The Dobe Ju/Hoansi Essay
Qureshi 1 Hadiyah Qureshi See my one big comment below.
Critical Review
Professor Delcore
4/19/2014
The Dobe Ju/’hoansi Critical Review In the case study “The Dobe Ju/’hoansi”, the author Richard B. Lee, an anthropologist from the University of Toronto, provides an in-depth look into the lives of the South African tribe known as the Dobe Ju/’hoansi. In the book, Lee strives to shed light on several important factors of the Ju/’hoansi culture and lifestyle. The author addresses the point methodologically by first covering the foraging methods of the hunter-gatherers and then their sexuality and religion. Other factors of the tribe that the author focuses on are: politics, social change, marriage, conflict, and social organization. After analyzing Lee’s research on the Ju/’hoansi, I was able to discover that the biggest issue lies within their kinship, subsistence, and sexuality. [So far, you have stated the topic of the book, but you still need a clear statement of what you think Lee was trying to prove. He does describe their culture but he also have some things he wants to persuade us about.] As Lee states in the book, one of the biggest factors that led to his studies of the Dobe Ju/’hoansi is that they are an isolated hunting and gathering tribe. This is important, because hunting and gathering, or foraging, is thought to be how early human beings lived. Therefore, through his research, the anthropologist can view a part of early ancestral culture. One of the many assumptions that Lee had before spending time with the Ju/’hoansi tribe was that the idea of foraging for existence and subsistence is tough and it is difficult to survive using this method. However contrary to these assumptions, is the fact that a relatively small amount of work is needed to feed a village, and when cooperatively carried out with others, it is not very difficult. This can be supported by Lee’s observations. After seeing a woman collect nuts from a mongongo tree, he asked
Critical Review
Professor Delcore
4/19/2014
The Dobe Ju/’hoansi Critical Review In the case study “The Dobe Ju/’hoansi”, the author Richard B. Lee, an anthropologist from the University of Toronto, provides an in-depth look into the lives of the South African tribe known as the Dobe Ju/’hoansi. In the book, Lee strives to shed light on several important factors of the Ju/’hoansi culture and lifestyle. The author addresses the point methodologically by first covering the foraging methods of the hunter-gatherers and then their sexuality and religion. Other factors of the tribe that the author focuses on are: politics, social change, marriage, conflict, and social organization. After analyzing Lee’s research on the Ju/’hoansi, I was able to discover that the biggest issue lies within their kinship, subsistence, and sexuality. [So far, you have stated the topic of the book, but you still need a clear statement of what you think Lee was trying to prove. He does describe their culture but he also have some things he wants to persuade us about.] As Lee states in the book, one of the biggest factors that led to his studies of the Dobe Ju/’hoansi is that they are an isolated hunting and gathering tribe. This is important, because hunting and gathering, or foraging, is thought to be how early human beings lived. Therefore, through his research, the anthropologist can view a part of early ancestral culture. One of the many assumptions that Lee had before spending time with the Ju/’hoansi tribe was that the idea of foraging for existence and subsistence is tough and it is difficult to survive using this method. However contrary to these assumptions, is the fact that a relatively small amount of work is needed to feed a village, and when cooperatively carried out with others, it is not very difficult. This can be supported by Lee’s observations. After seeing a woman collect nuts from a mongongo tree, he asked