6- 
Alejandro
Mamani: A Case Study in Psychological Anthropology 
This program features a case study of Alejandro Mamani, an elder Aymara Indian whose
village is located in the mountains of Bolivia. The episode focuses on Alejandro's
experiences with an unexplained mental illness diagnosed as spiritual possession by
Alejandro, his family and the members of his village. Ethnographers trace the man's
suffering as he and his family try to cope with the unpredictability of the illness and
the inevitability of death. The filmmakers are challenged to move from acting as observers
to actively participating in the study, offering medicine to the suffering man. They
describe, in detail, the effects Alejandro's illness has on him personally, as well as the
effects his death will have on his property and family. The student is able to observe the
progression of illness as Alejandro deteriorates from a respected leader in his community,
to one whom is totally dependent on his family for survival. The program offers insights
into the methods different cultures use to cope with both illness and death.
7- Patterns
of Subsistence: Food Foragers and Pastoralists
This program describes food foraging and pastoral societies, and explores several ancient
patterns of subsistence, some of which are still followed today. The program describes how
many societies adapt to their environment. For example, the African Kung gather nuts,
fruits, berries and roots in their arid climate, and the Mbuti pygmy hunt large game in
the African rainforest. Another segment shows the Netsilik Eskimos as they hunt seals in
their harsh Arctic environment. Other segments include the Nepali sherpas as they herd
zomo, a hybrid of a yak and a milk cow, and the Iranian Basseris as they search for
fertile grazing land for sheep and goats. The program also features a modern forager as he
searches among the discards of an urban area.
8- Patterns
of Subsistence: The Food Producers
This program examines several different models of food production and various features of
food-producing societies. First shown are the Yucatec Maya employing the
"slash-and-burn" technique of soil preparation. Rituals associated with food
production are illustrated with film of Melanesian farmers practicing the hazardous
land-diving ritual originally intended to ensure a good yam harvest. The program also
looks at several examples of intensive agriculture, including that practiced by the Khmer
in Angkor and by North Americans on the Great Plains. Other societies featured in the
program are the Taiwanese and wet rice cultivation and the Balinese.
9- Economic
Anthropology
From the generalized reciprocity among the !Kung to the balanced reciprocity of the
Yanomamo and the Trobriand Islanders, this program explains that the economies of many
non-Western societies are based on principles other than currency. In the highlands of New
Guinea, the Mendi are shown engaging both in balanced reciprocity when they barter a bride
price in pearl shells, and in redistribution when they engage in a cassowary contest in
which they give away their holdings to gain prestige. A third system of distribution?the
marketplace?is illustrated with scenes of Assante women in Ghana and of nomads in
Afghanistan.
10- The
Highland Maya: A Case Study in Economic Anthropology
This episode explores the complicated "cargo system" of the Mayan Indian
populations of Southern Mexico and Northern Guatemala. The cargo system has evolved over
time into an amalgamation of ancient Mayan Indian pagan culture and Catholicism present
since Spanish involvement in the region in the seventeenth century. The social system
involves a series of four levels each man is expected to pass through in his life during
which he is obligated to a period of service to his community. At each step he pays his
village a certain percentage of his earned income. In return, as a man progresses through
each level, he attains a greater degree of responsibility and gains greater prestige in
his community.
11- Sex
and Marriage
This program examines the complex custom of marriage in various societies and cultures
throughout the world. In addition, it explores the place that sex and sexuality play in
determining the marriage contract. Among the societies featured are the Turkana tribe of
Kenya, Zaire pygmies, the Asante tribe of Ghana, the Mien of Laos, and the Berbers of
Morocco. Concepts such as endogamy, exogamy, patrillineal, polygamy, and bride price are
introduced and defined. In addition, the impact some of these customs have on the
societies that practice them is explored. The program shows that in most non-western
societies romantic love plays a lesser role in determining a marriage contract.
12- Family
and Household
This program focuses on the organization of the family as it exists and is defined in
different cultures throughout the world. Cultural differences such as marriage and naming
customs, inheritance lines and the differences between the nuclear and extended family are
discussed. The impact of patrillineal versus matrilineal descent, polygamy and female
heads of household are explored, as well as the impact these customs have on children and
future generations. The Mbuti tribe of Zaire are used to illustrate division of labor
between the sexes and the methods by which traditions and responsibilities are passed down
from mother to daughter and father to son. The program also shows examples of problems
within the Yanomamo and !Kung culture when their traditional families come in contact with
the elements of modern societies. Guns, industrialization, access to education and the
loss of historical land all have lasting effects on families and entire societies. A
family in India is used to illustrate the problems that can arise in a large extended
family where the group is dependent on all its members for labor and wealth. In this case,
one member of the family chooses a non-traditional role for himself.
13- The
Yucatec Maya: A Case Study in marriage and the Family
The lives of two extended Yucatec Maya are the subjects of this program. Film footage and
commentary by Hubert L. Smith, whose field research spanned many years in the Maya
community, follow the family of Prudencio Colli Canche, a traditional extended-family
group as its members share the daily chores, teaching the youngsters in a never-ending
cycle. The second family, that of Reymundo Colli, is experiencing change and stress
because two sons want to break out of the farming lifestyle, seek more schooling, and move
to the city. The "dependency" training of extended families is revealed by this
challenge, and one of the sons, unable to cope with a new environment, returns home.
14- Kinship
and Descent (Part I)
The program begins with a brief examination of kinship and descent considerations in the
United States, including inheritance patterns, children's names, married names, and
important family names in business and government. The main focus of the program is on
ways in which other cultures are organized around descent patterns. These include the
matrilineal pattern of the Trobriand Islanders and the economic and religious importance
of the Mendi clans. Methods of determining descent are illustrated in ethnographic film
footage and with the use of interesting graphics.
15- Kinship
and Descent (Part II)
This program begins by defining "kindred" and looking at the role of kindred in
food-foraging societies. The program then examines the various types of kinship and
descent groups in horticultural societies and how such groups handle larger political and
economic functions and domestic and social activities. Next, the program describes how
societies based on intensive agriculture or industrialization have developed such
institutions as centralized government to assume the organizing functions handled by
kinship and descent groups in other societies. Illustrative examples in the program
include the kinship terms of the Baruya, the Navajo matrilineal villages organization and
terminology, and the social patterns in Greek villages that reflect both patrillineal and
matrilineal descent practices. Some of the six major systems of classifying kin are
diagrammed and illustrated in this program.
16 - Age,
Common Interest, and Stratification
Human beings require interaction with one another. It is for this reason that in most
large societies, people form groups and relationships with other people. This program
looks at the existence of groups in society based on age, common-interest association and
social stratification. It examines the role these groups play in helping to organize and
structure the larger culture, as well as how they help to preserve or change the existing
society. It also looks at the value set the group operates within and how these values do
or do not reflect the values of the larger society. Among the groups the program looks at
are the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, a group of African-Americans formed around a
common-interest.
17- The
Aymara: A Case Study in Social Stratification
Through footage made in northern Bolivia, where the heterogeneous population is socially
and economically stratified, this program provides a close look at the inequities of a
sharp class division between the Spanish-speaking mestizos and the subordinate Aymara
Indians. The class system depicted, typical of much of Latin America, is apparent not only
in the fields, but in religious practices, the celebratory fiestas, and even in the
classroom. The economic subordination of the peasantry is battled by the mestizo teacher
who, in one scene, seeks medical help for a child of an impoverished family. Although a
revolution in 1952 brought some changes in Bolivia, this program show that the Aymara are
still bound by many of the economic and social patterns that existed before the
revolution.
18- Political
Organization
All societies need a system of leadership, authority and cooperation in order to operate
successfully and survive. These systems are called political organization. This program
explores the four major types of political organization that exist in the world today:
bands, tribe chiefdoms and states. It describes the how these systems developed; the types
of societies for which they are most well suited; the characteristics that form each type
of political organization; and, the ways they differ from one another. The program
explores the cultures of the !Kung, the Mendi, and the Kpelle as examples of the band, the
tribe and the chiefdom respectively. Finally, it traces the development of the state as a
political entity characterized by centralized power, a code of law and the authority to
use coercion to impose that law. In addition, explores the concept of legitimacy and
coercion as they apply to the state. Through an examination of the theocratic government
of Tibet, it describes some of the complications inherent in the survival of the modern
state.
19- Social
Control
This program describes the processes and methods societies use to establish and maintain
social control. It mainly emphasizes interaction among members of the same group, but some
attention is given to disputes between societies. The program describes the differences
between internal control (i.e. religious dictates) and external control (i.e. code of
law), methods of enforcement and why one type of social control might best serve the
society's needs. It explores the various functions law might serve in different cultures,
as well as the concepts of formal and informal dispute settlement, negotiation,
adjudication and mediation. Finally, the program explores the phenomenon of war and
explains how the concept of world view is integral to explaining why and how war occurs.
20- Religion
and Magic
All societies incorporate some way to provide meaning and explain the unknown into their
culture. These structures are called religion. This program illustrates and describes
various examples of religion around the world and defines the difference between religion
and magic. It includes footage of American Indians practicing animism, demonstrating their
belief in the Great Spirit and attempting to restore the balance between good and evil by
the ritualistic carvings of a medicine mask. Also shown are scenes of religious practices
among the Highland Maya, who have combined ancient beliefs and Roman Catholicism; the
ritual of the Eka Dasa Tudra, a complicated ceremony celebrated by the Balinese that links
the worlds of gods, people and demons; and modern Hare Krishnas in Los Angeles.
Revitalization movements, such as those of the Mormons, also are depicted. The program
concludes with a look at modern industrial nations where religious practices have been
separated from the secular aspects of life and culture. Finally, there is a brief
discussion of the role science plays in modern societies and its relationship to religion.
21- The
Asmat of New Guinea: A Case Study in Religion and Magic
This detailed study of the Asmat, a cannibalistic society of western New Guinea, shows
their use of religion and magic as tools for survival in a world they perceive as hostile
and threatening. The centrality of trees in their religion is shown by scenes in which the
Asmat carve a sacred "bis" pole from a mangrove tree to release spirits of the
dead, and butcher and skin a sago palm as if it were human to release the starch that is
the mainstay of their diet. The program explores many facets of the Asmat society linked
to religious beliefs. Games the children play are designed to teach them skills of
headhunting; during a feast, the coconut is consumed to symbolize eating the brains of
one's enemy. Concluding segments of the program consider how economic development and
modernization, including the government's ban on headhunting, will affect the Asmats'
religious beliefs and practices, which are such an integral part of their total culture.
22- The
Arts (Revised)
This program focuses on different forms of artistic expression as they exist in all
cultures. It presents the many kinds of art and explores the variety of functions served
by the arts: fulfillment of the need for individual creative expression; expression of
peoples' conceptions of the unknown or spiritual world; and reflection of cultural values
and ideas. Among the arts and cultures featured in the program are body painting among the
tribes of the Amazon River basin in Brazil; the link between arts and religion as shown in
the monuments of the Egyptian Empire; the sand painting of Buddhist monks in Tibet; and
the music of Mexican-Americans in the southwestern United States as an expression of
ethnic heritage. Also shown in the program are several contemporary Western artists and
various artistic creations, including a performance artist, the AIDS quilt, and Christo's
"Running Fence."
23- New
Orleans Black Indians: A Case Study in the Arts
This documentary examines the Black Indian tribes of New Orleans and their Mardi Gras
celebration which began in the 1880's. It describes the origins of the tribes as well as
Mardi Gras, and focuses on the distinctive folk art features of the celebration ?
including the songs, dances and particularly the elaborate costumes ? which hold great
social significance are a form of artistic expression for the Black Indians. The program
includes comments by several of the participants in which they express the historic
symbolism and intense relationships expressed in the celebration.
24- Cultural
Change
This program explores the impact of culture change on various indigenous people and
cultures. It describes the various ways culture changes, specifically through innovation,
diffusion, and colonialism. The student is introduced to several anthropologists who have
studied the effects of culture change on various groups. The dramatic effect of modern
agricultural techniques on the traditional horticultural economy of Mali illustrates some
consequences of poor planning. The program uses the struggles of the !Kung in Africa to
illustrate the idea of culture loss. Here, conservation and modernization have had a
serious impact on the native populations of people and wildlife. In the northern regions
of the Brazilian Amazon, the program shows that mining has had a tremendous influence on
the native Yanomamo Indians. Finally, some of the positive effects of modern technology
and culture change are discussed through a look at the Mayan Indians of Mexico. For
example, while roads, electricity and running water have reached the native populations,
many traditional agricultural ways still survive.
25) Cricket
the Trobriand Way: A Case Study in Cultural Change
This program focuses on "syncretism," the anthropological concept which
describes the process by which people borrow elements of a foreign culture and combine
them with native customs, forming a unique amalgamation of cultures. As an example of this
phenomenon, the program uses the game of cricket as it exists in a modified version in the
Trobriand Islands. The program first traces the history of the sport and describes how the
sport was first introduced to the native population by the British in the 19th
century. Since then, the island people have integrated the game into their own culture,
modifying rules and combining it with native customs including magic, dance and chanting.
The program includes footage of many practices of the game in its modified form.
26. The
Future of Humanity
The final program addresses the compelling problem of preserving the diversity of human
cultures in a world that often appears to be rushing toward a one-world culture. The
program includes several examples of how indigenous peoples are making the future their
own by taking back the past. A Kwakiutl woman describes how her people negotiated the
return of masks and other artifacts from Canadas National Museum of Man and built a Box of
Treasures to house the items and serve as a center for preserving and renewing their
cultural traditions, The Yanomamo are featured in another segment, which show how they are
learning to defend their lands against outsiders and includes comments by Napoleon Chagnon
on his concerns for the Yanomamos survival and on the Venezuelan governments experiment
with a biosphere reserve encompassing the Yanomamo territory. Throughout the program, many
representatives of indigenous people express their concerns and desire for protecting
their
This
telecourse presents major features of culture including subsistence patterns, organizing
devices, patterns for transmission of culture, economics, political organization, social
control, and culture change. This introductory anthropology course examines methods of
anthropological research and theoretical orientations.