Page 47 - DSOC402_SOCIOLOGY_OF_KINSHIP_ENGLISH

Unit 6: Approaches to the Study of Kinship: Cultural

when they collected the examples of the different forms of the various objective facts from the Notes
various periods and parts of the world and presented them in a wilfully chronological order of
evolutionism. Presenting the evolution of the various forms of the bow and arrow, along with
definition, is one such example.
Though the contribution of these preliminary developments had been important in understand-
ing the cultural activities, they proved to be extremists in supporting the idea of independent
evolutionism. They earned quite a bad name when they blindly used the procedure of compara-
tive analysis. They kept on harping about the logical chronological stages but failed to recognise,
if they could be supported with historical evidences. They showed absurd ignorance towards
the role of cultural exchange. They were mere position adorning ideologists, and were using the
descriptions of travellers and missionaries in a simply ignorant manner. Because of their preju-
dice towards the structural processes of cultural evolution, they became blind towards the other
processes of cultural growth and the other definitions of cultural parallel. They openly demon-
strated bestistism. They believed that the final and fulfilling state of the evolution of society and
culture was present in their contemporary Europe of the 19th century itself. Their decisions on
the primitive cultures too, were propped by this attitude of bestiestism.
Many writers have presented the amended forms of developism. One of the ideologies is that
the social organisations do not develop in a straight line but in the form of a parabolic curve.
This means—in the beginning, an organisation grows in a specific manner; later on at a stage,
this development becomes an antonym of the previous form (the original one), and from here
again, it goes back (and develops) to its original form, but a new and developed one. For exam-
ple, the primary property right was of communal type. The organisation of individual or per-
sonal property right developed at a later stage. And now again, the development of communal
property rights through the medium of a state has already been established by the communist
ideology. The other examples have been depicted by the following sketch:
1. Communal Rights: By the state through an organised procedure.
2. Nudity: In the form of a physical-cultural agitation.
3. Free Sex: Lack of stringent, moralistic steps regarding sex and proving its purpose on vari-
ous basis.
(i) Personal Rights
(ii) Full body covering or dressing up
(iii) One marriage
Communal Rights of Property

Nudity

Sexual Freedom

Self Assessment
Fill in the blanks:
1. They were mere position adorning ___________ and were merely using descriptions of
travellers and missionaries in a simply ignorant manner.
2. Their decisions on primitive cultures too were gripped by this attitude of ___________ .
3. The primary property right was of ___________ type.

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