Adria Laviolette Analysis

The documentary Tree of Iron presents the quest of Peter Schmidt, an ethno-archeologist, to discover and recreate the ancient African process of iron smelting. Schmidt hypothesizes that ancient east African technology was not as primitive as other scientists might of thought. Therefore, he travelled to a village in Tanzania called Nyungwe, where the Haya people reside, to try to witness the process of forging iron first hand. Because this ancient African tradition is not written down, Schmidt joins village elders Norbert Kajuna and Herman Kariba, who both remember the iron smelting process, in making an iron furnace in the same way their ancestors did several years ago.

While reading both ethnographies “The Hadza: Hunter-Gather of Tanzania” and “From Mukogodo to Maasai” it is easy to spot out differences and similarities between both these simple, yet complex, societies. People tend to believe that indigenous populations are always very similar, as I once did, but I would say while reading these ethnographies I found more differences between these communities and cultures than I did similarities. For my essay I am going to compare both the Mukogodo’s culture and life before and after the transition to Maasai to the life and culture of that of the Hadza. I am going to focus specifically on the similarities and differences between labor and labor

During the study, the renowned anthropologist uses the local lingua franca “Neo-Melanesian” to collect his data from the Imbonggu villages. At first, the Wormsley finds himself as an object of competition as different communities wanted to stay with him. The men thought that Wormsley had come to collect the "head tax”, one of the renowned colonial payments that were subjected to men based on the number of women. In these communities, the author observes the culture of both men and women to collect his data. He notes how men are engaged in war, religion and politics (Wormsley, 1993). Women, on the other

Drawing on Joan Scott's "Gender: A Useful Category of Historical Analysis" and on Alice Kessler-Harris's "Just price, Free Market and the Value of Women", the following questions will be answered, How has the 'equality' of women and men been expressed according to both Scott and Kessler-Harris? Why 'gender' has become a "useful category of historical analysis" for historians? How different (other) historians view 'gender'? What are Kessler-Harris's views on the "equality," "comparable worth" and "equal pay?" Lastly, the importance of the two articles will be highlighted as it relates to the contribution to gender studies.

The description of women provided in Olaudah Equiano's and Venture Smith's narratives compared to the European's descriptions of indigenous and African women provided in Jennifer Morgan's paper are distinctive. Equiano and Smith write highly of their mothers while Europeans talk repulsively about African and indigenous women. As a reader, one can infer many opinions about each of the writer's attitudes about the expected gender norms for women at that time such as caretaking, breastfeeding or working. The European perspective utilizes their claim to authority on women through dehumanizing different races and converting them into Christians.

Though women have played an integral part in the history of the discipline of anthropology, it was not until the early 1970’s that the field of anthropology and gender, or feminist anthropology emerged. Sex and gender roles have always been a vital part of any ethnographic study, but the contributors of this theory began to address the androcentric nature of anthropology itself. The substantial gap in information concerning the study of women was perceived as a male bias, a prejudice made more apparent because what little women-centered fieldwork was done received insufficient attention from the academic community. While anthropology was considered one of the more egalitarian fields of study, it was dominated by white, Western males who

The Renaissance was a time of enlightenment and discovery around the world. There were many advancements in culture, art, and science. An interesting area to look at for this period would be the advancements made based on gender. Historically, women do not always have a significant impact on their culture, and they do not always have the same standing as their male counterparts. Margaret L. King and Joan Kelly-Gadol delve deeper into the issue of gender advancements during the Renaissance when they analyze the issue of whether women and men benefitted equally during this period.

Advertisements are all over the place, whether they are on T.V, or in a magazine, there is no way to escape them. They all have their target audience who they specifically designed the ad for, and of course they are selling their product to. This is a multi-billion dollar industry and the advertisers study any and every way that they can attract the consumer’s attention. Anytime a products advertising tagline becomes incorporated into a popular culture, a pinnacle of success has been reached. The “Got Milk?” tagline has been integrated in messages across the country such as churches, “Got God?” cheerleaders, “Got Spirit?” and even universities, “Got Whoop?”. The “Got Milk?” ads have

While many methods were used in which to advertise the war to the American people, perhaps none came as near to everyday life as the posters of World War II. Posters were a popular and active source of information for the American people. They followed the existing issues of the home front, as well as the condition of the war overseas. Wartime posters covered as many topics as possible in order to send a message to everyone. Giving a visual for the developments of the war, people looked to posters to tell them of the best way to aid in the war effort. Posters played a major role in teaching the American citizen at

In a freezing class, two brilliant minds unlocked the fiery passion that is their talent one an artist the other a writer. Bringing to light a history long forgotten creating abstract thoughts arbitrary to our own. Komi Olaf the artist and Okey Ndibe the writer not only enlightening the class but also the world with each brush stroke and each word. Every creation stemming from the hands of these masters tell of issues at the heart of Africa from colonialism to existential dilemmas. Thru spoken word, hip-hop, art, music, poems and literature issues close at heart to the artists and to Africa are portrayed. This paper will focus on the art exhibit by Komi Olaf and Foreign Gods inc by Okey Ndibe as spoken by them during their discussion in the class on October 13th. Where the talks focused on the key course objectives being stereotypes, post-colonialism, youth culture, and resistance.

In the Ibo culture, when a woman was to be married, the family of her suitor would come and inspect her to be sure she was beautiful and ripe enough to be a part of their family. A woman did not have any value other than her beauty and her abilities to cook and bear children. In a conversation between Okonkwo and his friend Obierika, they spoke of two other villages where their ''customs are all upside down'' and ''titled men climb trees and pound foo-foo for their wives'' (73).

The comparison of Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne’s reactions in the face of judgment shows that Hester possesses the courage and mental stamina which is the shortfall of Dimmesdale. It is clear though that while she resides in the community she is “subjected to a social ostracism so relentless as to amount to an emotional exile” (Bronstein 204). She wears the letter of her sin, yet she is not a character who withdraws into herself to avoid the stares of her fellow citizens. When she appears at the prison door, Hawthorne describes her as “ladylike, too, . . . characterized by a certain state and dignity” (50). This scene paves the way for Hester’s character to emerge as a direct contradiction to Dimmesdale’s character. While her demeanor

Amongst societies, there is a great variety of means of survival, all of which are dependent upon factors influencing the community—geographical location and structure of authority, to name a few. Such factors and the community’s ways of survival create the underlying basis of other complex issues, including the relationship between the sexes. Many anthropological papers that concentrate on the modes of production of specific groups of people have shown a connection between the modes of production and the presence or absence of gender inequality. Futhermore, there is also evidence of a further causality between the two: as a society adopts a more complex mode of

Elizabeth Barber’s book, Women’s Work: The First 20,000 Years, focuses on the development and origins of weaving and spinning in Europe and the Middle East through history. While Barber does discuss several eras of history, she mainly focuses on Bronze Age women and their weaving/the relation weaving has to do with women’s roles in history.

Overall, the cultural significance of the drum is something that has remained strong and resilient despite the history of colonization, as it is taught to represent traditional values and to bring enjoyment to the community. The drum is a living being that is used for both social and ceremonial purposes, representing the heartbeat of all living beings. Throughout the process of making and playing the drum, men and women have different jobs, which are linked to traditional Haudenosaunee gender roles. Through the discourse surrounding the drum a vein of discussion is opened on the topic of resurgence. This discussion links to the importance of women’s role as the carriers of culture; it can be said that the use of the drum has increased due