ANTH10400 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Cassava, Bride Service
28 Mar 2017
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Document Summary
Yanomami tribe: one of the most documented groups, border of brazil and venezuela, reputation for fierceness, issue of nations and violence and war. Brings up issues of social equality, political power, balance between resources and consumption, and ideological systems. Riverine environment very fertile: lots of resources (fish, etc. ) Inter-fluvial environment: limited fishing and scarce animal protein, hunting. Amazon rainforest: the environment helps shape culture (and vice versa) Subsistence based economy in small-scale society: no domestication of plants or animals, grow crops (particularly manioc, swidden gardening. Growing a variety of plants in levels on a plot of land. Village life larger numbers of people living together: marriage across cultures. Movement among village sites because of resources. Rich family life lots of leisure time. Conflict is an ever-present reality among indigenous amazonians: vengeance, prestige, material advantage. Factors to control/reduce conflicts: at the heart of amazonian culture are a series of practices revolving around reciprocity.
