SSA101 Final Exam Prep

LaGuardia Community College
Cultural Anthropology
SSA101.1708
Final Exam Prep (Chapters 7, 8, & 9)
1. Sex & Gender (Chapter 7)
a. Both relate to the differences between male and female
b. Sex is biological
c. Gender is cultural expectations/ideas of sex
d. For example: Estrogen = Woman & Testosterone = Male is cultural. Biologically
women and men have both hormones, the levels are just different
e. Stereotypes like “men can’t cry and should be aggressive” and “women are
moody” are cultural ideas.
f. Gender expectations vary from culture to culture
i.
In the US, women are supposed to be more nurturing but this is not the
same for all cultures
g. Sexual Dimorphism: differences between each sex
i.
Humans have relatively low sexual dimorphism compared to other
species such as birds
h. Intersex ~1.7% of humans (Sex is a spectrum)
i. Socially constructed
j. Gender is learned through enculturation
k. We respond to babies differently depending on their sex
l. F*g/Gay Disclosure => Performance Theory of Gender
m. Many intersex babies get corrective surgery usually within the first week of life
because the baby won’t grow up “confused”
2. Sexuality (Chapter 8)
a. Sex is for fun, face-to-face, same-sex, oral, etc.
b. Sex is a medium of power and is a glue for social relationships
c. Different relationships have different types of control (friend vs significant other)
3. Kinship (Chapter 9)
a. Blood vs Marriage (Consanguinal vs Affinal)
i.
Blood
1. Nuclear Family vs Extended Family
a. Nuclear Family = ideal type of family
b. Extended Family = gave benefit by workers
c. Finding family ancestors is like a math problem on crack
i.
If you look far back enough, we’re all related
2. Patrilineal vs Matrilineal
a. Patrilineal: Father’s bloodline
b. Matrilineal: Mother’s bloodline
c. Today we are bilateral
d. Lineage vs Clan
i.
ii.
ii.
Lineage usually goes by which have your last name
(depends on who you know so far back)
A clan is a relationship with a mythical ancestor
Marriage
1. Monogamy vs Polygamy
a. Polygamy can be split into two categories
i.
Polygyn (more common) and Polyandry
b. Endogamy: marrying inside certain groups
c. Exogamy: marrying outside certain groups
…