Question

1) How and why are colonialism, the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, and the Industrial Revolution connected to modern inequality?

2) What is "intersectionality" and why is this a relevant concept in anthropology?

3) Why is understanding the historical context of a region and/or cultural group important in the study of anthropology when we focus on modern cultures and societies?

4) Explain how people and societies can come to believe that something that is actually culturally constructed is "natural" or "normal"?

Answer 1

1) How and why are colonialism, the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, and the Industrial Revolution connected to modern inequality?

The Industrial revolution in Europe led the countries to start finding markets for their products produced in the factories. This led to colonisation in Asia, Africa, America etc. Further, in many colonies, slaves were also traded which used to come from Africa & Asia. These slaves were treated badly. There were no social justice for them. White Europeans always considered themselves better than these peoples. Thus, this beginning of inequality in the minds of earlier Europeans leads to a connection between colonialism, the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, and the Industrial Revolution which has ultimately yielded to modern inequality in the present day world with which we all are struggling.

2) What is "intersectionality" and why is this a relevant concept in anthropology?

Intersectionality is a theoretical framework for understanding how aspects of a person's social and political identities might combine to create unique modes of discrimination and privilege. Intersectionality identifies advantages and disadvantages that are felt by people due to a combination of factors.

This is a relevant concept in anthropology because the notion of intersectionality invites social scientists to consider the transformative ways in which forms of difference come together and are experienced, taking into consideration individual experiences and how power is reproduced via social practices, institutional formations and ideologies.