Make Me Bad: A Cross Cultural Comparison of Deviance

When you hear the term deviance what comes to mind?  For many people it may be breaking the law or engaging in some sort of criminal activity, but these are extreme examples of deviant behavior.  Deviance or deviant behavior is defined as any behavior that is socially defined as violating socially accepted guidelines or expectations.  This means that any violation of social norms, from the minor to the extreme, within a society is a form of deviant behavior.  Deviance does vary by culture, however, and what may be considered deviant in one culture may not be in another.  Today's blog post is dedicated to a comparing and discussing deviance as it relates to specific cultures.  Two behaviors considered innocent in American culture but deviant in others will be discussed first, followed by a behavior that is identified as extremely deviant in our culture but a daily and mundane activity in another.  Through this discussion of deviance you should gain a greater understanding and appreciation of what specifically deviance is, as well as cultural diversity that exists across the globe.

In American culture there are a great many behaviors and activities that are considered deviant.  Aside from the major violations (e.g. breaking the law) there are several minor violations that you may not initially think of as deviant.  Chewing with one's mouth open and eating with one's hands are two examples of deviant behaviors that exist in American culture, but they are considered perfectly acceptable in other cultures.

Figure 1: Chewing Gum Ban in Singapore (Image Source: Stain Eaters)

There are behaviors in American culture that are not considered deviant but if conducted in other cultures would earn the violator a a minimum a raised eye brow.  For example, in Canadian culture it is unacceptable to enter a home, even a vacant home, with one's shoes on.  Canadians remove their shoes before or just upon entering a home and failure to do so is considered very rude and disrespectful to the home and the owner(s).  Another example of a deviant behavior that exists in another culture but not in American culture is chewing gum.  In Singapore it is illegal, unless you have a prescription, to chew gum, which is related to the cultural value of cleanliness of the overall environment (Figure 1).  Gum chewing is seen as leading to littering, hence why it is illegal.  Failure to comply with this law leads to violators to be fined up to $1000 USD for the first violation, and fines double upon a second violation.  Chewing gum is neither illegal or considered largely deviant within American culture, so this norm may be considered odd to Americans while perfectly normal among the citizens of Singapore.

Figure 2: Etoro Culture (Image Source: StarrFM)

On the opposing side are violations to norms that exist in American culture but not in others.  An example of this exists in the Etoro culture of Papua New Guinea (Figure 2).  The Etoro believe that men have a finite amount of sperm.  The Etoro recognize the importance of sperm in reproduction and conception, but because they believe there is a finite amount of sperm that exists they strictly regulate sexual relations among men and women, discouraging unnecessary sexual relations and allowing sexual relations to occur during specific times of the year.  They also believe that boys do not create their own sperm but instead receive it from men who must pass it on to the boys when the men are no longer willing to father children.  Prepubescent boys are sequestered to huts with adult men who teach the boys about being adult men.  During this period the boys learn about sexual relations with women, as well as participate in the ritual of passing on the sperm from the men to the boys, which takes the form of oral sexual relations among the boys and men.  This is considered an extreme norm violation among Americans (specifically, pedophilia), but this ritual among the Etoro is neither sexualized nor identified as deviant.  It is considered a required part of the biological well being of the Etoro boys and seen as a necessity to keep future generations of Etoro to live and thrive.

In conclusion, deviance does vary cross culturally because norms and values are unique to each culture.  There can be some overlap in deviance among cultures (e.g. the incest taboo), but there can also be specificity among those overlaps (e.g. the definitions of what is considered incestuous does vary by culture).  Overall, deviance is any norm violation, which provides us a great deal of insight into cultures, specifically cultural values and beliefs.  Taken together, this allows us to better understand what specifically it means to be human, and how there really is no consistency in regards to right and wrong in respects to being human.

Bibliography



Gezon, L., & Kottak, C. (2014).  Cultural Anthropology McGraw-Hill  

Kelly.  2011.  "Deviance: Chewing Gum in Singapore."  Kelly's Blog.





Welsch, R.L. & L.A. Vivanco.  (2015).  Cultural Anthropology: Asking Questions About Humanity.  Oxford University Press.

Past Tense: The Importance of Historical Linguistics

Today's blog post is dedicated to discussing a sub-subdiscipline of linguistic anthropology.  Linguistic anthropology is the study of language and culture, and within this area of study are various sub-subdisciplines, including the topic of today's post, historical linguistics.  Historical linguistics is the study of languages over time.  This is of particular interest to anthropologists because languages are dynamic elements of culture that are very sensitive to any and all types of change-be it internal or external change.  Therefore the study of historical linguistics allows linguists and linguistic anthropologists to understand cultural change and cultural contact throughout time.

Figure 1: Shakespeare's phrasing is not what it initially seems (Google Images)

 
The study of languages throughout time can take various forms.  If available linguists and linguistic anthropologists can listen to recordings of language or they can read historical texts that feature the language.  These resources provide scholars insights into the technical aspects of the language under study, as well as information on cultural values.  You may have already conducted a minor historical linguistic study yourself without even realizing it by reading books from the past, such as anything by Shakespeare.  Shakespeare's works are composed in a form of the English language that is no longer spoken today, which frustrates many modern student readers, but they are also full of various insights into language and culture.  For example, in Hamlet there is a line where Hamlet tells Ophelia "take thee to a nunnery".  From our modern perspective Hamlet would appear to be telling Ophelia to commit herself to a convent, but this phrase actually has a double meaning in that nunnery was also meant to refer to a whore house.  The historical understanding of this phrase allows us to realize that Hamlet is not being endearing with his love interest Ophelia but instead mean and cruel.

Figure 2: Example of Daughter Languages (www.cs.rice.edu)

But what happens when recorded or written resources are unavailable to linguistic scholars?  How can they study the languages of the past?  They will refer to the study of daughter languages, which are languages developed out of the same parent (origin) language that is no longer spoken.  Languages ultimately develop out of preexisting languages (as noted in the discussion on pidgins and creoles), drawing upon elements from the parent language.  Through the study of daughter languages scholars can gain valuable information about the parent language.  For example, English and German, languages widely spoken today, are considered to be related languages that were developed from Proto-German.  We recognize this relationship by studying the languages and noting specific similarities between the languages, as well as being able to trace those similarities back to the parent language (Proto-German).  The same concept is applied to Latin, the parent language of all of the Romance Languages (e.g. Romanian, Spanish, French, Italian, etc.).

Figure 3: Bacon Emoji (Google Images)

Now it is important to note that language relatedness does not mean that the groups speaking these languages are biologically or culturally related.  It does, however, indicate that languages were influenced through contact, which may have also and most likely also affected culture.  For example, bacon, the meaty goodness that has captured the attention of many Americans throughout history, originated in England through cultural contact with the French and Germans.  Had these cultural contacts not occurred bacon may not exist today (or not as it is known today).

Linguistic anthropology provides scholars a great deal of insights into language and culture, and each of its sub-subdisciplines provide a complete picture of the importance of language and culture-both in modern and historical contexts.  Although many people may be reluctant to admit it historical studies, even in linguistics, provide a great deal of insights into cultural studies, which is why historical linguistics is so important.  So next time you think history is worthless remember the little tidbit about bacon.  ;)

Bibliography

Bule, G.  2016.  "The History of Bacon."  The English Breakfast Society.

Gezon, L., & Kottak, C. (2014).  Cultural Anthropology McGraw-Hill  

Welsch, R.L. & L.A. Vivanco.  (2015).  Cultural Anthropology: Asking Questions About Humanity.  Oxford University Press.

Understanding Protein Synthesis

Protein Synthesis Video

Protein synthesis is the process by which the genetic code puts together proteins in a cell.  Proteins are the building blocks of the body as they form our enzymes (that control for bodily processes) and hard and soft tissues (that make up the framework of the body),  This is an incredibly important process that occurs within the body, as well as a fairly complex one given then number of bodily structures and functions required.

For protein synthesis to take place there are key parts of the body that must work together, and these key parts are Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) & two types of ribonucleic acid (RNA): messenger RNA (mRNA) and transport RNA (tRNA).  DNA is the molecule that carries the genetic code.  mRNA is the molecule that carries the genetic code out of the nucleus for translation into proteins, whereas tRNA is RNA that lines up amino acids along mRNA to make up proteins.

So with these definitions in mind, a greater understanding of how protein synthesis works can be gained, which will be useful in completing the protein synthesis section of the lab.  I have broken the process down into numeric steps and will refer back to the definitions provided above:

• DNA unwinds and polymerase (an enzyme) unzips the bonded base pairs.  Remember that DNA carries the genetic code, and that genes are the portion of the DNA molecule that codes for a specific protein.

Figure 1: DNA being unwrapped and divided by polymerase

2

• Once the DNA has been unwrapped and the base pair divided from each other, mRNA approaches one side of the unwrapped DNA molecule and read the base pairs.  It matches it corresponding bases with that DNA.  Remember that with DNA Cytosine matches with Guanine (and vice versa) and Adenine with Thymine (and vice versa).  One way to remember this is cars are to garages as apples are to trees.  All RNA strands have different base pairs, so Adenine matches with Uracil (and vice versa), while Cytosine still matches with Guanine (and vice versa).  If you are familiar with the chemical symbol for gold (Au) then you can remember this match.

Figure 2: mRNA matches its corresponding bases with DNA.

• Once the mRNA has collected the genetic information from the DNA it then leave the nucleus of the cell (where DNA is located) and travels to a different part of the cell.  Remember the definition of mRNA is that it is the molecule that carries the genetic code out of the nucleus for translation into proteins. 

Figure 3: mRNA leaves the nucleus of the cell after collecting the genetic information from DNA.

                                                            

• Outside of the nucleus of the cell the mRNA meets with a ribosome, which is another feature in the cell, and the ribosome holds it in place.  Transfer RNA (tRNA) then brings its corresponding bases to the mRNA in order to build the amino acids.  The amino acids, when put together, form a chain that builds a specific protein. 

Figure 4: mRNA is read by the tRNA, which builds the amino acids.

Now remember that genes code for proteins, and proteins are composed of a series of amino acids.  So for the lab you have to have DNA, which is read by mRNA.  mRNA is read by tRNA, but it is the code collected by mRNA that determines which amino acids is built.

Figure 5: Process of Protein Synthesis

                                     DNA  -->     mRNA    -->  tRNA   Amino Acid

References

Stein, P.L. & Rowe, B.M. (2014). Introduction to Human Evolution and Prehistory.  United

 States of America: McGraw Hill Education.

Anthropological Perspectives of the Black Lives Matter Movement

The Black Lives Matter (BLM) Movement has been at the forefront of people's attention for many years now.  Despite this temporal frame many people still do not understand its origins and purpose.  Today's blog post is dedicated to utilizing the anthropological approach in discussing and explaining the BLM Movement to provide a greater understanding among the readership.  

The BLM Movement was started by three women, Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi, in 2012 after the Trayvon Martin case, which involved a white man shooting and subsequently killing an unarmed teenager simply because the he (the white man) falsely believed that the youth was going to cause trouble.  Their initiative has since grown as an organized movement with multiple chapters across the US.  The primary mandate of this movement is  

“…an ideological and political intervention in a world where Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. It is an affirmation of Black folks’ contributions to this society, our humanity, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression.” 

In other words, the three founders wanted to shift focus back onto issues faced by African Americans and other minorities, which are historically and culturally influenced, and that many wrongly believe(d) have been resolved.  They specifically wanted to bring attention to the suppression of African Americans in society that have led to the exploitation of Black labor and the subsequent trauma and death of these Black human beings continues to be central to the political and economic workings of the United States.  

But what specific historical and cultural influences are Garza, Cullors, and Tometi referring to?  An "Us vs Them" mentality that creates and fosters hate among and within populations has existed for centuries in cultures around the globe, but one that targets individuals based on physical characteristics is racialism.  Racialism is defined as an ideology, doctrine, or set of beliefs that suggests "races" exist and that there are significant differences among them.  We know that racialism is deeply rooted in human history, forming around the time of the first state level societies.  Ancient Egyptians and Greeks had these ideas, which were used to justify wars and conquering other peoples, as well as instilling pride within one's culture.

Racialist ideologies were passed down and adopted by subsequent populations, including various European groups.  As European groups came into contact with groups that were very much unlike their own in various capacities, such as in cultural beliefs, sociopolitical organization, economic practices, and most obviously biological characteristics, Europeans turned to science to understand and explain these differences, as well as elevate their status as best and the support their own white supremacy, which is the idea that whites are superior to people of other races.  It was through white supremacy that European groups sought means to legitimize and further secure racial domination and privileges in their societies, which very much influenced scientific inquiries.   

Several notable scholars contributed to the "legitimization" of European ideals of white supremacy through scientific racialism, including Carolus Linnaeus and Charles Darwin.  Carolus Linnaeus is considered the father of taxonomic classification, a nested classification system that is used to identify and describe evolutionary relationships among various species.  Part of this classification system is still utilized today in evolutionary biology and physical anthropological studies, but what is no longer used but was part of Linnaeus's original classification system is how he classified humans (Homo sapiens).  He identified four subspecies classifications of humans, which were based on race.  Each of these classifications were defined by a specific behavioral characteristics (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Linnaean Classification of Homo sapiens

Charles Darwin provided some of the basic foundations of evolutionary theory with his publication, The Origin of Species.  In his work he identified key evolutionary concepts, as well as claimed that Africans were most closely related to primates based on their "primitive" features.  

While several other scholars contributed to the wide body of scientific racialist literature, I highlight these two because of their notoriety as well as the continued influence of their work on white supremacist ideologies that continue to permeate throughout Western societies and cultures-both historically and today.  Historical examples are pretty obvious in regards to their influence and discriminatory text.  You can view examples below (Figures 2 & 3).  While viewing them I want you to look back at the scientific racialist information provided by Linnaeus and Darwin and consider how their contributions led to these discriminatory ideas.

 

Figure 2: Children's Story Book (1892)

Figure 3: New York Herald Comic Strip (1900)

Both of these images are very much influenced by both Linnaeus's and Darwin's ideas.  We see strong influence by Linnaeus in Figure 2 in the notion that the black children cannot take care of themselves, and Darwin's work is strongly portrayed in Figure 3 as the African American is positioned close to and strongly resembles the primate in the background.  But Linnaeus's and Darwin's notions still very much influence modern ideology in the recent past and today.  Check out Figures 4, 5, & 6 and consider what you see:

Figure 4: Cartoon of Michael Jordan, famous and talented basketball player (1980)

Figure 5: Sweatshirt that says, "Arrest black babies before they become criminals" (2007)

Figure 6: Political Cartoon about President Barak Obama and Black victims of police crime published in the New York Post (2009)

These images are quite striking and very obviously discriminatory and influenced by the scientific racialist contributions of both Linnaeus and Darwin.  Now many would argue that these are extreme examples and not the norm, and they are right.  If these were commonplace then people would be more inclined to understand the reasons and motivations behind the BLM Movement, which are attempting to bring these and less obvious incidences of white supremacy to the forefront of people's attention.  Far more obfuscated examples of white supremacy actually exist in Western societies, such as those demonstrated in Figures 7.

Figure 7: In 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in the southeastern United States.  While many residents were warned to evacuate the area many either chose not to or were unable to due to monetary or other reasons.  The devastation of the hurricane was massive, and individuals who remained were without basic amenities, including electricity, clean water, and food.  Despite everyone existing in the exact same deplorable conditions the media chose to depict the situation differently among survivors based on their skin color, as noted below with the following captions for each of the following pictures:

A young man walks through chest deep flood water after looting a grocery store in New Orleans on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005.

Two residents wade through chest-deep water after finding bread and soda from a local grocery store after Hurricane Katrina came through the area in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The notions that lend themselves to white supremacy do not just color individual's perceptions but also influence institutional policies, which leads to institutional racism.  Institutional racism is the mistreatment of individuals and groups of individuals by society and culture and the institutions (e.g. education, government, health care, etc.) within them.  Institutional discrimination has led to various types of discrimination (see here for more information), but examples specific to race, particularly African Americans, can be found in Figures 8-11.

Figure 8: Wage Disparities by Race (Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2015)

Figure 9: National Graduate Rates in 2009, Education Research Center

Figure 10: Racial Disparities by Race, US Census Bureau and Justice Statistics (2004)

Figure 11: People Injured by Law Enforcement by Gender & Race Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (2001-2012)

  

The BLM Movement is trying to bring all of this and more to the public's attention, but unfortunately, their message is being skewed and grossly misrepresented by the mainstream media, who misinform the general public about the realities of the BLM Movement.  Despite what the media may depict the BLM Movement has and continues to call for and sanctions peaceful protests, such as economic boycotts, organized protests that have led to the peaceful shut down of city streets (Figure 12), as well as a series of die ins, including the one staged at the 2014 American Anthropological Assocation meetings (Figure 13). These protests are carefully organized to ensure that they are conducted lawfully (i.e. the local governments are informed, permits applied for and acquired, etc.), but that information is never disclosed when these protests are publicized, which is due to the discrimination that the BLM Movement and protesters are trying to combat.

Figure 12: Peaceful Highway Shut Down Protest in Minneapolis (2015)

Figure 13: American Anthropological Association Die In (2014)

To the BLM Movement is attempting to draw attention to an endemic problem faced by African Americans, as well as other minorities.  These problems are rooted in historical dialogues that continue to influence our modern perceptions of specific human groups, specifically nonwhite populations.  So next time you hear someone speak out against the BLM Movement remember this post, as well as the following (Figure 14):

Figure 14

References

Black Lives Matter. 


Pearson, M.  2011. Think Race and Ethnicity.  Pearson.

Scupin, Raymond. Race and Ethnicity. second ed. Saddle River: Pearson, 2003. 12. Print.