Teaching
Cultural Anthropology
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Unit 1
Power and Hierarchies
Power and the structures that determine how power is generated, retained, and wielded have been described and critiqued though anthropological studies. This unit provides students with the opportunity to take note of the power structures that shape the world. They are encouraged to consider the nature of power, the way it is exerted, and the implications for those who have state and structural power and those who seek to obtain it. Finally, they will learn about individual and collective efforts to challenge and dismantle these structures, and develop new systems.
Sapiens articles
How Our Modern Lifestyles Perpetuate Slavery
“Human trafficking” brings to mind sex slavery and extreme human rights abuses. But an equally pernicious, lesser-known form of slavery persists in the U.S. and elsewhere.
Corporate “Sorcerers” Reveal the Magical Power of Capitalism
A company’s appropriation of an Indigenous ritual highlights the power of businesses to destroy traditions, community ties, and ecosystems.
Keywords
View All in Colonialism
![The ruins of a gray stone building stand below a cerulean sky with fluffy white clouds.]()
![A gnarled tree stands on a reddish cliff, beyond which stretches a landscape of deeply hued sandstone plateaus that an ox-bowed river cuts through.]()
![Dozens of papers with text on them are punctured and strung horizontally on wires.]()
![Two people sit face-to-face on a bench and sign with each other. Behind them, a mural shows the outline of a human ear with Arabic writing inside it.]()
![A close-up image features two stained-orange hands holding a cluster of objects that look like small, orange strands.]()
![A man with long, dark hair tied in a braid holds up a small child to a mirror, which reflects the child’s pensive face.]()
How Colonialism Invented Food Insecurity in West Africa
Archaeological evidence and Oral Histories show people in what is today Ghana lived sustainably for millennia—until European colonial powers and the widespread trade of enslaved people changed everything.
Gathering Firewood—and Redefining Land Stewardship—at Bears Ears
At Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, a new co-management plan brings together federal agencies and a consortium of Native American tribes—revealing deep tensions over land rights and demands for environmental justice.
Archived Haints
SAPIENS’ 2024 poet-in-residence conjures the voices of those imprisoned in archives.
Gaza’s Deaf Community in the Face of Genocide
An anthropologist who works with deaf communities in the Arabic-speaking Middle East argues that ending Israel’s war on Gaza and occupation of Palestine is a matter of disability justice.
The Land of Dreams
In a dystopian short story, an anthropologist imagines an alternate world in which Kashmiris are forbidden to dream.
Finding Our Way Forward—by Remembering
In a personal essay, a mixed-race and Native anthropologist draws strength from his ancestors.
View All in Violence
![Two pairs of scissors, two rocks, and two slips of paper rest on a pale-yellow surface.]()
![Dozens of papers with text on them are punctured and strung horizontally on wires.]()
![A white cartoon speech bubble on a red background is wrapped in barbed wire.]()
![A person wearing a gray T-shirt and tan baseball cap pushes buttons on a camera that is attached to a tree in the forest.]()
![A dark shelf leaning against a wall covered in gold-tinted wallpaper displays the personal items of a missing loved one, including a portrait of the person dressed in a black suit and tie, a photograph, a red plastic hard hat, and books.]()
![Clear water streams down moss-covered rocks amid thick, luxurious vegetation with broad tropical leaves and bright red and yellow flowers.]()
Playing Rock, Paper, Scissors Across the Red-Blue Divide
As toxic polarization deepens in the U.S., some global conflict prevention experts are now addressing political violence at home. An anthropologist shares three key insights from a community action program in Wisconsin.
Archived Haints
SAPIENS’ 2024 poet-in-residence conjures the voices of those imprisoned in archives.
Speaking Truth to Israel Requires More Than Academic Freedom
Educators and students critical of Israel’s war on Gaza face censorship, harassment, and dismissal. An anthropologist who researches coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians argues such critics need more than free speech protections.
Payangko, or Echidna (Zaglossus attenboroughi)
After a 60-year haitus, an Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna was seen in Indonesia’s Cyclops Mountains. A poet-anthropologist reflects on the echidna’s message through the storied lens of the people of Yongsu Sapari.
For Families of Missing Loved Ones, Forensic Investigations Don’t Always Bring Closure
An anthropologist working in Azerbaijan looks beyond forensic science to understand the value of culturally specific ways people navigate uncertainty in protracted conflict zones.
Coastal Eden
A poet interrogates the garden of Eden origin story by reimagining it against the backdrop of East Africa’s coastal environment.
Professor Talking Points
- Power takes various forms in our societies; it is instilled in the structures that give shape to our societies through law and order, rules and regulations, and socioeconomic and political systems.
- Power structures determine what is desirable; they are created by groups that hold power and enable them to retain it.
- Anthropology has a rich history of rendering visible these invisible structures and the “common sense” that sustains them.
- In addition, anthropologists work with people who are disenfranchised, and researchers are increasingly engaging in activism and allyship. They use their work to help bring attention and justice to those who suffer under overlapping systems of patriarchy, colonialism, neocolonialism, imperialism, capitalism, homophobia, and racism.
- Anthropologists also engage in work that studies those who are in power in order to provide collectively holistic panoramas of how power works “above” and “below.” Examples of this kind of work include studies of heads of state, whiteness and white supremacy, military regimes, and major corporations.
Academic Articles
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Das, Veena. 2008. “Violence, Gender, and Subjectivity.” Annual Review of Anthropology 37: 283–299.
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Quijano, Aníbal. 2000. “Coloniality of Power, Eurocentrism, and Latin America.” Nepantla: Views From the South 1 (3): 533–580.
Student Discussion Questions
- Are anthropologists well-positioned to study power? Why or why not?
- How does power play out differently on a structural versus an interpersonal basis?
- How do power structures affect people as individuals and as groups?
- What difficulties and ethical issues might anthropologists who study groups in power face and have to consider? What about with groups that are marginalized?
- Why is violence important to systems of power? Give examples from the readings to support your claims.
Activities
- Have students select a community or subculture (e.g., professional baseball, the Lutheran Church). Then ask them to analyze how it is organized hierarchically and the implications of power from within this hierarchy. Have them write an essay or discuss their insights with the class.
Additional Resources
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Article: SAPIENS’ “How the Samoan Tattoo Survived Colonialism”
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TED Playlist: A Playbook to Understanding Power
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Video: Crash Course Sociology #21’s “Social Stratification”
Unit By
Eshe Lewis (2020)
Teaching
Cultural Anthropology
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Unit 2
Gender and Sex
