Introduction: Where the Anthropology Comes to the Forth
Despite the widespread viewpoint, anthropology concerns not only the issues of the long-gone events, the annals of the history that are no longer interesting for the modern humankind, the given science offers a plethora of modern and topical ideas for discussion.
Dealing with a number of things connected with the realities of the XXI century, anthropology is one of the sciences that will help the humankind develop into a complex and integrated society, avoiding the misconceptions that have already been registered in the course of the history.
Being the “study of humankind everywhere throughout time” (p. 3), as Haviland, Prince, Walrath & McBride (2010) defined it, anthropology allows to combine the past and the future into a single entity.
Anthropology as a Means to Succeed: The Major Career Goals
When thinking of the career goals and the future professional life, one has to keep in mind the transience of life and the fact that there is very little time for the speculations concerning the career and career goals.
According to Briller & Goldmacher (2008), “The truth is that time passes very quickly for all of us and you do not adequately document your thinking about career issues over time, you may well wish that you had done so” (p. 30). Hence, the authors emphasize the necessity to consider what major career goals one is willing to pursue.
Speaking of the given research, it is necessary to emphasize that my career is focused on the food issue and the food science, which means that the link between the food science and anthropology should be found.
As Larsen explains, the aspect of feeding and the food choice is one of the crucial ones that helped the humankind survive throughout the centuries and incorporates such issues as “dental function, chewing, and swallowing to the consideration of any other physical and chemical factors that influence food preference” (p. xx), which predetermines the importance of the given research.
On the Importance of Being a Human: The Moral Strongholds
Unlike many other sciences, anthropology also concerns a number of ethical issues and presupposes sufficient that one possesses sufficient moral strongholds that allow the given person to feel certain in the given sphere and not to be misled by certain alluring prospects.
One of the most essential questions in the history of the humankind, the one concerning the problem of being a human, that is, being different from the rest of the living beings, is the case in point when it comes to speaking of anthropology and its role in people’s lives. Offering certain answers to this question, anthropology allows to approach the solution for the problem that people have been seeking since the bygone times.
From the viewpoint of the Romantic anthropology, assigned to by Kant, anthropology is described as “a decision between a psychological anthropology that considers what nature ‘makes’ of the human being and a pragmatic anthropology that considers what humans as free agents can and should make of themselves” (Wellmon, 2010, p. 213).
Hence, being a human in terns of anthropology concerns the psychological concept of people’s interaction and peaceful coexistence (Wellmon, 2010).
Concerning the diversity: look around
Another essential idea that anthropology presupposes is the versatility of the species. According to the ideas expressed by Briller & Goldmacher (2008), it is anthropologic development that the humankind owes its diversity to.
Indeed, with the versatility of the tempers, characters and the character traits that people possess or acquire in the course of their development, the world offers a plethora of versatile elements that make anthropology a complex issue.
Think the holistic way: anthropologic approach
Another essential aspect of anthropology is the idea of holism. According to the given science, the humankind is a single entity, the system where every element depends on another.
With the help of holism in anthropology, it is possible to access the phenomena in question as a whole, which allows to see the entire picture. With the help of the holistic element of the anthropological studies, the research obtains the tint of wholeness and allows to incorporate several issues to conduct the analyses of the human development throughout the centuries.
“That is against my morals:” the ethical standards
In addition, it is necessary to add that anthropology presupposes a number of specific ethical standards that have to be followed to reach the state of enlightenment.
As Ferraro & Andreata (2009) explain, there are rather few issues concerning ethical problems in anthropology: “concern for professional ethics is hardly a recent phenomenon among anthropologists” (p. 113). Hence, the attitude towards professional issues is to be reconsidered.
Intertwining the Ideas: Anthropology and the Food Science
Though the idea of intertwining such different ideas as anthropology and the concept of food science, there are certain reasons to believe that the given issues cross at certain moments; namely, food and the food choice is one of the primary elements of the human species survival and development (Larsen, 2010). Therefore, it is necessary to consider the importance of food science in relation to anthropology.
Identifying the second field of interest: the food culture
One of the most intriguing spheres of anthropology, the anthropology of food offers to consider the life of a human being in the interdependence with the food that people consume and its impact on the further development. Since the consumption of certain food predetermines not only the specifics of physiology, but also the culture, and, hence, the character, it is essential to consider the given issues.
Summarize it: the food culture overview
According to what the research on the anthropology of food conducted by Hunnewell (2008) says, there are two basic issues concerning the anthropology of food. Speaking of the first one, it is necessary to mark that the idea of food consumption stretches far beyond the concept of providing the organism with the required minerals and elements.
As the scientist explains, the culture of eating includes dealing with the aspects of national peculiarities and the personal development of the given individual.
Thus, according to what the researcher states, “beyond simple nourishment, food provides a physical, sensory-rich instantiation of the lives it sustains: what people eat, and how they do it so, is of human creation, produced and consumed with a variety of social and cultural parameters” (p. 9). Hence, food anthropology presupposes both the cultural and the biological approach.
Combining the incompatible: when the chemistry mixes
On the one hand, the idea of comprising food and anthropology might seem not grounded enough. However, considering the fact that there re a number of specific rituals associated with food and the food consumption, it can be suggested that food has played great ole in the development of people’s culture and, hence, relates to the issue of anthropology considerably.
Moreover, the issue of food taboos should also be viewed as one of the elements of food culture that contributed to people’s culture and, hence, forms a sufficient part of anthropology. As Hunnewell (2008) explains, “people use food classification systems and the symbolic nature of food to categorize shared experience and define cultural frameworks” (11).
Self-reflection: when the self starts speaking out loud
It seems that in the sphere of food science, the experience of anthropology will be quite useful, since it will allow to consider the food science from the viewpoint of culture and explain the role of the choice of food in the humankind development.
Therefore, anthropology will help to introduce the issue of ethics and history into the sphere of food science. Thus, certain conclusions concerning the food culture shaped the rest of cultures and contributed to the ethics development is necessary.
Conclusion: Choosing the Path to Walk Along
Judging by the above-mentioned, the role of food science in the modern anthropology is crucial. Moreover, it is obvious that some of the most essential traditions echo in the culture of food. Offering a vast study on people’s development and the specifics of various nationalities, food science is one of the most essential elements of anthropology.
Combining anthropology and the sphere of food culture, which will trigger the study of various customs and traditions, one is likely to find the key to a number of widespread traditions that emerged in the course of food culture development and, hence, obtain the key to another aspect of the humankind development.
Reference List
Briller, S. H., & Goldmacher, A. (2008). Designing an anthropology career: Professional development exercises. AltaMira Press: Lanham, MD. Web.
Ferraro, G. P., & Andreata, S. (2009). Cultural anthropology: An applied perspective. Stanford, CT: Cengage Learning.
Haviland, W. A., Prins, H. E. L., Walrath, D., & McBride, B. (2010). Anthropology: The human challenge. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.
Hunnewell, W. L. L. (2008). Lunchtime in Loireville: Learning to become a culturally competent member of French society through food. New York, NY: New York University.
Larsen, C. (2010). A companion to biological anthropology. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.