Anthropology Essay Sample

(Jamie D) Both anthropology and ethnography answer the question ‘how people lived?’ I agree that anthropology as a science is quite difficult to define. There is no particular approach and time period that frame its subject. Moreover, with the development of thought and technology, anthropology should also change. Anthropologists investigate the ways of people’s living in the different periods of human history and all processes related to it. They pay attention to coexistence of different cultures, but this is not the main focus. At the same time, ethnology, in my opinion, concentrates on cultural and traditional aspects of people’s life. Therefore, ethnology is a product of anthropology, its extension on lifestyle. Therefore, I agree that anthropology serves as a basement for ethnography, while the latter adds comparative research to the investigation of cultural component. There is no difference between Eastern or Western origins of researchers of both sciences.
(Robert H) I think this is a very interesting point of view. The interrelation between Chinese, Japanese and Korean ways of anthropological studies is obvious. These peoples have a common history, and therefore a common perception of this science. Due to strong cultural influence and traditional insularity, ethnology and anthropology are closely intertwined. The only distinctive feature is the influence of Western thought on them. These implications were implemented in a different way by the Eastern nations that changed their ideas about these sciences by utilizing foreign approaches. I also believe that this influence made a critical distinction between anthropology and ethnology of the Eastern states, while making them closer to Western thought. This also added to numerous efforts of the Eastern ethnologists to differentiate between their own cultures and Western influences.