ANTH Cultural Anthropology 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A society in which people acquire status through personal achievement rather than birth is described as:
- Ascribed
- Achieved (Correct answer)
- Caste-based
- Endogamous
Correct answer: Achieved
Achieved status is earned through individual effort or accomplishment rather than assigned at birth.
Question 2: The practice of marrying within one's own social group or category is called:
- Exogamy
- Endogamy (Correct answer)
- Polygyny
- Levirate
Correct answer: Endogamy
Endogamy requires marriage within a defined group, such as a caste or class.
Question 3: Clifford Geertz argued that culture is best studied as a system of:
- Genetic instincts
- Shared symbols and meanings (Correct answer)
- Economic exchanges
- Biological adaptations
Correct answer: Shared symbols and meanings
Geertz viewed culture as webs of significance interpreted through 'thick description.'
Question 4: A form of political organization with no permanent centralized leadership, common among foraging bands, is:
- State
- Chiefdom
- Egalitarian band (Correct answer)
- Empire
Correct answer: Egalitarian band
Egalitarian bands lack formal, permanent leaders and emphasize relatively equal social status.
Question 5: The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis proposes that:
- All languages share the same grammar
- Language shapes thought and perception (Correct answer)
- Language is purely genetic
- Gestures replace speech over time
Correct answer: Language shapes thought and perception
Linguistic relativity holds that the structure of a language influences how its speakers perceive reality.
Question 6: A marriage in which a widow marries her deceased husband's brother is known as the:
- Sororate
- Levirate (Correct answer)
- Bride service
- Cross-cousin marriage
Correct answer: Levirate
The levirate custom keeps a widow within her late husband's kin group by marrying his brother.
Question 7: The Kwakwaka'wakw potlatch, in which hosts gain prestige by giving away or destroying wealth, is an example of:
- Balanced reciprocity
- Market exchange
- Redistribution and status competition (Correct answer)
- Silent trade
Correct answer: Redistribution and status competition
The potlatch redistributes goods while competitively displaying and enhancing the host's status.
ANTH Cultural Anthropology 3
A society in which people acquire status through personal achievement rather than birth is described as: