Anthropology Schlegel and Changon Free Essay Example

Anthropology is the career where people get new experiences that they never had before. This career is also very dangerous because they face the risk of going into different tribes which are unknown and their behavior is very unpredictable. This is the same how Stuart Schlegel and Napoleon Changon discovered those tribes and lived among them. They mixed together the history of tribes that they did not know and the ones that were known but very little.

When Stuart Schlegel decided to go into the world of Teduray tribe, he prepared himself for a long time before going there.

He went with his family and coworkers on the Island of the Philippines. They spent there a long period of time so he could learn their language and learn their culture as best as he could. “Where exactly I would do my work remained an unresolved question” (Schlegel, Wisdom from a Rainforest, Page 16).

This means that he was ready to go into the forest but he still could not decide where exactly.

He also had some peers that spoke the Teduray language and they helped him to accommodate in the field. As we can see, it is much better to prepare before going into an unknown society. “Finally I knew I had done all the preparing I could and was ready to go. I felt considerable – and I was excited to start the great adventure” (Schlegel, Wisdom from a Rainforest, Page 20). As they entered a strange forest, they knew that it is not going to be easy to get into the tribes because it is not like you would go and knock on their door.

You need some kind of permission to get inside the tribe. Schlegel had this permission from Cotabato City which made it easier for him.

Everything in life has a cost and Changon’s desire to find new information and study new tribes is not an exception. Taking the risk and fear, he went to study Yanamamo’s tribes of Indians in Venezuela. Chagnon described the Yanamamo as living in “a state of chronic warfare” (Changon, How Cultures are studied). His firsthand account of the Yanamamo portrayed them as warlike, and with so, created an interest in the Yanamamo, among other Anthropologists. Changon knew that he could get a disease and that there are no hospitals nearby and there is a long way to get to one of them. However, he was prepared to face these challenges. When he arrived at his destination, the tribes had their regulations and rules which were kind of strange and primitive. The simple way they eat to survive is primitive hunting and gathering, and that is a danger in itself. Changon had to show that he was there to help and not harm the tribe which I think was not easy for him.

In conclusion, after reading the book and watching the video, Schlegel and Changon had their bad and good days during their research time, and both of them had to deal with dangerous situations.

Remember! This is just a sample.

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