Field Work

Today was a beautiful Spring day in Northern New York. The day was made all the better because I got to get away from the desk and spend the day in the field. I spent the day with two co-workers driving all over Saint Lawrence County talking to property owners, taking photos, and viewing recent property sales. Even though I am swamped at work, it was wonderful to escape from the desk for the day.

My favorite part of the day came when we were taking photos of some agricultural land and stopped to talk with the property owner. The property was a large Amish farm and the man of the house (husband and father) came out to greet us in the driveway. There were three women (mother and two daughters), working in a small garden beside the farmhouse, that watched us with interest but never stopped working. As we talked with the father, a young boy about 9 or 10 stood quietly beside his father and watched us intently. He was joined very quickly by a younger brother who was 4 or 5 and just stared at us as if we were from another planet.

I'm sure that to the young boys we must have seemed very strange indeed, because none of us had a beard or the traditional Amish clothing. But most of all, I'm sure the boys were very curious about the fact that we arrived in a car and not a horse and carriage.

The meeting was brief and only lasted a few minutes, but I enjoyed it. As we piled back into our car and were preparing to drive away, the little boy stood transfixed and couldn't look away. Finally, his father shouted for him to come away from the driveway, and he ran off to attend to whatever he had been doing before the strange visitors had arrived.

This is a snapshot of why I love Anthropology so much. Today I got to participate in a cross-cultural exchange and yet there were no value judgements at all. We were different from each other but it didn't affect our ability to interact. All participants were members of the same species, and yet the ways in which our respective cultures express our humanity varied greatly. I hope that as I go forward in my life, I can emulate that little boy's innocent curiosity and approach other peoples and cultures not with a sense of alienation and fear, but with a sense of wonder and fascination.

Quote for the Day: Faith and Violence

I am currently in the process of reading The End of Faith by Sam Harris, and I just wanted to share a provacative quote:

"People of faith tend to argue that it is not faith itself but man's baser nature that inspires such violence. But I take it to be self-evident that ordinary people cannot be moved to burn genial old scholars alive for blaspheming the Koran, or celebrate the violent deaths of their children, unless they believe some improbable things about the nature of the universe" (Harris 31).

I don't agree with all of Harris's conclusions, specifically that religious moderates are as much a threat to world peace as religious extremists, but I find a good deal of truth in what I've read so far. What do you think?

Anthropology and Tourism

There is an interesting article in the New York Times today about the culture clash that occurs between tourists and the locals. The article discusses the growing number of international tourists visiting New York City.

The dollar is cheap. The shopping is endless. And about seven million foreign visitors are expected in the city — the highest number since before 9/11 — mainly from Britain, Ireland, France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia and Germany.

Later in the article we find this tip of the hat to Anthropology (is there anything it can't do?):

Is it time, at least, for retiring the term “ugly American” from the dictionary of foreign phrases?

The answer, according to experts in the rarified field of tourism anthropology, is a possible yes.

“Ugly” behavior in tourists is almost always in the eye of the people being toured; and Americans are no longer the only, or even the dominant group of tourists out in the world. We are now as often toured as tour-ing.

And New Yorkers, it turns out, are just as likely to be exasperated being toured by tourists unfamiliar with their local mores about tipping or standing in check-out lines, say, as the Achuar tribesmen of Ecuador are to be offended by tourists who sit on certain sacred rocks.

I never get tired of watching and learning from other humans. Despite all of our great advances (not the least of which that you're able to read this collection of keyboard strokes), sometimes I think we aren't much more than a giant ant colony going about our daily tasks completely oblivious to the larger realities around us.

But all in all, I think we've done alright as a species. Given our humble origins, who knew we would come this far?

Please Wait for Me, My Love

At this time last year, I had just finished up my first academic year as a part-time Anthropology student at SUNY Cortland, and life was good. I was excited about the prospects of more in depth studies when classes resumed in the fall. But that summer, disaster struck and my plans were put on hold. Fortunately for my bank account, I was offered and accepted a kick ass job promotion in Northern New York. Unfortunately for my anthropology dreams, the first two years of the job involved an intensive traineeship and a good deal of travel, so there was no room for regular college attendance.

I am now nine months into the two year traineeship and I must admit that I am enjoying the job a great deal. But lately my subconscious has been screaming at me to keep a proper perspective: the new job provides a means to satisfy my material needs of food, shelter, and clothing, but it does not provide the necessary psychological fulfillment and satisfaction.

There was a heavy rainstorm this morning, so the cats and I were stuck inside the house. I went to one of the spare rooms that I hope to arrange into a den or study room when I get around to it. Anyway, I was moving some boxes around and started digging through seemingly at random, when I came across my notebook and folders from last year's class on Development Anthropology.

Reading through my old notes and papers I felt a profound sense of happiness and a dizzying rush of possibilities. I regret choosing to leave my studies, but I also know that I will return just as soon as my current traineeship is over. To bide my time away from formal Anthropological studies, I ordered a few books from Amazon.com that should arrive next week. The fact that I am unable to attend formal classes should not hinder attempts at independent study.

My traineeship ends in August 2008, which perfectly coincides with the beginning of the fall semester. There is a community college in Watertown, as well as SUNY Colleges in Oswego, Canton, and Potsdam. At this time next year, I expect to be preparing for a return to formal studies. A reunion is more than possible; it is inevitable. Please wait for me, my love.