Japanese Sociological Review
Online ISSN : 1884-2755
Print ISSN : 0021-5414
ISSN-L : 0021-5414
Special Issue
Is the Theme of Illness and Medicine Marginalized in Cultural Anthropology?
Emiko NAMIHIRA
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JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

2010 Volume 61 Issue 3 Pages 338-350

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Abstract
Cultural anthropology has denied to categorize themes as "central" or "marginal" because one purpose of this study is to examine the culture of human beings as a sum of acquired abilities, institutions, customs, etc. Further, the primary aim of this study is to discover contexts of all cultural and social phases. Any phase or aspect of culture and society is significant for anthropologists. Therefore, medicine is not a "marginal" theme in this sense. However, cultural anthropology does not analyze biological aspects, while the developed, interdisciplinary field of medical anthropology adopts the theory, approach, and concepts of cultural anthropology and studies both the cultural and biological aspects of human beings.
In consequence, medical anthropology contributes new knowledge to cultural anthropology and reinvigorates cultural anthropology, wherein the theme of the biological aspect of human beings is not included.
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© 2010 The Japan Sociological Society
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