2. Margaret Mead 1901-1978 Student of Franz Boas at Cambridge, and later became a professor Academic anthropologist and ethnographer Popular writer for Redbook and other magazines , popularizing the field of anthropology
3. Anthropology demands the open-mindedness with which one must look and listen, record in astonishment and wonder that which one would not have been able to guess. Margaret Mead
4. Boasian Thought Committed student of Franz Boas Had a personal and academic relationship with Ruth Benedict Strong views of cultural determinism Learned a scientific approach and methodology in ethnographies
5. Boas proposed the ultimate question: Is culture responsible for shaping an individual, or is nature? Mead believed the answers would be in studying the behavior of children and adolescents, but already had a biased opinion.
8. Noted that teenagers could move freely between homes of relatives when conflict arose
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10. The way to do fieldwork is never to come up for air until it is all over. -Mead In retrospect: Cultural relativism? Detachment? Preconceived bias? Accuracy?
11. Mead-Freeman Controversy Derek Freeman’s restudy of Samoan culture Found Mead’s work entirely in error Believed Samoans were violent and did not view sex and growing up as Mead believed they did Said Mead generalized and stretched the truth to prove Boasian theories and her own preconceived notions
12. I was brought up to believe that the only thing worth doing was to add to the sum of accurate information in the world. -Mead
13. Nature vs. Nurture Debate Mead: Culture shapes a person – traits are NOT biologically determined Freeman: The nature of a person is biological, but culture can change things The Conclusion?
Editor's Notes
Taught at Cambridge, then founded the Anthropology department at Fordham University. Paved the way for modern cultural anthropology and ethnographies.
As well as cultural determinism, he also taught his students to approach cultural ethnographies as scientific studies. He stressed the importance of cultural relativism, learning the native language, and maintaining a scientific approach in studying a culture.
Eight Months among Samoans and American settlers. Lived with Americans most of the time, learned the native language to some proficiency, and interviewed adolescent women and other informants. [Now Read Slide]
These are some of Freeman’s books and several restudies of both sides of the argument, written by other anthropologists. Works like these have fueled the nature and culture debate for decades. Literature seems to have arrived at a common ground that both nature and nurture play prominent roles. [Talk about the books and various arguments esp. Fateful Hoaxing]
