Divisions Of Life Childhood - Divisions Of LifeJust when does childhood end, that is when is a person no longer looked upon as a child? How is a person treated when no longer a child (e.g., what is his role now, his status in the family, in the tribe)? Is there any variation between the sexes as to the end of childhood? Who determines that childhood has ended? What periods are there in childhood? What divides these (e.g., physical development,… Checking By Procuring The Native Word - Establishing The Validity Of Material CollectedWhenever we obtained a native word for an object, a custom, a belief, or an activity, we had some assurance that we were dealing with a native trait. If no native word was obtainable, the trait was most probably a borrowed one. Whenever we drove through the country once occupied by the Argentine Araucanian, the driver pointed out groves of wild apple trees and remarked: "Wherever you find these wi… The Outcome Of Our MethodIn collecting ethnographic information, then, we found the following helpful: making adequate preparation for field work; a careful choice of field assistant, informants, and interpreters; using a planned system of contact-making and one of note-taking; motivating the informant; and establishing the validity of the information we gathered through observations and interviews. Prenatal Factors Origin Of Child - Prenatal FactorsFrom where is it thought that the child comes (e.g., sent by God or by another spirit, or as willed by the Creator; or as being reincarnated; or the effect of magic exercised by a shaman; or due to cohabitation)? What explanation is there for sterility (e.g., can potions or magicians or charms produce it)? Get details regarding each answer. Is either parent thought to be responsible to the exclusi… Prenatal Period Conception - Prenatal PeriodWho is responsible for conception (e.g., the husband only, the wife only, both husband and wife; spirit extraneous to husband, to wife)? Who is reincarnated (e.g., every person, only those stillborn, or who)? How does reincarnation come about? How is a newborn child identified as someone reborn (e.g., because born with teeth, or with birthmarks)? Is sex believed to be repeated in reincarnation? Re… Birth Place Of Birth - BirthWhere is the child born, and why is it born there (e.g., in a hut built for this purpose, so as to exclude persons not wanted at the delivery, in the menstrual hut of the mother, in the home lodge)? Or is the child born in the open, under the sky, and why? How long before delivery does the mother isolate herself? Who is with her in her isolation? Make a list of persons who are generally present at… Celebrating A Birth - BirthHow is a birth celebrated (e.g., by plentiful meal, by speech-making, by gift-giving, by painting child's body)? Who participates (e.g., old persons only, relatives only, invited guests only, conventional groups)? Who inaugurates the celebration? What significance is attached to the event (e.g., to introduce the child to the tribe, to give strength to the body of the child)? What is the informant'… Post-natal Interests Ear Piercing, Nose Piercing - Post-natal InterestsWho pierces the child's ears (e.g., its father, its mother, other relatives, professional piercer for all the tribe, professional or other person from another tribe,women for girls, men for boys, or who)? What is the occasion for piercing ears (e.g., if on day of birth, where in the sequence of baby's care; at first gathering of tribe following birth; at tribal religious ceremonial)? Locality wher… Transporting Baby - Post-natal InterestsHow is baby transported (e.g., in cradle in mother's arms or suspended on her back; swaddled in shawl or blanket on mother's back, on mother's saddle, in travois, in father's arms or on his saddle)? By whom is the hammock made? Describe in detail the making of one (e.g., materials used, such as hide, rope, woven materials; braces used to hold it in position). How is it suspended and from where (e.… Infant Behavior Crying - Infant BehaviorWhat significance is attached to a baby's first cry (e.g., is it evidence that child is alive and is a human being)? Are subsequent cries recognized as indications of either hunger, pain, sleep, anger, or frustration? What artificial pacifiers are used (e.g., a piece of gristle, some sweet substance)? How is thumb-sucking interpreted? Is it permitted or encouraged, and why? What is done to prevent… Baby's SensesFive senses and the mind How old is a baby when it first hears? How can one tell? What does it hear? When is it suspected of being deaf? How is it known that a baby sees? How old is it when it sees color (what colors), shape (of what), its mother? How much can a baby taste of sweet, sour, bitter, salt? Various foods and fruits? How is this known? What feelings does a baby have on its skin? How is … Atypical Conditions Multiple Births - Atypical ConditionsIs there a way of predicting the birth of twins (e.g., by hiccoughing of two fetuses)? How many sets of twins are known to informants? That other multiple births are known to them? For multiple births, list the names of individuals so born, and note the type of multiple birth; the sex of each one so born; whether they are siblings or identical twins, if twins, and how this is determined. How are m… Infanticide - Atypical ConditionsOn whom is infanticide practiced (e.g., on a child born of an incestuous union, one born out of wedlock, one of multiple births, one of mixed blood, a deformed child)? Just what is the attitude toward infanticide? If infanticide is a tribal custom in certain established cases, in which ones,and why? Is it considered murder? Is it considered a personal affair? Who decides that the infant must be ki… Names Origin Of Names - NamesHow did names originate? If they originated in childhood dreams, how old must the child be who dreams, and which dreams count? Are special valties attached to any particular dream? Who is given this particular name? If a name originates in a dream at puberty, that is, during the puberty rite, who is given this name? If the name originates in the dream of an adult, what are the customs regarding it… Beliefs Regarding Names - NamesWhat values are attached to a name (e.g., is a name a preventive of ill health, a promoter of good health or strength or virtue; does a name give social prestige or admission to the tribe)? What sort of ties are established between namer and named? What taboos are attached to a name, and why (e.g., a name must never be uttered by the one bearing it, never by anyone, never must the name of a deceas… Young Children's Behavior Pattern Of An Ideal Child - Young Children's BehaviorWhat qualities in a child are most admired by elders? What characteristics are strongly disliked by them? Get informants to describe the conduct of children that they consider ideal among the children in the community; also,the conduct of children that they consider not conforming to the ideal. Get these accounts at various age levels. Also get children to tell about the best, and the worst, child… Fear - Young Children's BehaviorTo what is fear in children attributed (e.g., to threats, frightening tales, inconsistent discipline, over-severe parents; or to fear learned from other children who exhibit fears)? What types of fears are there (e.g., fears of parental or supernatural disapprovals; or of real things, like frogs or fire; of persons, such as shamans or masked men)? What is believed to be the cause of jealousy in ch… Teaching The Child Types Of Education - Teaching The ChildIs there formal education for children, that is, are children gathered together in groups or into classes at specific times and formally taught by a teacher? Are children taught informally, that is, are children taught individually as opportunities present themselves (e.g., grandmother will say, "Come over here now and watch me do this, and learn how to do it.")? Who are the child's teachers (e.g.… Training The Memory - Teaching The ChildMemory is the ability to retain, recall, and recognize past intellectual impressions and mental images. How is a child's memory trained (e.g., by sight, by hearing, by association, by concentration, by clues)? What must the child learn by rote? On what occasions must something so learned be repeated? Is the child ever made to report one of its experiences in presence of others who were witnesses t… The Senses - Teaching The ChildHow old is the child when it detects the odor emitted by animals? By own tribesmen? By strangers? Is the odor of clothes used to identify the owner of them? Gauge the ability of children to see in the distance: note what objects can be seen at what distance. Scope Of Learning And Training Some General Leads - Scope Of Learning And TrainingWhat do elders think children should learn and should know? At what age? Make a list of these. Then as you go along getting information on the scope of learning and training, note, for example, whether the three-year olds, the ten-year olds, the adolescents, know the things that they are expected to know and whether they can do the things they ought to be able to do. Notice the reactions of adults… Government - Scope Of Learning And TrainingAsk children to tell what they know about the government of their people. About the chief's powers. About what punishment for what offense. About punishment of non-conformists. About political divisions of the tribe. The privileges and obligations of their own family in government. About advisory councils. About endogamic and exogamic groupings, such as gentes or clans. How do children learn about… Measuring Distances - Scope Of Learning And TrainingWhat means were there for measuring spans or distances (e.g., such measures as length of finger-nail, or from tip of finger to wrist; span between outstretched arms; paces; a day's journey; a bow-shot)? Was it a custom to mark off a standard measure, such as a standard length, on a cord or a pole or a singletree in order to have it handy when needed? What means are there for measuring surfaces (e.… Domesticated Animals - Scope Of Learning And TrainingList the domesticated animals kept by the people; give for each its native name and its species. If wild animals have been domesticated, what are their native names? Each one's species? How were they domesticated? What part do children play in the domestication of animals? How are animals trained, and by whom? What names are given to which animals? For what purposes are dogs bred? How are they tre… Behavior Of Older Children Kindness And Courtesy - Behavior Of Older ChildrenWhat types of greetings are conventional? If handshaking is, with whom, and how done? If bowing is, by whom? How deep? To men only? To women only? If embracing is, by whom? What are the occasions for greetings? What words are used in greeting on arrival? On departure? In the morning? Before retiring? What are the conventional courtesies? Who is expected to do what for whom? Is it conventional to s… Physical Training Sleep, Posture - Physical TrainingWhat part of every twenty-four hours is spent in night sleep? In a forenoon nap? In an afternoon nap? Are there fixed hours for rising and for retiring for children? Are children trained to stay awake over a long period of time? Why? Are lights, or fireplaces kept burning at night in places where sleepers are? Why? What is a girl's customary posture when standing? When sleeping? When sitting down?… Diversions Children At Play - DiversionsWho are the child's playmates? Children of his own family exclusively? Other children relatives, as well? All children of the group or village? If boys and girls in the village are not allowed to play together, why not? Are children nagged if they do not play? Forbidden to play in certain places or at certain times or with certain children? Why all these prohibitions? Or does no one care if they p… Visiting - DiversionsWhat is being talked about while visiting? Gossip? Local news? About whom? About what? Are legends being told? Traditions related? Jokes played? Record these jokes and tell who tells them to whom, and for what purpose. Or do persons merely sit mutely, but contently, together in each other's presence? What stories are told during visiting hours merely for the benefit of children? Record such storie… Adolescence Boys' Gangs, Girls' Sets - AdolescenceIf boys' gangs exist, are they institutional? Are girls' sets institutional? Note at what ages boys belong to gangs, and girls to sets. What characterizes gangs? Sets? In what way are they solidified, conventionalized like adult clubs are? If they defy standards set by society,how is this done? Is the leader of a gang explicitly recognized as a leader? How did he become a leader? What brought the … An Ethnographic Field MethodA field assistant and I set out to record the ethnography of primitive Indian child life as reflected in the milieu of the tribal culture. Our method was that of personal observations and personal interviews with Indian informants in their native habitat. The method, which is described in the following pages, grew out of what we set out to do. To a large extent it developed out of our field experi… Preparation For The FieldMy field assistant and I set out for field work with stiff-covered notebooks, a steel measuring tap, my Field Guide, several hundred pieces of paper 4 by 6 inches, a camera and photographic attachment, films, a published work on the tribe we were to study, colored prints and photographs of Indians, gifts, and money in cash. We chose stiff-covered notebooks because we knew that notes would have to … Collecting Information By Interviews And ObservationsI learned early in my field experience that accuracy and reliability in collecting information are of prime importance - decidedly less checking has to be done if they are provided for. Essentials I found to be: (1) honest, clear-minded, and willing informants; (2) keenly alert and honest Indian interpreters who speak the language of the people and speak fluently one of those I speak; (3) a compet… Motivating The Informant - Collecting Information By Interviews And ObservationsBefore many interviews with any informant, he would take the lead: "Why do you want to know these things?" Here was my opportunity to tell him honestly and frankly that we wished to record some of the old beliefs and customs regarding his people. We were asking him because we thought he, being one of the oldest members of his tribe, would remember former customs that most younger men had no knowle… Establishing The Validity Of Material CollectedChecking by interviews with participants or other informants; items personally observed. We drove to Anadarko, Oklahoma, to interview an eighty-year -old man. When we arrived, his daughter -in-law was sitting on the back porch of his house reading the Sunday paper; he himself, nearly blind, was sitting on his bed in his room, the front room, smoking his pipe. The daughter-in-law's husband and her … Discovering Whether Or Not A Trait Is Native - Establishing The Validity Of Material CollectedI was curious to know whether a statement that I had heard at the 1951 meetings of the Central States Branch of the American Anthropological Association was true. It was said that even though a field worker did not intend to use the Rorschach tests for studies of personality, he could by means of them elicit the informant's major interests. With this in mind I showed an Argentine Araucanian woman … Clearing Published Information That Seemed Doubtful - Establishing The Validity Of Material CollectedDid sibs ever exist among the Araucanian s? Were the kuga, cuga, cunga, elpa of Cooper's sources merely kinship groups, or were they sibs? Quoting Cooper: "... there is no tangible evidence in our sources that any but real kin were members of any given kuga, and consequently no evidence that the kuga constituted a true sib. Each kuga had its own name, such as sky, sun, pillan , stonegrove, likan, …
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