ATH 101- 8-1 Journal

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Southern New Hampshire University *

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101

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Anthropology

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Apr 3, 2024

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Name ATH 101: Introduction to Anthropology Southern New Hampshire University August 21, 2022 8-1 Journal: My Image of Anthropology The image that I chose that I think embodies anthropology is the image by Oscar Nilsson, entitled “The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you're not staying where you are.” The image is a photo of an arm holding out what appears to be an antique compass while standing amid lush greenery and tall trees as the sun peeks over the horizon. This image and its name embody anthropology as anthropology is deciding to understand the past in order to gain better direction for the future. It symbolizes awareness, evolution, and direction. These are all traits that anthropologists display in their work. They decide to study a culture, to understand their past, and to ascertain direction for the future or how to solve a problem from within the contextual “forest” of that culture. As I consider the knowledge gained in this course, I definitely see myself using cultural anthropology in the future. Anthropological text is generally left out of law school curriculum because, law students are taught to think in terms of logic and rational doctrine which is counter to anthropology’s cultural relativism and need for holistic perspective (Koch, 2018). The ability to objectively examine a culture to gain an understanding of their beliefs, values, and symbols could prove invaluable to an attorney trying to make jury selections, interview a witness, or even research and investigate alternative theories to crimes. At the beginning of this course, the article I selected that related to anthropology was about unearthing a 17 th burial tradition in Poland. When I compare my early impression of

anthropology to my image today, my early view seems rather narrow. It didn’t delve beyond the archaeological subfield of anthropology. It doesn’t come close to the holistic view that I have today. Surprisingly, my initial image of anthropology is rather shallow. Conversely, if my week one task had been to describe the Oscar Nilsson photo in terms of anthropology, I would have been stumped as well. To be perfectly honest, I selected this course because I wanted a 100-level elective to add to the other 2 courses I was taking in order to complete my degree this term. I had no idea that this course would challenge me to set aside my biases as I look at other cultures (or even that I had any). Nor did I think that I would be exposed to such a broader way of thinking that I literally see anthropology’s influence everywhere I look and its application in just about everything. Going forward, my problem-solving strategy will encompass combined views of the issue through different lenses to seek a holistic view. Cultural relativism has forever changed the way I see cultural differences and I have a greater respect for the past and its impact on our future. After taking this course, I see the world as a more beautiful place because of all of our differences, not in spite of them.

References Koch, I. (2018). 'Turning Human Beings into Lawyers': Why Anthropology Matters So Little to the Legal Curriculum. Journal of Legal Anthropology , 2 (2), 99+. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2532485408?accountid=3783 Nilsson, O. (2016, February 24). The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you're not staying where you are. [Photo]. Creative Commons.org. https://500px.com/photo/156643821/The-first-step-towards-getting-somewhere-is-to- decide-that-youre-not-staying-where-you-are-by-Oscar-Nilsson/? ctx_page=1&from=search&ctx_type=photos

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ATH 101- 8-1 Journal

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