anthropology
Anthropology is the study of human beings, with an
emphasis on their evolution. The academic discipline
is generally divided into two broad fields: physical
anthropology, which is the study of human physical
traits and evolution; and cultural anthropology, which
involves the examination of human culture, society,
and interpersonal relationships. Physical anthropology,
especially the early debate over evolution, influenced
the development of 19th-century sociology and politi-
cal theory. Meanwhile, cultural anthropology has had a
major impact on the development of political thought,
both in terms of the development of civilizations, as
well as the role and impact of societal relationships. A
subset of cultural anthropology, philosophical anthro-
pology, examines humans as both products of their
environments and as the creators of the values that
shape environments.
Contacts between the Europeans and various
indigenous peoples in the 1600s and 1700s spurred
the eventual development of anthropology. European
intellectuals sought to develop explanations for the
technological differences between themselves and
native peoples, whom they deemed as “savages.” Ini-
tially, anthropology was dominated by a linear concept
of history that held that human societies passed
through stages of development. They evolved from a
primitive state through phases to become “civilized.”
The work of Charles Darwin on evolution influenced
this line of thought and led to the development of
SOCIAL DARWINISM, which contended that those societies
that were more technologically advanced were so
because they were more evolved or more fit. Such
ideas were used to justify the acquisition of territories
and colonies during the age of imperialism in the 19th
century. Social Darwinists also asserted that the devel-
oped world, including the Western European nations
and the United States, had a duty to take care of the
lesser-developed peoples by governing for them and
civilizing them through Christianity and political edu-
cation. This sentiment was especially strong among
nations such as Great Britain, France, and Germany. In
the United States, these theories would be used to jus-
tify the western continental expansion known as MANI-
FEST DESTINYand the U.S. conquests of territory such as
the Philippines.
By the 20th century, many questioned these as-
sumptions, and the strong ethnocentric and cultural
biases of the earlier anthropologists were abandoned
for a more pluralistic approach that viewed each cul-
ture as the product of unique environmental and socie-
tal factors. This relativism eliminated many of the ear-
lier prejudices and led to an emphasis on fieldwork
and the collection of empirical data. Much of the new
methodology of the science was related to the work of
Marx and his materialist view of scientific inquiry,
which stressed empirical observation. The functional-
ism of the new approach was rooted in the efforts to
find common cultural foundations for a variety of
activities within a given society.
One 20th-century political phenomenon studied by
anthropologists has been the rise of the “cult of per-
sonality” in certain nations. The effort to raise political
leaders to an almost deitylike status has occurred in a
variety of nations and cultures, including Germany, the
Soviet Union, China, and various states in the Middle
East. Anthropology provides one manner of examining
the fusion of political, religious, and societal ideals in a
political leader and the means by which dictatorial
rulers are able to use culture to augment or ensure
their power.Further Reading
Shore, C., and Wright, S., eds. Anthropology of Policy: Critical
Perspectives on Governance and Power.New York: Rout-
ledge, 1997.anticlericalism
A political attitude and movement that is hostile to
CHRISTIAN ministers or clergy (“clerics”), especially
CATHOLICpriests. The main attack of anticlericalism is
those churches or clergy that have political power or
are closely associated with the STATE. For example, this
negative attitude toward church officials began in
Europe in the 18th century, especially in France,
where the REPUBLICAN forces resented the political
power of the Roman Catholic Church and its support
of the French MONARCHY. So, after the French Revolu-
tion of 1789, the Catholic Church and clergy lost its
privileges.
In general, anticlericalism has been a response to
the church and clergy being too close to political
power, becoming wealthy and powerful in a worldly
sense, supporting the CONSERVATIVEpower structure
rather than representing Christ to the world and being
meek, humble, and spiritual.
In other countries, anticlericalism attacked the offi-
cial church and sought to strip it of its worldly wealth
and power. In Spain and Portugal, between 1830 and14 anthropology