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Cultural Anthropology by William A. Haviland In his book Cultural Anthropology the professor of the University of Vermont William A. Haviland examines the great variety of human conditions, which are heavily dependent on the social and cultural factors of the society. Having concentrated on the basic ideas of human nature, which are actually common to all of the organized creatures (communication, family, social structure), the author examines cultural aspects (like history, myths, and religion) in Part IV of the book. Honestly speaking, I find the discoveries of Haviland rather obvious.
His discussion of the culture, and religion in part, is something that is often can be classified as common knowledge. The introduction to religion is set with several issues about God, his appearance, and divinity. Therefore the religion is described to be the belief in God (Haviland). However to Haviland there appears to be another understanding of region: the belief of a person in oneself, and it has nothing to do with spiritual or divine aspect.
However, Haviland insists that religion plays a crucial part in every society's development and social consciousness. Today religion has shifted from the believe kind of approach to do idea. When we mention modern society, the first thing that comes to mind is Science, Technology and Information Technology. Over the centuries, scientific breakthroughs, discoveries and research have found the answers to many of mans questions.
Scientific advancement and research has overturned many myths and legends that are once based on religions, such as the setting and rise of the Sun, which explains daybreak and nightfall, in ancient times, religious believers believe that nightfall is the work of evil spirits. Science has proven that there is no Heaven above us, just the atmosphere that blends into outer space neither is there anything below us, just the Earths crust and a mantle made of molten lava. Still, the past myths are the things that shaped todays approach people to many things around us. Haviland believes that ideas of heaven and hell shaped the morality of the societies (regardless of whether it is Buddhist, Christian, or Islamic, for the ideas and sometimes the plots of religious stories coincides in different confessional studies), has helped humans to understand the principles of universal morality. Religion is the basis of many moral and ethical codes in a society (Haviland).
Each race or culture believes in their own religions and it is religion that makes them unique and distinct from others. Religion is a form of mental retreat, when reality and society seems to be crashing down on an individual, falling back into the belief of his religion can be the only way to solve his problems, here religion acts as a morale booster or stimulant. Religious people believe in a Supreme Being that looks after them, that provides the security that a person needs in life, or perhaps a feeling that a confidante is always there for him (Jugas). The idea of God provides the reins to keep Man in control, God as the policing body, promoting a conscience of good and scorning evil or immoral thoughts.
Religion also keep communities together and promote social cohesiveness, people of the same religious beliefs tend to help each other out and give each other moral and physical support, a basis of Christianity and many other religions. Today many of the works of William Haviland are used as educational references or textbooks. I thinks that it is absolutely fair, for the Cultural Anthropology is clearly and scholarly written material, easy to read, and with limited amount of controversies. It is a good introduction to the history of man as a being, but I would not address the book for the sake of finding answers to my questions. Works Cited: Haviland, William A. Cultural Anthropology.
Tenth Edition. Wadsworth Publishing, 2001. Jugas, Joseph. Religion in Modern Society. Dublin: Dublin Publishers, 1999.
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Research essay sample on Cultural Anthropology By William A Haviland
