Anthropologist Marvin Harris tries to convey the reasoning behind India’s problem involving starvation in his paper‚ India’s Sacred Cow. To us Westerners it seems silly to have millions upon millions of people starving while such a tasty and nutritionally satisfying food source is wandering the streets. But who are we to truly judge what people do on the other side of the world think. These people were raised with totally different beliefs and share few if none of the same values that we do in America
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18 India’s sacred cow MARVIN HARRIS Other people’s religious practices and beliefs may often appear to be wasteful. They seem to involve a large expenditure of scarce resources on ritual; they contain taboos that restrict the use of apparently useful materials. Their existence seems irrational in the face of ecological needs. One example that many cite in support of this viewpoifJt is the religious proscription on the slaughter of cattle in India. How can people permit millions of cattle to
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Marvin Harris‚ the founder of materialism‚ was fascinated by religious practices of specific religions like Islam‚ Hinduism and Judaism. He observed how these religions had specific food restrictions which followers could not eat like pork or beef. He also examined the types of sacred figures in these religions like the Ka’aba where people would walk around it and pray‚ as it is known as the house of God in Islam. This led to assumptions from his philosophy that these historical practices and restrictions
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India’s Sacred Cow by Marvin Harris The cultural practices of other people often seem strange‚ irrational‚ and even inexplicable to outsiders. In fact‚ the members of the culture in question may be unable to give a rationally satisfying explanation of why they behave as they do: they may say that "the gods wish it so‚" or that "it is always done that way." Yet a fundamental assumption of social science is that no matter how peculiar or even bizarre human cultures may appear‚ they can be understood
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Amylase is found in saliva and breaks starch into maltose and dextrin. This form of amylase is also called "ptyalin" /ˈtaɪəlɪn/[4] It will break large‚ insoluble starch molecules into soluble starches (amylodextrin‚ erythrodextrin‚ and achrodextrin) producing successively smaller starches and ultimately maltose. Ptyalin acts on linear α(1‚4) glycosidic linkages‚ but compound hydrolysis requires an enzyme that acts on branched products. Salivary amylase is inactivated in the stomach by gastric acid
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The Savage Male‚ Harris In American culture social norms differ from Asia where women are obligated to fulfilling their husbands needs‚ where as to the United States men are taught chivalry at a young age. It is common courtesy for a gentleman to open the door for a woman‚ these traits are developed at a young age in reality they do help prevent gender problems. The problems consist of physical abuse and unlawful treatment towards a man’s spouse‚ in the United States these problems can be prevented
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Anthropology NAME: Satyam Bharadwaj (810581584) “Life Without Chiefs” Marvin Harris Homework #5 due Tuesday‚ Oct. 9‚ 2012 10 pts 1. D According to Marvin Harris in “Life Without Chiefs‚” hunter/gatherers had a. no formal leaders b. headmen c. leaders who were respected by the people‚ but had no authority to command d. all of the above 2. C According to Harris‚ leaders called “big men” appear in societies whose economies are characterized by a.
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of India’s Sacred Cattle In his article‚ The Cultural Ecology of India’s Sacred Cattle‚ Marvin Harris argues against the common perception of India’s cattle complex and provides example to support his argument. He starts out by saying that most authors think ahimsa‚ which is “a prime example of how men diminish their material welfare to obtain spiritual satisfaction in obedience to nonrational or frankly irrational beliefs” (pg.51)‚ is the reason behind the treatment of cattle in India and how its
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In Marvin Harris’s work Why Nothing Works: An Anthropologist Looks at American Culture he argues that the underlying changes in the American economy since the 1950s have changed the nature of marriage‚ the nuclear family and sexuality in the United States. Throughout‚ this paper I will be analyzing Harris’s theory as well as stating my own personal beliefs from the experiences I have with each topic. Economics and marriage go hand in hand‚ during the era of the “baby boom” majority of the women in
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considered the ancient equivalent of natural sanctuaries where No one is permitted to cut any tree or plant‚ or harm any form of life in this area. Ancient Indian texts have many references to sacred groves‚ for example‚ Kalidaasa’s Vikramorvawsiyam. Today‚ there are only about 1000 square kilometres of undisturbed sacred groves‚ scattered in patches all over the country.. These groves are important today as they are banks of genetic and plant diversity that have to be preserved and sustained. These areas
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