“Differences between sociology and Anthropology”
-
Randhir Gautam
Baress and Bicker "sociology is regarded neither as the
mistress nor as the handmaid of the social sciences but as their sisters"
A L Kroeber calls ‘twin
sisters’ when he understands the relationship between sociology and
anthropology
“The social relations between sociology and Anthropology are
closer than those between Anthropology and political science, that is partly
due to greater similarity in a way of work” – Robert Redfield
Reading the origin of the anthropology, Talal ashed argues,’
there was degree of collaboration between anthropologists and colonial authorities.
The history of sociology in India began with anthropological analysis of
society, monographs, ethnographical studies through colonial intervention for
colonial interest gave rise to anthropological work.
According to Descola ‘Anthropology starts with ethnography,
goes on to ethnology and ends with anthropology. Ethnography is basically the
collection of data, ethnology the analysis of those data in a comparative
framework in which models are constructed. We know, interpretation of action in
the light of anthropological theory becomes construction in the light of theory.
Anthropology is a project more than a science- takes up old project of
philosophical anthropology of making sense of general problems of social life.
With the rise of epistemological trust in anthropological
studies, after second world war when nations started to gain freedom and advent
of postmodernism these incidents have very deep impact of the paradigm of
anthropology. Anthropology inculcates a
sense of cultural relativism in its practitioners. sociological gaze came only after popularization
of American sociology.
sociology and anthropology are practically
indistinguishable. But in conceptualizing society, sociology and anthropology have
quite different origins. their concepts, methods of investigations and analysis
and approaches are different.
According to Wolff and Bennett “sociologists and
anthropologists approach and perceive man differently. They have different
images of man. In his search for laws and in his interest in the abstract, the
sociologist tends to view man as technically a ‘non-human ‘item, subject to
many forces (including the sociologist’s impersonal measurement) in this view
man is an element of nature, immersed in his environment, and the sociological
student apart observing and measuring man-in-environment. For the anthropologist,
man is not a figure within a ground, but rather a figure against that ground;
he is human phenomenon, everlastingly variable, predicable only within broad
limits if at all, and knowable only on a series of virtually infinite levels of
understanding’’
To define exactly the relationship between sociology and
anthropology is difficult because both discipline continue to grow and change.
It seems me that sociological work encroaches anthropological direction of interests
in the context of interdisciplinary approach. Particularly Anthropology
overlaps sociology as a science of culture.
Following are the
important differences between sociology and anthropology.
1. 1. Anthropology study primarily primitive or non-literate
(tribal society and village society non-industrial society) humanity whereas
sociologists study advanced civilizations.
2. 2.Anthropology tend to study society as a whole
sociologist by contrast, usually study parts of a society that is to say they prefer
institutional analysis of society in other words Sociologists study part of
society as institution such as family, marriage, religion so and so forth and
process of change in society.
3. 3. Anthropologists
often live in the society or community they study in order to record custom and
observing members behavior. You can see
the work of Malinowski Argonauts of the Western Pacific. Functional analysis,
ethnographic account, field work and participant observation are the hole
mark of anthropological studies . For them the technique of participant
observation is soul of understanding of society and culture. Sociology on the
other hand relay on statistical data use instruments such as questionnaires
observation, interview. social survey.
4. 4. Anthropology
study small scale self -contained groups or communities, whereas sociologist
study large, impersonal organizations and processes. As john Beattie defines
‘social anthropology as the study of custom, social institution and values and
their interrelation in the context of small scale communities.
5. 5. Anthropology is a study of man and his
characteristics during his various stage of development. Anthropologists focus
on human factor of cultural set up and its evolution.Sociologists study man as member of
society, culture bearing and culture participant member.
6. 6. The primary aim of anthropology is to determine the
theories of social change and sequence and these principles are sociological principles. If you read
evolutionary theorists like L H morgon,
comte and spencer you can see the
measure difference between sociologists and anthropologists that sociologists
focus society where anthropologists focus on evolution of man.
functional analysis with the advent of the
work of Durkheim’s functionalism sociologists and anthropologists came together
for the conceptualization of social process. The interdependence between these
two social sciences is thus established. But there you can see The approach of
anthropology is functional (Malinowski, Radcliffe-Brown, Firth, Evans Pritchard)
and structuralist (Levi Strauss) while sociology is historical (see the work of
weber and Marx) and sociologist follow the tradition of structural
functionalist (parson and Merton)
7. 7. Sociology concerns itself with society conceptually.
It lays much emphasis upon the patterns of interaction among the group members
where us need for counting and categorizing. An anthropology is concerned with
man and his distinctly human product, culture.
8. 8, Sociologist measures society. sociologists
perceive man ‘objectively. Sociologists are inclined to focus attention primarily
on social data through they may go up the fringes of the combined
socio-cultural dimension alone. Their concern is with specific problems which
are sharply defined and delimited so that a hypothesis may be tested on the
basis of maximum controlled data.
Anthropologists do not lay emphasis on the
rational dimension alone. The
anthropologists begin his intensive study with a rather broad and general
theoretical interest and conceptual framework
9. 9. Smelser has clearly opined that sociology does
not deal with a special class of behavioral data but interests behavioral
data within a special type of conceptual framework
sociological perspective is different from that of
anthropological perspective. sociologists want quantified data and uses
statistical techniques. Anthropologists advocates face to face experience with
its subject because of his great love of facts. Anthropologists delimits
understanding of society. Anthropology ultimate aim is to understand everything
about man. Hence it is broader perceptive than sociology. Basically it has 4
perspectives. 1. Cultural 2. Linguistic 3. Physical. Archaeology
Sociologist warren claims that the
anthropologist can study a modern nation as he can a primitive society; The
basic body of theory and method remains the same … because contemporary society
does not differ in kind but only in the degree from the other societies.
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