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Visual Anthropology
documentary review: https://www.academia.edu/776065/Secrets_of_the_Tribe._Directed_by_José_Padilha
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Secrets of Tribe: Yanomami
Watching
this video, I felt very bad because this video has shown a criticism of
competition among all the anthropologists. They all adopted different ways to
study the lives of people of Yanomami. In this regard, some anthropologists
have adopted the most uncivilised and unethical ways considering them a part of
their study and few were never stoppable of their doings as no one really knows
what is right and what is wrong. They followed what they asked to do them. No
one actually believed in their rights; they all were there for their goals and
personal seeking. This study has revealed much about the so called civilised
behaviors of our lives. We consider ourselves ethical and civilised but for
grabbing an opportunity, we cannot compete with each other on any level and can
move out to any limit.
From
the view of cultural relativism showed by anthropologists of Yanomami, the
anthropologists have not made any judgments to their living standards, their
behaviors, their culture and their ways of treating each other. They believed a
simple and innocent way of living. At initial stages, anthropologists could not
reveal much about them, and that’s why they think that they are a simple form
of humans living away from all kind of races, competitions of life, with peace
and unity. It is because they do not have a clear picture of their mentality
and culture they pursue. They were a god in the belief of anthropologists
because they were far away from materialistic use of life and also because they
were not competing with each other for the materials because they do not have
them. If they were having any materialistic approaches, then they would also
behave like the human beings of the civilised communities.
After
a long time, the anthropologists got to know the real face of their lives. And
then the ethnocentric view just began. Just not having modern tools and
techniques is not an answer to the simple living, they were fierce, they were
violent, and they killed the people for their reasons. They kill the first born
baby girl of their own families because they believe if they do so, they will
have a long family with baby boys. This is a bad aspect of their lives.
Fighting over women is another common v0ilent behavior found in them. And it
has been admitted by them, that they kill each other for women. There are lots
of fights and wars they fought for women.
As
the emic view of life, the study of the anthropologist in contrast to Yanomami
life is different. The Yanomami believes that they have the best living away
from other resources that we have. They consider that all issues arise in their
lives are just because of the entrance of theses anthropologists who came for a
short time, but they made so many changes to their lives that they cannot
afford to conduct. The Yanomami far away from civilisation, live a life where
they can access everything of their desire effortlessly by snatching, or by
killing. They have produced their resources to life and are happy with these
resources.
In
the etic view of the life of Yanomami, the anthropologists have many views into
consideration. They believe they possess violence behavior. As described in the
video, once they were living in the tribe, they cannot be out of them. If there
women will go out of a tribe, they will kill her. This is the view they believe
to be a much uncivilised way of life, as they are violating the human rights of
the living. The killing of people, for their own personal acquiring’s, is not a
solution to a living world. They are living far away from the rules of life.
And following their ancient way of living, they are teaching there next
generation the same ways of living. There is no one to guide them for their
health, or ethics, and the rule of life and the moral values of life. Without
following the norms of life, they live a very humiliating life which is not
acceptable for anthropologists and human beings.
If
we talk about the cultural vie of life of Yanomami people are following, then
it has to mention that there is no culture followed. The cultural approaches
cannot be applied to them from many sources. If it has to be the living value
of Yanomami, neither they follow the functionalist approach, neither have they
followed the societal values, nor they are also far away from the standards of
life. They follow thee uncivilised minds, the thought of ruling others by
gaining whatever they want. All anthropologists have differently treated them,
some were very involved in their lives, and some were thee to make general
views of their lives. The anthropologists used the functionalist approach of
culture by providing those foods, goods commodities of life but they could not
change their mentalities of life. They remained uncivilised for their reasons.
One of the anthropologists married a girl among them but could not sustain his
marriage because according to him the cultural difference of free living
society and a society where they have to follow civilised behaviors of life
they choose free living. They can never be adjusted according to the lives we
are living in.
While
visits to the land of Yanomami, they were asked by the anthropologists from
where they get the food resources, how do they make a living, hat they believed
and what they don’t? The anthropologists were of the view that they do not
believe what we think about life. They have their own rules, their way of
intimations among human, own culture of living; they do not need any assistance
from the world that they do not belong to. They cannot allow someone to enter
their area and they don’t allow their women’s to go to other tribes.
The
anthropologist, Kenneth Good married a girl from the tribe, who was a teenager
11 years old at that time. And he stared living there with the people of
Yanomami. After a few years of living, he came back to his state with his wife
and children, and a few years later they also got divorced. According to other
anthropologists, he did this to get his studies done more effectively, for fame
and he did a wrong thing as he a married a very young girl. For all the
anthropologists, his step of getting into a relationship with such a girl was a
very clever step taken by him. It is reported that for marring that girl he
divorced his first wife, his girlfriend made a suicide attempt because no one
was going to believe that he was in a relationship which is unacceptable in any
circumstances. But he said that they inspired him and that’s why he decided to
marry her.
For
me, his step was very unjustified by him. If he did this to fulfill his needs
of completing his studies as claimed by other anthropologists, then it is the
most unethical decision and is against the rights of human that he married a
young girl. The villagers allow him to do so because they do not have a concept
of life that civilised people follow. So for me in any situation, it was the
unethical and worst decision because after many years of living with his wife
he divorced her by stating that she could not get adjusted to the rule of
living we follow. So his step is un-defendable in any way, and the
anthropologists were right not to support him.
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