Discussion - Materialist approach | Anthropology | UPSC

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Cultural materialism
Marvin Harris is a North American cultural anthropologist, who has given the theory of cultural materialism. He did fieldwork on Mozambique, Brazil, and Ecuador on race and ethnic relations, effects of colonialism, and problems of under-development.
Marvin Harris presented his theory in the series of works:-
1. Nature of cultural things (1964)
2. Rise of anthropological theory (1968)
3. A history of theories of culture (1968)
4. Cows, pigs, wars and witches (1974)
5. The riddles of culture (1977)
6. Cultural materialism: the struggle for the science of culture (1979)
7. Why nothing works (1981)
8. Our kind: who we are, where we come from, where we are going (1989)
9. The theories of culture in postmodern times.
The crux of cultural materialism:-
Cultures are the primarily adaptive solution to the material circumstances of life. So the people with similar technology in similar environment settings tend to evolve similar cultural arrangements of the labor in production and distribution, similar kind of social grouping, and similar value and belief system.
Materialist approach:-
It is a scientific strategy for explaining the cause-effect relations, similarities, and diffusions in the culture:-
Firstly, look for the materialistic constraints that are imposed on every culture. The materialistic constraints are the biopsychological needs of the human being – the need for food, sexual relations, etc.
Secondly, it shows how the material constraints create 4 universal levels or components of the human organization:-
o Infrastructure – the domain of production and reproduction.
o Structure – the domain of domestic and political economy
o Behavioral superstructure – social relations
o The mental superstructure – the emic structure of goals, values, beliefs, etc.
The determination is in an orderly fashion ie. First determines the second, second determines the third, and so on.
Finally, it proves that demographic, environmental, economic, and ecological factors are responsible for cultural change and evolution. It shows that the techno – environment is the base and it determines the ideological superstructure.
Illustration:-
Sacred cow complex of India:-
Harris(1989) says that there are many taboos in India against cow slaughter. It is a form of cultural adaptations to the ecology. India is an agriculturist country and small farmers own oxen to plow the land. A cow is an effective adaptation to culture because:-
It does not pose any competition to the humans as it can take nutrition from the pasteurized land.
Can produce few males that may be used to plow the land.
The cow dung can be used as a source of energy
Milk can be used to meet protein shortages.
Then it may naturally die or can be slaughtered by the lower castes or Muslims to consume much-needed protein.
Finally, it can be used for leather manufacturing.
Thus cow becomes very important for Indian culture. Political organization, social relations, and belief system – everything revolves around the taboo.
Criticism:-
The belief systems are long-lasting and material culture change very rapidly.
Not always the social relations are determined by the technology, environment, political and economic relations, sometimes it is determined by the belief system.
Sometimes it is seen that there is a huge role of religion in the adaptation of technology in society.