects our daily lives. The culture that we…

explore to what extent these categories have been contrived due to issues with both methodology and theory using three ethnographic examples which maintain a 'culture and personality ' approach. Whilst it would be difficult to maintain that 'culture ' and 'personality ' are 'false ' categories, the essay will establish that to put them in a simple dichotomous relationship with one another is no longer suitable for anthropological work today. What emerges is not a retelling of how this…

Anthropologist Franz Boas is well-known for promoting the concept of cultural relativism. Meaning, practices, beliefs, and ideas within a certain culture make sense within that culture. As an outsider, certain beliefs or practices of cultures that are different from our own can easily be misunderstood or interpreted incorrectly. Although cultural relativism promotes the idea of respecting and understanding the beliefs and practices of different cultures, when does a certain practice/belief…

Benedict was able to group the whole personalities of a culture into two; Apollonian and Dionysian. Apollonian maintain stability in behavior and have control which usually is consider as normal. Apollo refers to God of sun, light which represent maturity, power and control. Unlike, Dionysus is God of wine, agriculture and nature. So personality that falls under Dionysian is ruminate loss control and engaging in unexpected activities and more (lecture, 02/16/16). It is the normal vs abnormal.…

Snopes is constantly overwhelmed by fear, agony, and despair because of his father’s practices of violence not only against his family but also the law when burning the barns. Peace is essential for human development; it gives a sense of tranquility and seclusion from oppression. Throughout the story Sarty deals with his father’s brutality, ignorance, and misconception of power which makes him realize that his father is not someone he is proud of. Abner's actions and behavior makes it difficult…