Hi, I can't think of any ideas for an Anthro essay-please help me think of some?

Question

I was thinking about writing one on the ethics of excavating Native American sites/keeping the remains, but I do not know what books I can find on that. However, I am definitely open to new ideas! This is an intro course, and I want to do an easy essay topic (I am taking a lot of tough courses this semester and do not want to overwhelm myself). Any suggestions would be great!

Answer 1

Consider the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)

The act was intended to repatriate Native American Artifacts from the nations museums. There were thousands of human remains, sacred items and artifacts that had, by various means, been collected (some said stolen) over the years. Many tribes knew of them but requests for their return were ignored. Items had been looted from grave sites or purchased from people that didn't have permission from the tribe to sell.

While this was PC, things changed with the discovery of Kenniwick Man. Here was a nine thousand year old skeleton, one of the oldest ever found. Five tribes claimed it and the Corps of Engineers destroyed the site where he was found. The case ended up in federal court with scientists suing to examine the remains.

The question raised is when should remains be examined to learn about our past and when should remains be returned to Native Americans. NAGPRA requires a tribe show a relationship between the remains and the tribe. In case of K-Man one of the tribes had been in the region only a few hundred years. How could a link be shown.

Then there was a great deal of bias, double dealing and intimidation. Some of K-mans bones disappeared from a locked vault and were next seen when the tribe buried them. The FBI investigated one scientist for theft of the bones, even though the government hadn't done the inventory for months after they had gotten the bones. The missing bones were found, just after the court decision, in a police evidence cage.

So conspiracy, government double dealing, fighting the system, Native American pride...it would make a great movie

Answer 2

There is an interesting controversy regarding Margaret Mead, and her 1928 book, Coming of Age in Samoa.    Some modern anthropologists believe that she misinterpreted her observations due to her own bias in hoping to have found a sexually liberated culture.

You could expand this to include research on enthographic bias in general.

Answer 3

well i was never interestested in that....so i would say instead do it on either, globilization alll anthro proffesours are into this... or there was a book i dont remeber who wrote it, its not to long, this antropologists claimed that humans evoled from the ocean its pretty interesting and it would be a fun topic this is more phyisical anthropology but you said for a general anthro course...

Answer 4

Well the idea you have about Native American remains is a good one, it's still a very controversial topic within archaeology and forensic anthropology.  You could start out with the basic concept of repatriation of remains and discuss how it got started and the laws associated with it.  You also can bring up Kennewick Man with this topic since there's a lot of debate about whether or not he should be considered part of a Native American tribe since he's so ancient.  Look up NAGPRA(Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act) and go from there.  Feel free to e-mail if you need anymore help.

Answer 5

The Death of Common Sense

Today we mourn the passing of an old friend by the name of Common Sense. Common sense lived a long life but died from heart failure at the brink of the millennium. No one really knows how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.

He selflessly devoted his life to service in schools, hospitals, homes, factories and offices, helping folks get jobs done without fanfare and foolishness.

For decades, petty rules, silly laws and frivolous lawsuits held no power over Common Sense. He was credited with cultivating such valued lessons as to know when to come in out of the rain, the early bird gets the worm, and life isn't always fair.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn), reliable parenting strategies (the adults are in charge, not the kids), and it's okay to come in second.

A veteran of the Industrial Revolution, the Great Depression, and the Technological Revolution, Common Sense survived cultural and educational trends including feminism, body piercing, whole language and new math.

But his health declined when he became infected with the If-it-only-helps-one-person-it's-worth-i... bug. In recent decades his waning strength proved no match for the ravages of overbearing federal regulation. He watched in pain as good people became ruled by self-seeking lawyers and enlightened auditors. His health rapidly deteriorated when schools endlessly implemented zero tolerance policies, reports of six year old boys charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate, a teen suspended for taking a swig of mouthwash after lunch, and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student. It declined even further when schools had to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student but cannot inform the parent when the female student is pregnant or wants an abortion.

Finally, Common Sense lost his will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband, churches became businesses, criminals received better treatment than victims, and federal judges stuck their noses in everything from Boy Scouts to professional sports.

As the end neared, Common Sense drifted in and out of logic but was kept informed of developments, regarding questionable regulations for asbestos, low-flow toilets, smart guns, the nurturing of Prohibition Laws and mandatory air bags.

Finally when told that the homeowners association restricted exterior furniture only to that which enhanced property values, he breathed his last. Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by three stepbrothers: Rights, Tolerance and Whiner.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.

Answer 6

Margaret Mead's study that concluded women are the meeker s*x within a culture, but comparing different cultures often women of one culture is more aggressive than men from a different culture. Example she used was women from an african tribe are much more aggressive than Amish men.

I do not remember what the concluding rationale for this pnenomenon was.