Compare and Contrast Dobe/Ju'Hoansi

The book, The Dobe Ju/'hoansi is a great example of an ethnography. It is a very detailed description of every aspect of the San people's life. From the environment they inhabit to the food they eat, the book goes into great detail on how these people survive. More importantly, the book describes their personal relationships with each other and other band level societies, marriage and sexuality topics, and how they solve disputes. Personally, I feel the attention directed towards their interpersonal relationships, was the key in understanding these Ju/'hoansi's way of life. Some of the most important topics mentioned in the ethnography are the foraging for a living, their marriage and sexuality, and conflicts, politics, and exchange. With the help of Richard Lee's case study of these hunters and gatherers, our society can become more cultural relative and get a peak into the way of life of a dying breed. The Ju/'hoansi are a hunting and gathering society who are located on the border of Namibia and Botswana. These two countries are in the Kalahari Desert in South Africa. In the 1950's Richard Lee wanted to research these people because he wanted to dispel two myths. He wanted everyone to know that these people were not "missing links" and that the Ju were not prehistoric creatures (Lee 2003). Upon arrival to the Kalahari Desert, he did just that. At first glance, this band level society does not have much in common with the technologically advanced western society. However, the more the two cultures are compared, the more they seem to resemble each other. One huge difference in the societies is the environment. In South Africa, the weather is scorching. The landscape is not full of rolling hills, forestry, or flat grasslands like much of the United States. The Kalahari Desert is dry, with little vegetation and hardly any forestry compared to the United States. Unlike Americans, the Ju are a very mobile society. In our society, sturdy houses