Human organization
Culture and society are tied closely together
People share culture
They are members of societal organizations
But their reasons for organizational practices are often supported
by cultural beliefs and ideologies
The middle level he called the social structure this includes the
ways societies organize themselves through kinship, gender roles, politics,
systems of work and systems of collaboration or trade, etc.
Infrastructure
Because the infrastructure covers a groups basic survival needs for food,
water, shelter, etc., it is the foundation of any culture/society. The
infrastructure includes the environment that a group is part of that puts
limitations on how a group can make its living. The infrastructure includes
the strategies that people use to gain access to resources. Hunters and
gatherers will have strategies than agriculturalists, for example, but
environmental factors will influence how hunting and gathering is practiced
or how agriculture is accomplished.
Social structure
Harris pointed out that the social systems and the ways that societies
organize themselves springs out of the infrastructure. People will organize
themselves through kinship systems and political systems that support the
ways they make a living. So agriculturalists, for example, are often
concerned with having enough male kinsmen working together to keep the
farm going. Their kinship systems often involve keeping brothers and uncles
1
together on a farm. The men marry women who leave their families and go
to live with their husbands family. (This is called patrilocal residence
because the couple lives with the grooms family.) Agricultural systems
around the world are largely patrilocal, patrilineal, and patriarchal because of
the economic advantage of keeping male relatives together to do the heavy
work.
We will be talking more about this next week when we begin to discuss
economic systems. For now, keep in mind that kinship systems likely support
the economic structures that are in place.
Superstructure
Harris also talked about the superstructure that includes the ideologies,
beliefs, religious doctrines etc. of a culture/society. The superstructure
provides people with the reasons for going along with the kinship and
political systems that support the economic systems. People believe that
their kinship systems are important and right because they believe they are
moral. People often believe that a higher power (God) has created the rules
and reasons for following the laws and customs about marriage and family.
It is the superstructure, the ideologies, that provide the reasons for following
social system expectations, which hold together the social systems, which
hold together the economic systems.
Types of descent
Bilateral descent means that an individual (ego) can inherit property from both her/his
mothers or fathers side of the family. Bonds and other kinds of connections can be with
mothers kin and fathers kin. The United States primarily practices bilateral descent.
Patrlineal descent is traced through ancestors in the male line. Examples are most of India
and China.
They value:
For pastoralists, male upper body strength is important. Groups who rely on
large animals as their resource base often need men to work together.
Loyalty is necessary for this economic strategy to be successful. This means
that sons, brothers, uncles, fathers, etc. must believe that they are
connected strongly to each other and that their loyalty to their male relatives
is of utmost importance. Anything that might distract them from their
responsibilities to the male family group could be dangerous to the survival
of the group.
For Bedouins, their religious and moral ideologies are deeply connected to
upholding a social system that makes survival possible in their ecological
and economic environment. It is, perhaps, not the only system that would
work in their environment, but it is a system that has evolved over many
centuries.
The Awlad Ali believe that morality is what most distinguishes them from
and makes them superior to other peoples.
At the heart of their moral system are the values of honor and modesty.
Code of honor
(ancestry/origin/nobility)
- moral character is believed to be passed through a blood line
- that means if you do something to shame your family, you have
tainted the entire blood line and the moral integrity of your whole
family, not just your own reputation.
In Bedouin society it is the elder men who make the decisions and have
ultimate control over resources. Eventually their sons will have achieved
independence and self mastery and will be the leaders. The elder mens
authority and the primary concern of men to honor their bloodline
responsibilities means that men will be bound together to defend the group
and the animals when necessary. Anything that could weaken that loyalty is
a threat to the entire group, including attachments to women.
Even if a man very much loves his wife, it is shameful to value marital
ties over blood ties
Love ties between a man and a woman are connected with loss of self
mastery and autonomy
A woman retains her tribal affiliation throughout her life and should
side with her own kin in disputes with her husbands kin
She has behaved immodestly and threatens the honor of the kin group