anthr 150
how many races are there
no definite number
how do we divide people into races
based on their differing physical traits
did race spontaneously form? if not.. then how?
no, it was created politically/historically to justify colonialism and white peoples own idea of their superiority.
what type of concept was race created to be
a hierachial concept, that's why we couldn't divide race based on eye colour because there are eye colours shared between white people and people of colour
is race real then?
yes Just because race as a concept is not biological but socially constructed doesn’t make it not real.
why did white people not wanted to be labelled as white people
White people didn’t want to be labelled by their race indicating that they considered themselves the default, although other races are constantly labelled by their race. These groups with more power are able to decide what’s normal and normalized in society
define social category
Social category: individuals don’t usually ever have control over the categories they are put in by society
define collective idenitity
Collective identity: how you identify yourself considering all aspects of yourself.
is categorization usually universal?
Categorization is rarely universal, gender is the most common category. Race is not the same because it is particularly not that old of a concept
how is biology and culture different
Biology is innate but culture is learned, no matter what your biology is where ever you are raised is where you adopt your culture.
define race (biologically)
Race is a category of organisms belonging to the same species biologically (producing fertile offspring)
why are there distinct human groups
There are distinct groups because of geographic distance (barrier to mating).
what type of categories were avoided when picking racial markers
Category’s that weren’t able to be seen by the naked eye were not used as markers of race and also markers that overlap with other races.
why is it important that racial markers could be seen by the naked eye
indicates that racial classifications was always meant to be something that every can participate in and not just scientists
true or false: racial markers were meant to be subjective
false, these groups of characteristics were made to be objective, this criteria had to be met to be said race
what is a racial marker than is now widely dismissed
Shape of the skull is dismissed now as a marker because it can change during a humans life during growth.
are there any sole racial markers universally used
These markers are arbitrary and not universally used, there is no sole marker because then there would be a large population in between races.
what are 3 problems with race as a concept
1. Human variation is often continuous and not discrete (skin colour can change with moving around- close to/far from equator).
2. races dont covary, there isn’t a consistent, predictable relationship between different traits (such as skin color, facial features, etc.) that would clearly define "race" in a biological sense.
3. greater polymorphic variation within populations
when was race constructed
in 16-18th centuries, pre European colonialism.
why was race as a concept different in the earliest centuries of its formation
the criteria differed and didn’t have the same connotations, sometimes a person was able to change their category which isn’t how race works. (Ex. Greeks vs barbarians) (ex. egyptian men being depicted darker than woman)
what 3 things was race first based on? how did the new meaning come about
family, lineage, breed
new (more systermatic) meaning came from colonization and slavery
did europeans know people of colour existed before the european exploration
yes, but they din't encounter them as much till the european exploration- prior to this categories were more based on religion
what is the great chain of being
depicted the hierarchy of everything in existence (natural hierarchy created by god.) Devil, minerals and rocks, plants, animals, humans, angels,more angels and god.
what does the great chain of being assume
not all humans are equal to one another, king, aristocrats, middle class and working class people- this was assumed to be a natural hierarchy, people were born to be in the class they were in.
what is the myth of a noble savage
Considered noble savages because they lived out of civilization and were not under the influence of the corrupt ideals that exist within society but are still considered untamed. This differs from europeans who lived in a more civilized manner but still brought about wars due to the ideals within their society.
what was the dual views on nature
The romantics saw nature as wild and unpredictable, not something that could be tamed while others saw nature as idealized, something that is controlled, peaceful and existing in harmony.
define monogenesis
Monogenesis: all humans come from the same Adam and Eve (but some degenerated)
define polygenesis
Polygenesis: different groups of humans had their own Adam and Eve
were debates on where these "new" people came from based on intellectual curiosty? if not, then what?
These debates were not just from intellectual curistory but knowing if they were human or not helped them justify killing them (if they weren’t human) and if they were then to save them/convert them to Christian’s.
what does robinson crusoes novel depict
a European coming in contact with a native man, initially views that native man as inferior but then teaches the native man his own customs and practices,essentially “civilizing” him
who is carl linnanues and what century is he from
(18th century): classification of plants and animals, binomial nomenclature, 7 level system. Also an optional level, that there is geographical variety in species (race then was considered subspecies)
carl defined all humans as homosapiens, everyone was apart of the genus homo but divided into subspecies. what were these 5 subpsecies.
Americanus (red), Europeaus (white), asiaticus (yellow), after (black), another 5th race of homosapiens monstrous (mythical creatures)
who is comte de buffon and what century is he from?
(18th century France)- makes the use of the word race as a variety within species more popular, believed a single origin of human kind
who proposed the 5th race, malayan
Johann friedrich blumenbach
when was the index of skull proposed as a racial marker
18th century
what was the term fror the original default race that everyone degenerated from
The term Caucasian was used for people from Europe, Middle East, North Africa. This was the original/default race and everyone else degenerated from it.
who is darwin and what century is he from
Darwin was an abolitionist (abolotion of slavery) and monogenist (common origin of humans) in the 19th century.
what was darwin most known for and who supported him
Through the experiments in Galápagos Islands the ideas of the origins of biological variety were thought about. Evolution by natural selection. These ideas were supported by Alfred Russel Wallace
what did darwin propose about biological evolution
He proposed that biological evolution does not have a purpose and happens spontaneously and is not a progress
how did darwin feel about advantegous traits
some features helps you survive in that time in space and others don’t, then these people with these traits become more sucessful and reproduce and these genes spread through the population.
by the end of the 18th century race is a constructed concept used as colonial project to extablish a hiearchy using human variation, what made this thinking more prominitent in the 19th century?
scientific racism
when did scientifc racism come about and what is it
late 19th and 20th century,, humans can be divided into specific biological races; these races are fixed and a key in understanding human variation (through specific markers and distinctive, cultural, social and moral traits).
why is viewing race through a biological lens extermely harmful
Making race a biological construct essentializes, making it seem like the innate nature of humans, how it was intended to be…
how did scientifc racism also invovle ethnicity
in scientific racism they push that idea that culture, the way a society behaves, economically, socially, politically is
all biological.
when did social darwinism come about and what is it
the late 19th century, Darwin’s ideas on species was twisted to be used for scientific racism.
when was slavery abolished and jim crow laws (segregation) introduced
Slavery was abolished in the mid 19th century Also the same time of “jim crow” laws in USA (segregation), new system devised to keep them seperate.
how was social darwinism born
out of Darwin’s ideas and apply those biological ideas onto society, people who are more capable and survive, more adaptable are superior, “Survival of the fittest”- Herbert Spencer.
other than racially how also did social darwinists discrimante
Social darwinists were also classists and also discriminated against working class/impoverished/disabled white people.
who is Franz Boas and what century is he from
early 20th century, critiqued scientific racism which at the time was widely establish. Specifically critiquing their tools for classifying race like the skulls as a race marker.
although Boas was white he was a jewish man and seen as inferior, what did Boas study when it came to racial markers?
He studied the skulls of Italian and Jewish immigrants and saw a bigger difference between 1st and 2nd gen WITHIN each groups than the difference BETWEEN each groups, showing these biological variations couldn’t be used to classify people.
why would the skull shape of 1st gen immigrants and 2nd gen differ?
These immigrant parents might have difference in skull shape from their nutrition and from being lower/working class (environmental changes)
no connection between race, language and culture. no fundamental difference between the minds of the “primitives” and the “civilized”. - Boas. did Boas ideas become accepted after his reasearch ?
Boa’s ideas were not taken into consideration/ were not accepted.
what was the spontaneous consequence of social darwinism
eugenics
define eugenics
beliefs and practices aimed at preserving and improving (genetic) quality of humans). Encourages “superior” people to reproduce and discourage “inferior” people (sometime by force) to not having people
who was a huge proponent of eugenics
Francis Galton was a huge proponent of selective breeding/ eugenics.
what was the biggest logical fallacy concerning eugenics
The logical fallacy is that if they believed in the survival of the fittest which is a spontaneous concept then they shouldn’t have to choose for selective breeding but the superior people should spontaneously outlive the inferior people.
the naxi party were also a proponent of eugenics and "race hygiene", how did their views differ ?
their idea of the hierarchy varied, they targeted Jewish people, Slavic people, Romani people
what caused eugenics to be challenged
After world war 2, eugenics was challenged/ not approved because of nazi eugenics. Became not socially acceptable to promote scientific racism/ eugenics.
in 1950 UNESCO released a statement... what did this state?
1950- UNESCO: still believed race was a biological fact but there were no superior or inferior races. No scientific evidence that one race is smarter and no genetic difference between aces in character.
-still believed different pops that make up seperate races but has no consensus ovet the number of races
what descision of the number of races was accepted after the UNESCO statement
the division of Asia, African, European was accepted.
the UNESCO statement of race challeneged what but didn't oppose what
statement challeneged scientifc racism but didn,t oppose race as a concept
in 1911 the distinction between what two genetic terms were introduced
the distinction between genotype and phenotype was first introduces and the idea that some genetic differences that exist aren’t shown in observable traits
when did the idea of biological race come in question? why?
the other half of the 20th century. new understanding of human biology showing that human variation doesn’t align with race as a concept, race as a biological fact is disproved.
where did all humans originate
from Africa, that is why Africans have so much variation because they have more time to genetically diversify.
in 1996 a statement from the AAPA was released, how did this one differ
statment on biological aspects of race, stated that pure race in the sense of genetically homogenous population doesn't exist within our human species, we cant split human into discrete geographic categories with a strict criteria.
what does the AAPA statement say where biolgical differences come from
Biological differences comes from hereditary factors and natural and social environments.
how much DNA do humans share
humans share the vast majority (99.9%) of our DNA in common
can race ever be used to describe true human biological variation even not as a hierachial concept
no it is factually not accurate
does human variation exists
Human variation exists, this is a genetic variation but also affected by the environment. No strict way to judge hereditability. Traits can vary within the same family (among people who are genetically close).
true or false, differences in phenotypes doesn't mean there are significant genetic differences
true
define ethnicity
categorization based on cultural traits (language,religion, culture) and shared ancestry.
what is an example of two groups who aren't genetically close but it is group beleif to be apart of the same culture
Irish people, have low Celtic genes but identify as celts
how is skin colour determined
determined by melanin production in skin.
what caused albinism
inability to produce melanin (happens in all human groups).
define geographical patterning
distinct zones that show different features in a species. Skin colour showed a clear geographic pattern.
how can skin colour be effected
by exposure to ultraviolet light, skin colour is a complex trait and not easy to predict because it is controlled by major genes.
how does skin colour vary aside from different "races"
Women generally lighter than men, babies than adults, seniors than young people, skin colour variation is clinal (continous)
what is glogers rule
dark skin people near equator (higher sun intensity), lighter nearer the poles (true in animals too). Stands less true in Asia and the Americas.
how does vitamin D correlate with skin colour
necessary vitamin, comes through food or through sun, skin needs to be light enough for it work. Inuit people aren’t light skinned and have limited sunlight but get vitamin D through fish.
how do we get our hair colour
also dependent on melanin and dependent on age
what is unique about red hair? and red hair and blond hair?
Red hair is a specific allele on specie genes, 1-2% of humans. Blonde hair and red hair are recessive genes
it was a fear that blonds would disappear, why was this and why was it irrational?
was thought that racial mixing with people might dilute the population of people with “pure” traits. This does not work like this because even with mixing people can carry this recessive gene without displaying it.
did hair colour show geogrpahic patterning
no
did eye colour show geographic patterning
no but brown is the most common
how is eye colour determined
dependent on melanin but inherited in a More complex way than dominant vs recessive.
how can eye colour be seen as an advatanegous trait, use an example of another animal to explain.
ex. Peacock feathers attract mates, increase reproductive success but isn’t helpful for the peacocks safety (more easily noticeable for predators). This same concept might apply to eye colour.
what is used as more of a marker than hair colour concerning hair
hair texture
does hair texture show geogrpahic patterning
Shows some geographic patterning (straight hair common in Asia and americas)- round shaft and helix shaped in Africa, slightly oval in Europe. Although hair texture varies among races, ages, generations etc.
what is more of a racial marker than eye colour concerning eyes
epicanthic folds.
epicanthic folds are common in east asia but appear around the world, on who else do these folds also arise on
sometimes also varies/changes from childhood to adulthood, might be because the nose and cheeks develop and the eyes become less pronounced.
height and weight are genetic but also are highly impacted by ...
environemtnal factors (ex.nutrition)
does body shape show geographic patterning
yes based on climate, certain genetic adaptions concerning body volume and surface area.
the two rules concerning body shape are bergmanns rule and allens rule. define these two rules
bergmans rule: body size is larger in colder climates to keep the heat
Allens rules: extremities are shorter in cold climates
the difference between us video focused mainly on what
difficulty to find genetic markers that define race, the small amount of variation between groups, assuming racial advantages in sports, hoffmans beleifs of african americans inferiority, laws stopping interracial marriages, beleif of mendelian traits to support eugenics
who were the Win tribe
people of native american, white and african american ancestry
1930 rise of great african american atheletes (ex. jeese owens), what was concluded on why african americans were succeeding in sports
no marker that groups together all black athletes that explains their superiority in the sport
what infleunces phenotype
genotype + environment
define Allele
variants of the same gene ex. Blood types
define gene
sequence of nucleotides along a DNA strand, the differences in these sequences is what makes genetic variability
how does genetic diveristy happen
It happens on individual level, because genes are mixed between parents, but this only produces limited amount of diversity because it is mixing already preexisting genes. New variations are created through gene mutations. Mutations/changes in genetic material can be traced back in time and based on that we can talk about different regional/geographical groupings of humans.