How I Discovered Anthropology

When I finally discovered the subject I was interested in studying further, it amazed everyone-least of all, me. It wasn't the subject itself that surprised me. It was the fact that it was a subject that didn't initially seem practical considering my educational background and career choices so far. What is the subject, you ask? Anthropology, which covers a broad range of subjects related to humanity. There are a broad range of resources that cover what anthropology is and the various branches of it. Here, I'll cover the interest I've had in subjects relating to anthropology throughout my life and how they influenced my decision to study anthropology. I hope that, after reading this article, you'll be encouraged to explore this fascinating subject of study more thoroughly.

Like many people in my generation, I developed an interest in archeology (a field within anthropology) after watching the Indiana Jones movies. While these movies are hardly representative of real-life archeology, I found the idea of digging up treasures from the past thrilling. I'm sure most of us have gone on "treasure hunts" as children, but I always thought that it would be a lot of fun to do this for a living. Archaeologists get to travel to a lot of places that most people don't get a chance to. A lot of archaeological finds, such as the city of Petra in Jordan and Skarra Brae in Scotland, have made history. Participating in an archaeological dig can help us learn more about the past and how people lived. I've always believed that the more we know about how people in the past lived, the more we understand our present circumstances and hopefully, our future.

When I was growing up, there was one kind of book that held more interest than others. These were books that concerned people living in other times and/or other cultures. The ones I appreciated the most were those that went into great detail about how other people lived. What were their day-to-day lives like? How were their children educated? What did they wear? What did they eat? How did they worship? If one of these questions about a culture wasn't answered by one book, I would consult a second for more information. Based on the information that I had gleaned, I would often write short stories based in other time periods. I even found information on other cultures helpful when composing fantasy stories, in order to make fictional cultures and races seem more relevant to the reader.

One issue that had often concerned me since I was a teenager was prejudice, racial or otherwise. What circumstances lead or have lead people to treat others in this way? Are these reasons economic, political, religious, or a mixture of all three? Can outdated ideas about an ethnic or social group encourage prejudice? What I have studied about this issue has lead me to believe that all four factors have played a role at various times. Prejudice is a problem that has probably existed since the dawn of time. It's my hope and prayer that cultural anthropology and related studies can shed some light on this issue and help us to overcome it.

Shortly before returning to the church of my birth and subsequent confirmation, I decided to explore other religious faiths besides Christianity. Two faiths that interested me the most were Judaism and the religion of the ancient Celts. Judaism interested me because of its Biblical roots, traditions, and beliefs about humanity. Celtic paganism interested me because of my Celtic ethnic heritage and its mythology. From this, I learned to value some of the common ground that Christians share with other people of faith and to appreciate their beliefs, even if I don't agree with them.

When I started reading the Bible extensively, my ages-old curiosity showed through yet again. I became greatly interested in how people of Biblical times lived, what some of the political and economic struggles were that they faced, and what some of the expressions used in the Bible meant. Reading up on Bible culture and traditions has helped me to understand what the text has to say much more clearly. Having this background also makes decisions on controversial theological issues easier.

How does all of this come together? After realizing that I needed to further my education, I struggled to determine what I would study. I did not want to invest so much time and study in one area that I would find myself unable to explore other options. In addition to business studies, I wanted to have some additional studies that would prove useful regardless of what I did in the future. I began doing research to figure out what other studies I should pursue. After reading an interview with a well-known anthropologist, who encouraged the readers to do what they truly loved for a career, I realized that was it! Anthropology was the field I should study. It had all the right ingredients: study of people and cultures; getting deeply into history; understanding why we do the things we do as human beings. All of these were things I had been studying my entire life.

Now, you are probably asking another good question. How does this apply to me, as a small business owner and freelance writer? In my case, I believe it's a perfect fit. The small business I co-own is oriented towards Celtic goods. I hope to offer a Celtic resource center eventually that teaches about Celtic culture more extensively. A background in cultural anthropology is a great way to go about this. Anthropology would benefit me as a writer because I can write with greater clarity and knowledge of history-related subjects, especially when writing about Ireland and Scotland.

I hope this has sparked some interest in anthropology and how its study can help you.