Quilombola Pottery: Globalization, Economic Anthropology, and Sustainability - Essay Sample

Introduction

Globalization, economic anthropology as well as sustainability and culture affect humans in every community. quilombola is one of the communities described by Kenny in her book. Kenny indicates that the Talhados depended on pottery as an economic activity. The family produced independently and circulated the earthenware for a long time in history. Making pottery was considered to be the work of women while the men collect the materials needed to make the pots which are clay. This makes the pots made to be the same for generations (Lyon 68). This system of production is described in chapter 7 as domestic production. This type of production is small scale, and also labor is organized based on kinship relations. Production is organized based on age and gender, and this is what causes inequality.

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According to Kenny, is that the recognition of the quilombola drew people to the community whereby they experienced an influx of people. The community hosted several visitors including researchers, journalists, students, representatives from the World Bank and other persons who visited to witness the construction of a road and a dam. The location was designed to be developed to become a tourist destination. In chapter 8, we learned about globalization, which is the free movement of people across borders. The influx of people is described as ethnoscapes (Griffith & Marion 177). Globalization has its positive and negative consequences. For the quilombolas, they are beginning to develop new consciousness about their identity. However, their problems can be associated with globalization during slavery, where Africans were moved to other countries to provide labor to the white people. After the end of slavery, these people are confused about who they are because they have difficulty to remember their culture since they are the descendants of slaves. Globalization results in negative effects such as the formation of a people with no culture or identity (Griffith & Marion 181).

The land is important to humanity. According to Palmer is that human beings depend on the environment and therefore, the destruction of it can cause humans as well as animals to become extinct (198). The interaction between man and the surrounding has caused a lot of pollution and destruction of the environment. Kenny explains of an abandoned land which provides the raw material for the quilombolas. The land is used for longstanding spiritual, economic, social, and kin links.

Further, the people have a strong attachment with the mountain at their location of Talhado. People continue to have a strong attachment to the mountain because they have the capability of navigating through the landscape. Economic inequality exists in such a place since people are segregated based on class, color, and race, and therefore some people have access to water, jobs, housing, transportation while others do not have (Lyon 71).

Kenny also states that Talhado is transformed over 30 years ago due to increased mechanization as well as agro-industrialization, which focused on production meant for exportation. There was also rural emigration to the south and coastal cities which deteriorated the environment and also increased demand for water and other amenities. According to chapter 9 is that cultures have to learn to conserve the environment. Human beings always have clear natural vegetation at the expense of other species. However, this practice threatens environmental sustainability, and therefore, it is harmful to humans and other organisms.

According to chapter 7, people use various ways to integrate economic and social relations and distribute goods. The act of exchanging goods for other goods or money is referred to as reciprocity. There is an inner instinct that ensures that people exchange things. It is a way that human beings use to establish social relationships (Lyon 199).

On the other hand, redistribution is the accumulation of goods and other resources for dispersal at a later time. The claims of economic anthropology are supported by Kenny. Kenny argues that traditional production of pots in the community of the quilombolas is a means of claiming the people s identity and also it is a way of responding to racism. Slavery had negative effects on the black people who were enslaved since their culture was erased from them through coercion, assimilation, repression, and other means by the Portuguese. Blacks were discriminated and also threatened by white supremacy, and therefore, they were put at risk when they conducted things based on their culture. Their economic activity has helped in establishing a more stable and tangible identity over time. The economic activity of making pots is therefore not very important in the market trade, but it is essential in preserving the traditions, skills, and beliefs of the people. The contemporary economics believe that in a market, there is the free flow of information and people purchase goods because they want them, and also they can make decisions regarding what they desire. However, economic anthropology has helped to show that economics describes how people produce, distribute, and consume the products. In the case of the Quilombola is that people employ small scale methods to produce a good which they consume and also use them as part of their identity. The economic activity brings very little income and therefore results in economic strains among the people (Kenny 70).

According to Lyon people maintain certain economic activities or religious beliefs due to the environment in which they live. For instance, the Indians are said to adore and not feed on cattle because they depend on them for various uses such as in milk production, plowing, and other purposes. In the same way, the quilombola reason for making pots is shown as a way of trying to trace back their culture and identity (199).

Economic inequalities exist in the community of quilombolas, where women are the economic drivers due to their unique skills of making pots. However, these people have no education, no land, or other assets and therefore try to fight for their rights to be given the land where they can live with their children. In this community, the modes of production are by use of the hand, which is small scale and results in poverty and financial problems. They use reciprocity when exchanging their products. Kenny explains that the use of modern pots made of aluminum and other materials is common now in the quilombolas communities since people are beginning to appreciate things from other countries (Kenny 67). Women portray the pots as a sign of status and for them to be recognized. However, some of the local people have not accepted these new pots since they value what they produce.

Conclusion

In conclusion, economics, globalization, and sustainability and culture are discussed by the course reading. Kenny's book explains how the culture of the quilombolas was affected by slavery and globalization. The increase in the number of people and poor relations between humans and the environment has brought about environmental issues that threaten our sustainability.

Works Cited

Griffith, Lauren M. & Marion, Jonathan S. "Chapter 8 - Globalization | Selected Perspectives: An Open Introduction To Cultural Anthropology." University of Arkansas. Courses.Lumenlearning.Com, 2019, https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-culturalanthropology/chapter/globalization/.

Kenny, Mary L. Deeply Rooted in the Present: Heritage, Memory, and Identity in the Brazilian Quilombos. , 2018. Print.

Lyon, Sarah. "Chapter 7 - Economic Anthropology | Selected Perspectives: An Open Introduction To Cultural Anthropology." Courses.Lumenlearning.Com, 2019, https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-esc-culturalanthropology/chapter/economics/

Palmer, Christian T. "Chapter 9--Perspectives: An Open Invitation to Cultural Anthropology.