CLAIRTY: 5

LAURA COWLES University of Wyoming (Lin Poyer)

Chaney, Richard P.     Typology and Patterning: Spiro’s Sample Re-examined. American Anthropologist December, 1966 Vol.68(6):1456-1471.

Richard P. Chaney examines a paper by Melford E. Spiro entitled "A Typology of Social Structure and the Patterning of Social Institutions: A Cross-Cultural Study." It is Chaney’s contention that Spiro’s study is biased.

Spiro’s paper has three related aims. First, it attempts to construct an empirically based typology of social structure based on a cross-cultural statistical method. Second, Spiro attempts to demonstrate the usefulness of this typology, and the usefulness of the method by which it was constructed, for the classification of societies, and for comparative research. Third, this classification is further used to explore some of the attributes of structural patterning and some principles of structural change.

Spiro works with two typologies. One he calls a logical typology, which classifies societies on the basis of their total social structure, and the other an empirical typology, which classifies according to degree of similarity. Chaney states that the first typology is invalid because Spiro doesn’t use enough variables. The second, while partially true, could have derived much cleaner classifications had Spiro intercorrelated the societies on selected features and then clustered these into groups. Chaney also states that Spiro’s typology of social structure possesses too few fundamental classes for these to embrace more than gross distinctions.

Chaney finds discrepancies between Spiro’s findings, based on a sample of 60 societies, and his own studies based on a sample of 565 societies. It is Chaney’s belief that it is best to make use of as large a sample as possible, one selected as representative of the universe of human societies, unlike Spiro’s sample of 60, which were initially selected for a study of religion.

Chaney also believers that Spiro’s study went astray in the kinship-domestic domain because worldwide patterns often obscure local clusterings of data which may show significant differences from one continent to another or culture area to another.

In conclusion, Chaney states that Spiro’s work has heuristic value, but because of the small sample size his potentially significant conclusions are inappropriate.

CLARITY RANKING: 3

JOHN P. LAUGHLIN: The University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Cohen, Yehudi.  On Alternative Views of the Individual in Culture-and-Personality.  American Anthropologist  April, 1966  Vol. 68 (2): 355-361

This article by Yehudi Cohen is a critique of John Whiting and collaborators in their study of initiation ceremonies and the social organization of these ceremonies.  Whiting focused on the infantile and childhood experiences as the determinants of future behavior. Cohen criticizes this approach because Whiting implies that adult behavior is the remainder of infantile and early childhood experiences.  Cohen states the Whiting ignores a significant point in human existence: that institutional integration is found all throughout life, not just in childhood.  Cohen argues that the individual must adapt to the social organization long after childhood in order to survive within it.

Although, in further studies, Whiting added variables such as disease and nutrition, Cohen again suggests alternative interpretations for the development of behavior.  He discusses kinship and the dependence on protection in a nuclear family or kin group, ownership of land, and social groupings to understand cultural ceremonies.  Praising Whiting for his consistency concerning the psychological effect of child-rearing practices, Cohen notes that he does focus intensely on the individual’s experiences of feeding, aggression and sleeping arrangements that create psychological effects through individual bonds.

Both Whiting and Cohen note that there are “valid alternative views” of their research and interpretation.  Cohen speaks of the institution of socialization, concerning political, economic, juridical and other institutions, while Whiting focuses on the individual in the system, and the individual’s specific experiences. Cohen believes individuals should be studied in terms of the roles they play in social institutions throughout their lives.  In contrast, Whiting’s approach makes it redundant to study an individual as an adult, since the determinants of a person’s behaviors are set in childhood.

This article summarizes nicely the difference between a structural or functional approach in cultural ecology (Cohen), and a Boasian or culture and personality style of looking at individuals and their importance (Whiting).  Cohen’s notes that, “No discipline can advance without controversy.”  He raises many questions about the study of personality development within cultures, but is careful to note that his article should encourage anthropologists to seek out alternatives to profit the field in this and other problems.

CLARITY 3

ANNA NOLEN University Of Wyoming, Laramie.  (Dr. Lin Poyer)

Colby, Benjamin N.     The Analysis of Culture Content and the Patterning of Narrative Concern in Texts. American Anthropologist. 1966 Vol. 68:374-387.

Benjamin Colby reports on computer simulations used to study conceptual patterns represented by grouped word-forms. The frequency of word-forms can be used in the comparative study of folk literature and can reveal culture based conceptual areas for a single culture. The study of word-groups is seen as one means by which error inherent in translation and the creation of cultural texts can be avoided. Thus, a closer approximation of culture content in text creation can be achieved by understanding the meaning of words within emotive contexts that may not be apparent to the anthropologist.

Words that are longer and less frequent have less grammatical function. They primarily carry non-syntactic information and the link between the original language and the translated language is more directly established. These words are considered "contextual" words because their usage depends on the topic of the material. To test this approach Navajo and Zuni word-groups were studied using thematic apperception tests called TATs. Pictures from which each Navajo and Zuni informant was to create a textual narrative represented these themes. The themes were believed to represent or relate to economic strategies employed by both groups. Statistics were than used to indicate significant differences in narrative concern. For example, the Zuni used almost three times as many moisture word-forms as the Navajo. Navajo appeared more concerned with exposure in their use of meteorological terms. This is related to differences in economic concern. For the Zuni are primarily farmers and the Navajo sheepherders. The statistical count of the frequency of meteorological terms used in TATs provided an idea of their relative importance in the native language, thus reducing errors of meaning in translation. Overall, this report shows that computers can aid the anthropologist in the difficult task of translation of meaning in folk literature.

CLARITY: 3

JEREMY MOSS: University of Wyoming (Dr. Michael Harkin)

Cook, Scott.     The Obsolete "Anti-Market" Mentality: A Critique of the Substantive Approach to Economic Anthropology. American Anthropologist April, 1966 Vol. 68(2):323-345.

Cook argues that the field of economic anthropology is characterized by a dichotomy between those who postulate "formal" economic theory as appropriate in the analysis of "primitive and peasant economies" (economists) and those who consider "formal" theory as appropriate for "market-oriented industrial economies" only (substantive economy theorists). Cook elaborates on the idea that use of substantive economic theory as cross-culturally applicable is the result of an ideology "rooted in antipathy" for the industrial economies and "idealization of the primitive" economies.

According to Cook, substantive theory comes from the anthropological tradition of focusing on cultural relativism. Thus, formal theory is inappropriate for non-market economies. In contrast, Cook contends that economic theory itself is based on the work of economists and concentrates on the belief that resources are scarce and it is this scarcity which causes goods to be shared among members of a society. Since a good is scarce relative to its demand within a given social group then economic theory is based on cultural relativism.

Cook contends that the use of "models and concepts" from the economic theory "tool-kit" during non-market analysis does not require the assumption that "market structure" exists universally as the substantive theorists would have us believe. Instead Cook postulates that the modern anthropologist must realize that human populations are not static and that "norms, attitudes and behaviors" of industrial market economies are spreading rapidly throughout cultures of the world.

In order for a "general theory of comparative economics" to be established the model building skills of the economist and the ethnographic skills of the anthropologist must be combined. Cook believes that the fate of economic anthropology depends on the emergence of a hybrid theory that utilizes both economics and anthropology.

CLARITY RANKING: 3

DIANA L. HARMAN: University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Coult, Allan D.     The Structuring of Structure. American Anthropologist April, 1966 Vol. 68 (2): 438-443.

Coult challenges the belief in anthropological theory that psychological and structural explanations for events are fundamentally exclusive. Those who maintain that psychological explanation is not useful for answering anthropological questions regarding social events have a biased understanding of the relation between psychological and structural explanations. Through various examples, Coult attempts to clarify exactly what this relation is.

To illustrate his point, he discusses different types of marriage patterns and the situations in which they are most likely to be found. In these examples, he distinguishes between purely logical analyses, and those that involve both logical and empirical considerations. Logical analyses are concerned solely with the definitions and rules of logic, without relying on empirical evidence. Analyses that involve both logical and empirical aspects must still take into account definitional aspects, but must also determine actual existence in the real world. Coult holds that such observation and knowledge of real world events is essential, because it limits empirical possibility. Logical possibility, on the other hand, is limited only by the rules of logic. He concludes, therefore, that logic is useful only after what occurs empirically is known.

However, because structural explanation utilizes logical analysis, and psychological explanation utilizes empirical observation, they are often unintegrated approaches to the study of human behavior. Coult shows that structural explanations are limited by their focus on existing choices, dealing only with the effects of decisions after they are made. These structural explanations ignore the psychological factors that influence how decisions are actually made. In contrast, psychological explanations are concerned with decision making processes, recognizing that the motivation that lies behind the decision is ultimately what leads to the structure. In other words, psychological explanations are "concerned with the structuring of structure".

Coult sees structural and psychological explanations as complementary forms of a single paradigm, neither excluding the other. Anthropologists who insist there is no place for psychology within the social sciences are therefore always lacking a complete understanding of the explanations of events.

CLARITY RANKING: 4

MARY PRASCIUNAS University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Edgerton, Robert.   Conceptions of Psychosis in Four East African Societies.    American Anthropologist.   1966   Vol.68: 408-421.

In this article, Robert Edgerton examines conceptions of psychosis in four non-literate African societies, and compares them to one another and to Western society.  He argues for the need for extensive fieldwork in order to better understand how non-Western peoples perceive and respond to severe mental illness.  He examines evidence concerning the incidence of mental disorders, and uses his data to encourage more research in this area.  The overall problem his article addresses is the lack of literature on mental disorders in Africa.

Edgerton seeks to demonstrate the importance of understanding native concepts of mental disorders of non-acculturated East Africans.  He argues that doing so would help anthropologists depict native life as the natives themselves see it.  He also felt that it was necessary to know how Africans perceive, define, and respond to mental disorders in their own terms in order to prevent western psychiatry from distorting social and cultural reality.

Edgerton organizes his article into five sections dealing with the procedures used to gather data, the findings, traditional treatments psychosis, the social contexts of metal disorders, and the summary and conclusion of his data.  The data Edgerton uses to support his argument derives from a part of the “Culture and Ecology in East Africa Project,” sponsored by the University of California, Los Angeles. Five hundred respondents were selected using probability-sampling techniques.  All selected were more of less equivalent in their lack of Western acculturation.  They were interviewed in standardized conditions.

Edgerton presents summaries of the data relevant to his research in tables and charts for comparison.  The data showed that there were equivalent terms for psychosis in each of the four East African societies.  There was agreement among them on most of the characteristics of psychosis.  Although all four tribes had disorders that corresponded with psychosis, there was not unanimous agreement on cause or treatment.  Two tribes-- the Sebei and the Pokot--tended to attribute the disorder to natural causes.  As a consequence, these two tribes did not believe that the psychosis could be cured, and treated those who suffered from mental disorders in a harsh manner.  In contrast, the Hehe and Kamba peoples believed psychosis was caused by sorcery, and could be cured, at least temporarily, by various therapies.  Edgerton noticed that these conceptions of psychosis were very similar to those of Western European psychoses, especially that of schizophrenia.  He also stressed that the same behaviors that lead to hospitalization are also the basis for native conceptions of psychosis.  After reviewing the data, he concluded that the process through which psychosis is recognized, defined, and responded is hardly less complex than in Western society.

Edgerton concludes without sufficiently proving or disproving conclusively either the transcultural universality or dissimilarity of mental disorders.  This article was a call to arms rather than a postulation of theory.

I felt that Robert Edgerton presented a well-written and understandable article, with evidence and data to support his arguments.

CLARITY: 5

SONNI HOPE    University of Wyoming (Lin Poyer)

Freed, Ruth S. and Freed, Stanley A.  Unity in Diversity in the Celebration of Cattle-Curing Rites in a North Indian Village: A Study in the Resolution of Conflict.  American Anthropologist   June, 1966    Vol. 68(3): 673-692.

Ruth and Stanley Freed’s article addresses how an epidemic of cattle disease in the village of Shanti Nagar near Delhi led to a dispute between orthodox and reform Hindus over the holding of Akhta, a traditional cattle curing-rite.  The dispute arose because of the conflicting ideologies of the Samajis, reform Hindus who follow Arya Samaj, and the Sanatanis, orthodox Hindus who follow Sanatan Dharma.  In this article, the authors describe the conflict and relate how it was resolved, based on their 1958 visit to Shanti Nagar.  The article also includes an extensive account of the Akhta ritual itself.

Despite the “diversity of Hinduism,” and the variation of religious ideologies in the village, Ruth and Stanley Freed contend that the Akhta dispute was easily resolved because of the existence of a few cultural themes held in common by all villagers.  They maintain that the constant themes within Indian culture that evolved early in Indian history, and were incorporated into the sacred literature of Hinduism, provide the integration and unity underlying the diverse and conflicting elements visible in Indian culture.  In addition, elements of Akhta have been abolished, modified, or reinterpreted to reconcile them with Arya Samaj teachings.

The authors argue that three themes provided the grounds for resolving the conflict.  The first is the tradition of self-government.  The village acts as a unit against outside danger.  Village welfare dominates individual interests and overrides the divisions based on caste, faction, and diverse religious practices.  The second theme is the four principles of Hinduism accepted by all Shanti Nagar villagers: (1) the Vedas are divine in origin; (2) they are the source of all knowledge; (3) there is a supreme deity with many representations, aspects, and/or names; and (4) the deity is omnipresent.  The third theme is the concept of dharma, proper or righteous conduct.

This article demonstrates how rationalization, reinterpretation, and culture change helped solve the cattle-curing dispute.  Rationalization or reinterpretation played a significant role in making Akhta acceptable to some Samajis.  For example, the traditional practice of begging was substituted for the feast and fire ceremonies, activities acceptable to all Hindus, and some Samajis rationalized that fumigation was a way to drive off germs rather than exorcise spirits.  The modifications and reinterpretations of the Akhta ritual occurred over a period of years.  Thus, the resolution of conflict over the Akhta ritual symbolizes adjustment and culture change.

CLARITY RANKING: 4

NEIL MAXWELL SHAH   University of Wyoming (Dr. Lin Poyer).

Gilbert, John P. and Hammel, E. A.     Computer Simulation and Analysis of Problems in Kinship and Social Structure. American Anthropologist February, 1966 Vol.68(1):71-91.

Gilbert and Hammel analyze the use of computer simulation to provide explanatory/predictive models for such concerns as demography, kinship, and social structure. Mathematical models employed to such ends become unwieldy with large numbers of variables, and limit the range of topics available for discussion, such as prescriptive versus preferential marriage models. The authors construct a model society to run through a computer program to determine expectable rates of such phenomena and their interrelationships. The output of the program is compared to a simpler mathematical model constructed and detailed by the authors to generate confirmation and rejection criteria, and is compared to observed rates of particular phenomenon.

The problem examined by the authors to test the computer program and their mathematical model is the degree to which, and in what manner, the rate of patrilateral parallel cousin marriage is influenced by several variables. First, the characteristics of the program, AHAB V, are described, including input specifications and routines the program is designed to perform. Next, technical features of AHAB V are described, including orientation of unit storage locations, storage of generated statistical summaries, and nature of the subroutine. Then the mathematical model used for comparison to the computer simulation is detailed.

When the data from the computer simulation and the mathematical model are compared, they yield similar results. The computer simulation, given that it is constructed to handle far more complexity, is considered by the authors to be more "realistic" than the mathematical model, though the similar results indicate that both are reliable. The authors suggest a correction factor to adjust the mathematical model to more accurately correspond to the computer simulation output. A brief discussion is undertaken of the discrepancies between observed rates of patrilateral cousin marriage and rates suggested by the authors’ methods. The authors confirm that the observed rates and calculated rates are in general agreement.

Gilbert and Hammel conclude that the utility of computer simulation and the mathematical model lies in their ability to provide occurrence rates and information about interrelationships in issues of kinship and social structure that would be difficult to obtain by other means.

CLARITY RANKING: 3

THOMAS FURGESON University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Gray, Charles Edward.  A Measure of Creativity in Western Civilization.  American Anthropologist   December, 1966    Vol. 68 Number 6: 1384-1417

This article attempts to explain and expand upon what A.L. Kroeber said in Configuration of Culture Growth (1944) about the clustering of genius.  Kroeber pointed out the phenomenon of clustering, while Gray explains a theoretical model of how and why the clustering occurs.  He calls this model the Encyclical Theory.  This article was the third in a series in which Gray used his Encyclical theory to measure creativity within a civilization over time.

The Encyclical theory is backed up by six thousand accounts of historical figures and their contribution to Western Civilization.  Gray stated that the Economic-Social-Political system was the driving force for creativity.  Each segment of the Economic-Social-Political system rises and falls in a sinusoidal pattern.  For the Economic Era there are four distinctions made in economic system, in order from past they are: Formative Guild Economy, Developed Mercantile Economy, Fluorescent Industrial Economy, and Degenerate Monopoly Economy.  Over the same time period the Social Periods have a similar sinusoidal pattern but the frequency is doubled.  The Social Period is split into two periods; Aristocratic and Democratic, Each of these go through the Formative, Developed, Fluorescent, and Degenerate(FDFD) periods as well, making a total of eight Social Periods.  The Political Phase also goes through the FDFD cycle but has four phases: Feudal, Monarchy, National State, and Imperial State, giving sixteen Political Phases.  Where the peaks of all Economic-Social-Political system occur at the same time, there is a clustering of genius as well as explosions in creativity.  When two peaks of the Economic-Social-Political system coincide, there is a similar but smaller clustering and surge in creativity.  This results in peaks in the cycles that are patterned by Gray’s model. When lower stages of cycles coincide, creativity drops.  His explanation for the clustering is that “such blossomings occur several times during civilization, that such peaks are rare and do not characterize most of civilization’s course, and that these peaks are of unequal duration.”

This article constructed a clear and concise argument as to the creativity of Western Civilization.

CLARITY: 4

BENJAMIN V. EBERT   University of Wyoming (Lin Poyer).

Holloway, Ralph L.   Cranial Capacity, Neural Reorganization, and Hominid Evolution: A Search for More Suitable Parameters. American Anthropologist, 1966. Vol.68(1):103-122

 The matter of cranial capacity (ranging in the Homo Sapiens from 1,000 c.c with no guaranteed correlation between cranial capacity and behavior) has consisted of great importance in the writings of the anthropological discipline concerned with human evolution. It has been used as valid data for taxonomic identification, as well as for behavioral complexity and for discussing rates of somatic evolution. The use of this parameter has also prevented the acceptance of the Australopithecine as true hominids up until the discoveries of stone tools and the post cranial material.  These discoveries have been acknowledged as relevant factors in interpreting these early fossils as true hominids, since these indicated that neural structure had probably taken place by the Australopithecines time. Therefore, to understand somatic evolution simply based on cranial capacity would be too simplistic in regards to important aspects of hominid evolution.

Holloway’s argument focuses on the unsuitability of this parameter with respect to the relationship of cranial capacity and behavioral ability or behavioral differences.  Holloway discusses how the two approaches to the study of brain evolution and behavior –Paleoneurology and Comparative Neuroanatomy- are not sources as legitimate as one may think due to its serious drawbacks. Firstly, Paleoneurology –the study of fossil endocasts- can only study the external surface features which in real life are covered with fluid and tissue and relate only to the gross behavioral functions. Secondly, Comparative Neuroanatomy (the study of the brain of extant animals that deals with the comparison of man, apes, monkeys, etc) works with an explicit set of assumptions that one must take into consideration. One of them is that in order to follow this method, one would have to assume that these forms are close to ancestral form when referring to overall organization. Another assumption lies in considering that neural organization in these forms nowadays is not radically altered from those of the past.

Holloway contends that a comparison of cranial capacities of extant forms or those based on endocasts is not a fair comparison of cranial capacities.  It is suggested that other parameters such as dentritic branching, neural density, glia/neural ratios, and shifts in fiber tracts to the whole might be more profitable sources of examination to be able to understand behavioral differences.

 CLARITY: 4

AMANDA FERNANDEZ    York university  (Maggie MacDonald)

Holloway, Ralph L., Jr.  Cranial Capacity, Neural Reorganization, and Hominid Evolution: A search for More Suitable Parameters.  American Anthropologist.  1966  Vol. 68 (No. 1-2): 103-121.

Ralph Holloway suggests a better way to understand hominid evolution through cranial measurements.  The article focuses on a better understanding of the various measurements used and their applicability with respect to behavioral differences.  Holloway focuses on early hominid evolution, beginning with the Australopithecine line and ending with modern humans. 

Previous studies of cranial anatomy have been misleading, Holloway says.  They are comparisons based on cranial capacity, which is not a comparison of “equal units.”  The comparison of brain size is unreliable for several reasons.  First, in cases of microcephaly vera (people with smaller crania, often ranging in size from 400cc to 600cc), people are able to talk and interact with the human ability that other primates do not posses.  Secondly, he states that humans can lose about 2 billion neurons and still function properly, while the common chimpanzee has about 1.4 billion neurons fewer than we do.  Therefore it is not the number of neurons or the size of the brain that controls complex thought processes and use of language.  Finally, he points out that the current human population’s variation in cranium size varies over 1000cc, which is the same as the variation between modern man and early forms of Homo.

Holloway gives an overview of the two processes used to study cranium size in hominids. The first, paleoneurology, uses only the fossilized endocasts of crania to study size and features.  Paleoneurology fails because the number of endocasts is limited and the definition of landmarks of the brain is poor.  It cannot tell us much about behavior.  The second, comparative neuroanatomy focuses on comparing the neural capacity of monkeys, apes, and humans.  The problem with this form of study is that humans did not evolve from the great apes or monkeys, and thus the expected anatomy and behaviors differ.  Also, the human brain contains the same structures as any mammal, so these comparative studies are redundant. 

Holloway proposes that we use neural reorganization rather than cranial capacity in understanding hominid evolution.  Such a study is difficult, as it includes aspects such as memory, emotion, language, and the interconnectedness of all three.  The only way to truly see the differences of neural reorganization is through the archaeological record found in context with skeletal remains. 

His major hypothesis rests on the idea that we first (around the time of “Lucy”) developed our neural reorganization that led to the integration of “advanced” human traits.  It is here, he proposes, that we became humans through complex thought and tool use.  Only afterwards did the human brain begin to grow larger through selective processes.  He does not offer any suggestion as to why this particular trait (a larger brain) was selected for, but says that it was the second major evolutionary step, not the first.

It is helpful to have some background in the organization of the brain to fully understand this article.

CLARITY RANKING:  2

SARAH E. WICKSTROM University of Wyoming, Laramie (Lin Poyer)

Hammer, Muriel.     Some Comments on the Formal Analysis of Grammatical and Semantic Systems. American Anthropology April, 1966 Vol. 68(2): 362-373.

Muriel Hammer’s article examines the validity of linguistic analysis, both formal and empirical. Hammer considers the formal analysis of language from two perspectives. First the perspective of the native speaker, and second the perspective of the alien analyst. Hammer examines the works of Wallace (1962) on componential analysis, and Chomsky (1957) on generative grammar to illustrate open and closed systems, and formal verses empirical analysis.

First, Hammer is not convinced of Chomsky’s contention that languages observe a finite set of rules, and the rules used by the native speaker are the best analytic tool for grammatical understanding. Hammer maintains the languages are in fact not static entities, but are continuously changing, and the native speaker is continuously adapting and is therefore an inappropriate source for formal grammatical evaluation.

Second, Hammer examines Wallace’s contention that rules for languages are undetermined since every conceivable situation has not taken place under every conceivable scenario. Wallace maintains that a "psychological reality" of how people process and convey information is not clearly defined. Wallace suggests that componential analysis of rules can correspond to a "psychological reality".

Hammer’s article examines the problems and questions that arise when analyzing grammatical and semantic systems. Hammer suggests that to study semantics, is to gain an understanding of the way meaning is encoded in language. Formal semantic analysis includes not only the words themselves, but also the relationship that words have with the ideas and concepts they describe. Hammer goes on to the suggest that a formal analysis of grammatical and semantic systems must realize that semantic knowledge is not identical to ideas and concepts, but is instead the knowledge of what meanings are of linguistic relevance in a particular language. Hammer calls for the formal and empirical analysis of language in order to garner a better understanding of various languages.

This article will be of interest to individuals conducting linguistic analyses, both formal and empirical. Hammer’s article examines how analytical procedures can affect the outcome of research being conducted.

CLARITY RANKING: 3

JOSEPH DANIELE University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Harris, Marvin, and George Morren.     The Limitations of the Principle of Limited Possibilities. American Anthropologist February, 1966 Vol. 68 (1): 122-127

Marvin Harris and George Morren critique the principle of limited possibilities as used by George Murdock in his 1959 article "Evolution in Social Organization". The principle of limited possibilities states that many societies independently arrive at the same way of doing things (such as kinship systems) simply because there is only a certain number of logical ways in which things can be done. Murdock is drawing on the intellectual roots of Alexander Goldenweiser who, in 1913, first presented the principle of limited possibilities to Franz Boas, Robert Lowie, and Radin. The principle, as first described by Goldenweiser, was used by these three in an argument going on in the early 20^th century over diffusion versus independent convergence. Lowie, especially, believed that independent convergence was the more likely choice in the argument, and that the principle of limited possibilities was the driving force that best explained the presence of similar cultural traits in geographically disparate areas, among genetically and culturally unrelated groups. Murdock later uses this principle in his description of kinship systems. Murdock looks at 447 societies in use across the globe and shows that only five kinship systems were present among all of the cultural groups studied. Murdock feels that this large differentiation can be explained by the principle of limited possibilities, and that this convergence into such a small number is both "fortuitous" and "unpredictable". Harris and Morren, on the other hand, believe that the application of simple logic to describe institutions such as kinship systems is lacking in logic itself. According to the authors, one must view the convergence of societies as the biocultural choices of different groups of people, all of whom are influenced by different factors and who are responding to different needs.

CLARITY RANKING: 3

WARREN VAUGHAN University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Haugen, Einar.     Dialect, Language, Nation. American Anthropologist August, 1966 Vol. 68(4): 922-935.

National languages offer people membership and an identity within that nation. In this context, Haugen argues that language is no longer just an instrument of communication, but it is a symbol of the identity of social status among its users. The steps in the development of a national standardized language form a matrix within which it is possible to contemplate all the problems of language and dialect of a nation.

Haugen suggests that the terms "language" and "dialect" are surrounded by ambiguity and obscurity, and therefore, hamper the identification and enumeration of languages. The term language can refer to a single linguistic norm or a group of related norms. In a diachronic sense, language can also refer to a common language on its way to dissolution or a common language resulting from unification. A dialect refers to a related norm that is compromised under the general term language and historically is the result of divergence or convergence. Language is always the superordinate term and dialect the subordinate term. In other words, every dialect is a language, but not every language is a dialect.

Language serves a social function beyond the function of communication. A dialect is a language that is excluded from the social norm. The language of the upper classes is established as the correct form of expression. Haugen further argues that language and dialect have both structural and functional uses. Within the structural use of language and dialect, the important consideration is genetic relationships between the speech forms of the speakers. Within the functional use of language and dialect, the important consideration is the use of the speakers’ codes. A language is therefore a superposed norm and a medium of communication between speakers of different dialects.

Haugen suggests that language performs an important function within society other than communication. Nation and language have become inextricably intertwined. Every self-respecting nation has a fully developed language, not just a dialect. This function of language encourages internal cohesion, but also external distinction. Dialects are potential disruptive forces in a unified nation. The process of the standardization of a language within a nation is intimately tied to the history of the nation itself. Language becomes a vehicle and a symbol of a nation’s unity as people develop a sense of cohesion. Haugen claims codification and elaboration are the ideal goals of a standard language. Codification refers to the ability of speakers and listeners to communicate with one another without misunderstandings. Elaboration refers to the ability of a language to meet the complex needs of a variety of communities. Within any standard language, functional dialects provide wealth and diversity and ensure that the stability of the norm has an element of elasticity. Haugen argues that a complete language has formal and informal styles, regional dialects, and jargons. These are diversified in function, but also show a degree of solidarity with one another.

CLARITY RANKING: 3

SHANNA COX: University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Hickerson, Harold.     The Genesis of Bilaterality Among Two Divisions of Chippewa. American Anthropologist February, 1966 Vol.68(1):1-26.

Hickerson holds that the social organization of Northern and Southern Chippewa resulted from circumstances dependent on differing intertribal and ecological conditions existing in each. Both moved from a unilineal to bilateral system during the historical period. Hickerson explores the ways in which this transition occurred.

Hickerson discusses how previous reports of social organization failed to acknowledge the variety of practices employed by the highly acculturated and widely dispersed Chippewa communities. Without thorough consideration of historical context, time frame, level of acculturation, geographic separation, and a changing economy-ecology, a contradictory picture of Chippewa social organization resulted. Hickerson declares that these people have been bilocal and bilateral for 250 years, and evidence to the contrary represents "survivals."

He proposes two scenarios. Geographically separated, the Southern Chippewa adopted bilaterality by merging their bands, whereas the Northern Chippewa transition was a result of the fragmentation of their bands. Northern bilaterality is the result of the reduction of socioeconomic systems, and Southern bilaterality results from the expansion of socioeconomic systems.

Southern Chippewa organization is highly influenced by a more abundant resource base and by the reservation experience. Prior to the reservation period a proto-bilateral organization was beginning to form at the village level. Throughout the 1736-1850 migration period, Southern Chippewa communities abandoned traditional forms of division. Traditionally, fragmentation occurred as lineages split from clans, remaining unilineal and becoming their own entity. During the migration period, bilaterally organized hunting bands split from the village to work trap lines. Because the area was more equipped to serve the socioeconomic demands of the fur trade, a village and hunting band system could be maintained. When these bands were brought together, bilateral organization became the dominant sociopolitical form. The Southern Chippewa became competitive. As the fur-trade waned and the outside world encroached, the Southern Chippewa lost land and were resigned to reservations. This experience resulted in the disintegration of the bilateral village –the extended family household eroded to the nuclear family; the contemporary socioeconomic unit among Southern Chippewa.

The Northern variety continues to be influenced by the effects of their role in the fur trade industry and is particularly tied to a paucity of resources. Historically, strong social and religious sanctions enforced a family hunting territory system. Engaging the fur trade, in an area with sparse fur-bearing game, the Northern Chippewa were obliged to "rove from place to place." Decline in an already elusive supply of game, plus "wide-scale endogamy, resulted in the scattering of small social groups." These Northern communities began to isolate themselves. The Hudson’s Bay Company began supplying food from regular stores. Mobile confederations of Northern Chippewa nuclear families "settled" around trading posts, and their populations increased. Patrilocal residence increased because traplines were worked by the men, and served as a landholding and source of inheritance.

In this article Hickerson identifies evidence of pre-contact unilinear organization, while focusing on the different histories of the two divisions that resulted in the genesis of bilaterality in both.

CLARITY: 2

PAULA RENAUD University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin).

Hillery, George A., Jr.     Navajos and Eastern Kentuckians: A Comparative Study in the Cultural Consequences of the Demographic Transition. American Anthropologist February, 1966 Vol.68(1):52-70.

Hillery compares Eastern Kentuckians and Navajos to test hypotheses based on demographic transition theory. The theory concerns the relationship between birth and death rates as societies industrialize, and posits that both rates are high in preindustrial societies, birth rates remain high but death rates decline during industrialization, and that birth and death rates equalize when industrialization is achieved. Donald Cowgill (1963) constructed several hypotheses based on transition theory, and Hillery uses sociocultural and demographic data on Navajos and Eastern Kentuckians to test them.

The data used for the comparison are from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics, from 1950 and 1960. Eastern Kentuckians are considered near the end of demographic transition, while Navajos are considered to be in the earliest stage of transition. Hillery tests the validity of nine of Cowgill’s twelve hypotheses, summarized as follows: Hypothesis 2) Death control is applied earlier than birth control; 3) Nuclear families replace extended families; 4) Nuclear family size falls with lower birth rate; 7)—Birth rate decline occurs first in urban areas; 9) Declining death and birth rates result in aging trend; 10) Aging population is predominantly female; 11) A shift occurs from extractive/agrarian to industrial/commercial industries; 12) Tendency toward urbanization; 8) Included in hypotheses 9-12.

Hillery validates seven of Cowgill’s hypotheses based on available data. Death rates for both cultures are lower than birth rates, and birth rates for Navajos are higher than for Eastern Kentuckians, confirming #2. More nuclear families and a decline in family size among Eastern Kentuckians confirm #3 and #4. Lower birth rate among urban Eastern Kentuckians confirms #7. Navajo median age is lower than that for Eastern Kentuckians, confirming #9. Higher educational levels of Eastern Kentuckians is cited by Hillery for the validity of #12. Hillery claims that the failure of hypotheses #10 to conform to the data is due to the variable of migration, and the failure of #11 is due to Navajos not making transition "in all areas of their life, and this is especially true of their value structure."

CLARITY RANKING: 5

THOMAS FURGESON University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin)

Judd, Neil.   Frank H. H. Roberts.   American Anthropologist   1966   vol. 68:  1226-1229.

Frank Harold Hanna Roberts began his career in anthropology as a student of archaeology at the University of Denver.  As a senior, he was an instructor in archaeology then served as an assistant curator at the Colorado State Museum.  He began  fieldwork in the southwestern part of Colorado, and was offered work at Pueblo Bonito and a post at the Bureau of American ethnology.  He was to be the last acting chief of the Bureau before it was disbanded and the staff merged with that of the Department of Anthropology of the United States National Museum to form the Smithsonian Office of Anthropology.

Roberts had a distinguished career as an archaeologist.  He earned his Master and Doctorate degree from Harvard, and was awarded honorary degrees from three other universities.  He held many prominent positions during his fruitful forty-year career.  Dr. Roberts earned renown for his research on the “Early Man in America” problem.  He did research in New Mexico, Wyoming, Nebraska, Saskatchewan, and elsewhere.  His most famous work was done at the Lindenmeier site in Colorado.  Dr. Roberts published many articles on the subject of Early Man, and lectured widely.

Roberts was named the U.S. representative to the International congress of Archaeologists in 1937, named to the International Commission on Historic Monuments in 1939, and earned numerous awards and honors for his work.  He worked as a liaison officer between the Rivers Basin surveys and the Bureau of American Ethnology, and later became director of the surveys.

In addition to his considerable administrative capabilities, Dr. Roberts published six volumes in which he reported the results of investigations in the Southwest.  He served as an assistant editor of American Antiquity from 1935 until 1950, and as associate editor of the American Anthropologist from 1932 until 1944.  Dr. Roberts was a member of several distinguished societies. 

CLARITY RANKING: 5

SONNI HOPE   University of Wyoming  (Lin Poyer)

Kennedy, John G.     "Peasant Society and the Image of Good.": A Critque. American Anthropologist October, 1966 Vol.68(5):1212-1225.

Kennedy responds to a recent article (1965:293-315) in the American Anthropologist, in which George Foster argued that much of the behavior of people in peasant societies can be explained the cognitive orientation that "Good" is limited and unexpandable. The response by Kennedy asserts that Foster’s model is untenable, the assumptions are erroneous and the interpretations drawn from those assumptions are erroneous as well.

The limited "Good" proposed by Foster plays on the basic premise that all things a peasant wants in life, wealth, health, status, ect., are limited in quantity. Kennedy points out that this is not unique to the peasant class but these desires are limited no matter what economic status is being discussed. Kennedy does not believe that peasantry is a sufficiently defined social type to make such broad generalizations. Many of the generalizations Foster makes about peasants do not hold for all people who would be classified as peasants.

Kennedy recognizes that the peasantry does seem to form a broad class and that it is tempting to make generalizations about it, but even though similar economic and structural features appear to be present in many of these societies the values of the people are based on historical, hierarchical, and cultural factors that are unique to each group. The typology that Foster applies is inadequate to account for the values and the relationships between values that he attempts to explain.

Kennedy also raises the point that economic determinism is a central assumption of Foster’s model. According to Foster the only way that behavior can be changed is to alter the economic situation. Kennedy realizes that economic factors do influence behavior but he holds that it is not the sole determinate of behavior in any society much less an entire class of societies.

CLARITY: 4

GREG WILLSON The University of Wyoming (Michael Harkin).

Klass, Morton.  Marriage Rules in Bengal.  American Anthropologist.   August, 1966   Vol. 68 (4): 951-970.

Morton Klass uses structural analysis to examine the rules governing marriage in West Bengal villages.  Four structural features are found in the Bengal variant of marriage in India: arranged marriage, kin-group exogamy/endogamy, intensification of ties, and extension of ties.  Klass points out how these features characterize marriage in other parts of India as well.

Klass challenges the assumption that village exogamy characterizes the north Indian village, and its absence characterizes the south Indian village.  Instead, Klass attempts to describe the diagnostic differences between north and south Indian marriage practices, arguing that the four structural features have broad applicability to the understanding of Indian marriages as a whole.

Klass maintains that the first feature governing marriage in West Bengal is the arranged marriage.  Arranged marriage is a positive prescription.  The head of a girl’s household initiates marriage negotiations, through an intermediary, with the head of the boy’s household.  Other adult relatives may be consulted, but the opinion of the boy or girl to be married is rarely sought.

Klass contends that kin group exogamy/endogamy also impacts Bengal marriages.  Marriage is determined by kinship.  There are prescribed boundaries to the group from which the guardian may take a boy, and within that set there are subsets of families he must exclude from consideration.  For example, the Jat, analogous to a caste group, and somaj determine marriage eligibility for the prospective couple.  Klass affirms that every Bengal villager has a Jat identification, and all men of the same Jat are assumed to be of common origin.  Jat-brothers of villages of a given geographical area form a somaj, and most marriages are within the somaj.  Two categories of kin are excluded from marriage consideration by the girl’s guardian: his gotro, the named group with which he shares stipulated patrilateral descent, and descendants of any recognized common ancestor.  There is thus a definable group in which marriage must take place.

Klass also examines intensification and extension of ties, revealing the regional patterns common in Indian marriages.  Intensification of ties, characteristic of south India, illustrates how marriage has the effect of bringing distantly related families into closer relationship.  Conversely, extension of ties, prevalent in north India, serves to prevent conflict between the two families linked by marriage.