Participation Observation

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Recommended: Cultural anthropology Study

Human interactions, behaviors, languages, structures, art, society as a whole is incredibly fascinating. Each society has its own way of living, or culture, that has been developed over the years with a plethora of influences such as the geography, food, and ideologies of the society’s people. As the book Cultural Anthropology states, “Culture shapes everything that humans do, and a particular culture is conventionally attributed to a particular people and a particular place.”
Religion is a significant aspect of culture, as the people are inspired to create beautiful art, rituals, eat/cook certain food, music, dances, and unusual behaviors that had originated from religion. A compelling enigma that is fueled by religion lies within the Amazon rainforest, Brazil. A particular tribe had captivated my interest, the …show more content…

A successful anthropologist, while on fieldwork at an artisan cheesemaker in Vermont, says “We participate, we watch, we use our own subjective and firsthand experience. So when I’m helping make cheese, that’s participant observation which is an important part of fieldwork.” Fieldwork is defined as “the anthropological method of traveling to the society one wants to study and living there for a prolonged period of time to collect data first-hand.” As I continue participating at the fieldsite during rituals and other religious traditions, I would become curious and naturally become inquisitive instead of strictly doing a structured

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