Why study 'Primitive Societies' ?

From: 'Social Anthropology' by E.E. Evans Pritchard

What are 'Primitive Societies' ?

We are sometimes criticized for giving so much of our time to the study of these primitive societies. It is suggested that inquiry into problems of our own society might be more useful. This may be so, but for various reasons, primitive societies have long held the attention of those interested in the study of social institutions. They attracted the notice of philosophers in the eighteenth century chiefly because they furnished examples of what was supposed to be a man living in a state of nature before the institution of civil government. They engaged the attention of anthropologists in the nineteenth century because it was believed that they provided important clues in the search for the origins of institutions. Later anthropologists were interested in them because it was held that they displayed institutions in their simplest forms and that it is a sound method to proceed from the examination of the more simple to the examination of the more complex, in which what has been learnt from the study of the more simple would be an aid. This last reason for interest in primitive societies gained in weight as the so-called functional anthropology today developed, for the more it is regarded as the task of social anthropology to study social institutions as interdependent parts of social systems, the more it is seen to be an advantage to be able to study those societies which are structurally so simple, and culturally so homogeneous, that they can be directly observed as wholes, before attempting to study complex civilized societies where this is not possible. Moreover, it is a matter of experience that it is easier to make observations among people with cultures unlike our own, the otherness in their way of life at once engaging attention and that it is more likely that interpretations will be objective. Another, and very cogent, reason for studying primitive societies at the present time is that they are rapidly being transformed and must be studied soon or never. These vanishing social systems are unique structural variations, a study of which aids us very considerably in understanding the nature of human society because in a comparative study of institutions, the number of societies studied is less significant than their range of variation. Quite apart from that consideration, the study of primitive societies has intrinsic value. They are interesting in themselves in that they provide descriptions of the way of life, the values, and the beliefs of people living without what we have come to regard as the minimum requirements of comfort and civilization.

We, therefore, feel it an obligation to make a systematic study of as many of these primitive societies as we can while there is still an opportunity to do so. There are a vast number of primitive societies and very few indeed have yet been studied intensively by anthropologists, for such studies take a long time and anthropologists are a very small body.

But though we give chief attention to primitive societies I must make it clear that we do not restrict our attention to them.

What are 'Primitive Societies' ?

From: 'Social Anthropology' by E.E. Evans Pritchard

The word 'primitive' in the sense in which it has become established in anthropological literature does not mean that the societies it qualifies are either earlier in time or inferior to other kinds of societies. As far as we know, primitive societies have just as long a history as our own, and while they are less developed than our society in some respects they are often more developed in others. This being so, the word was perhaps an unfortunate choice, but it has now been too widely accepted as a technical term to be avoided. It suffices to say at this stage that when anthropologists use it they do so in reference to those societies which are small in scale with regard to numbers, territory, and range of social contacts, and which have by comparison with more advanced societies a simple technology and economy and little specialization of social function. Some anthropologists would add further criteria, particularly the absence of literature, and hence of any systematic art, science, or theology. 

Why study 'Primitive Societies' ?

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Terrace Cultivation

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Terrace cultivation is an agricultural practice that suggests rearranging farmlands or turning hills into farmlands by constructing specific ridge platforms. These platforms are called terraces. The essential and distinguishing feature of terrace agriculture is excavating and moving topsoil to form farmed areas on ridges. The trick is that water flows down to lower platforms when the upper platforms are full. Thus, the amount of water is distributed more or less evenly. 

Farmed areas in agricultural terracing are either level or tilted, depending on the soil infiltration properties. If soil infiltration is sufficient, they are made level. The most popular terrace types in farming are: broad base, narrow base, and grassed back-slope; depending on how steep the hill is. 

• Broad-base terrace farming method is suitable for the gentlest hills, and terrace farming includes all the slopes.
• Grassed back-slope terrace farming is an example of perennial terracing, as the back slope cover is perennial grass. 
• Narrow-base terrace farming is another example of perennial terracing, but in this case, permanent vegetation covers both, the front and back sides. 

This technique of cultivation is credited to the Incas, who developed the farming method of terracing in the Andes. Today, terracing is typical for mountainous rice paddies in Asia. There are various benefits in this method,

• increases land productivity of sloped fields,
• contributes to water conservation; slows down and reduces water runoffs, improves rainwater harvesting,
• prevents soil erosion by decreasing rill formation,
• boosts soil conservation,
• reduces sedimentation and water pollution,
• increases food production by adjusting hilly land for farming,
• adds to ecosystem diversity.

There are some challenges too,

• specific types of machinery required,
• high labor and cost input
• land disturbances that often require additional treatment
• trained people needed to arrange terraces
• preliminary soil testing is required,

Prevention or reduction of soil erosion, as well as soil conservation by terracing, allows using the terraced farmlands in the long run. It attests to the essential role of terracing in sustainable agriculture.

Reference: collected from various sources

Functional study of Rituals

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

In his book, 'Elementary forms of religious life' (1912), set the stage for functional analysis from the earlier emphasis on evolution. Durkheim showed how the Totemic rituals establish within the participants;

• sense of oneness
• sense of solidarity
• sense of commitment
• sense of morality

He also showed how the Totemic rituals led to a harmonious relationship between nature and humans. Every time the Totemic rituals were performed, all the values become reemphasized and reaffirmed. The repetitive nature of rituals was to recreate the collective sentiments of the people - a process necessary for survival. 

A. R. Radcliffe Brown (1881-1955)

Followed Durkheim to give a structural-functional analysis of collective rituals. He introduced the terms 'ritual value' and 'ritual status' to describe the symbolic significance of collective rituals. He showed the significance of taboos/prescriptions and prohibitions in creating a ritual status and thereby giving a ritual value to an object. (Ritual values are social values necessary for maintaining necessary sentiments essential for social reproduction and solidarity.) 

His hypothesis - rituals, by their restrictions on action, create anxiety that is just right to make a person realize the importance of a relationship. In this analysis, importance is given to the function of rituals for social structure.

Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942)

His hypothesis - explains rituals as relieving anxiety rather than creating anxiety. In this analysis, importance is given to the function of rituals for individuals.

All human beings have certain amount of rational knowledge about the tasks we do. In spite, a certain degree of uncertainty prevails. The role of rituals is to take care of this 'grey area' which no amount of skill or knowledge can cover. The more dangerous the result of failure, greater the anxiety, more elaborate the rituals. For example, in his study of the Trobrianders, a seafaring community of Pacific Islands, Malinowski showed that when they are fishing in backwaters or otherwise safe zones, the fishermen perform little rituals, but they always perform elaborate rituals when they are venturing out in the deep sea or any long distance voyage where the risk factor is high.

The performance of rituals can be rationalized by the positive mindset/confidence it builds in an individual, who feels satisfied at having done all that could be, including those that are beyond human control and only the supernatural can take care of. 

In his book, 'The Coral gardens and their Magic' (1935), he showed how rituals performed by magicians help to regulate agricultural work and imposes rational time schedule that actually helps in scientific management of productive activities. Once activities are projected as a sacred duty, there is greater compliance and less chance of people defaulting. 

Reference: IGNOU Study Materials

A note on Rituals

A performance, to be socially meaningful, must have a public content. 

Even if, a person is performing a ritual individually, he/she follows a pattern that is publicly recognized and followed. For example, a Hindu woman blowing a conch shell and lighting a lamp under the Tulsi tree in the evening. Every culture prescribes a format for the performance of rituals that must be followed by everyone, whether or not the ritual is actually performed publicly. 

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