Essay-ANTHROPOLOGY

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Consider the question, "What does it mean to be human?"

Before reading our textbook, if you ask me what it means to be a human? The first thing that pops up in my mind is the five basic human needs according to Maslow's Hierarchy: Physiological needs (food, water, warmth, rest), safety needs (security, safety), love and belongingness needs (intimate relationships, friends), esteem needs (prestige and feeling of accomplishment), and self-actualization (achieving one's full potential...) I believe to be a human we must achieve these basic needs in order to survive then religion, culture and society will follow. Let's think back about 400,000 years ago or before the evolution of humans and/or civilization people didn't care about religion and culture or they didn't know what it was.

Does what it means to be human relate to how humans are made or constructed? Is the explanation of humanity found in a human's biology? Alternatively, does culture make a human who they are?

I believe our DNA has a lot to do with how humans are made and society we live or choose to live in can define how we are constructed. Yes, culture can make a human who they are because it is the way of life. Culture helps us to make a sense of ourselves and provide us what is important to us. Can you imagine if we were living in a world where there is no culture how would it look like? To me, it would've looked like total chaos. The scientific method helps us to understand the differences between us humans and animals such as our social skills and DNA. Anthropology helps us to better understand our ancestors and what it means to be human.