Three Anthropology Podcasts That Will Help You Answer: WTF is Anthropology Anyways?
As a frequenter of coffee shops, and an avid conversationalist, I’ve basically given a blanket forgiveness to most people — lets just say everyone, ever — when the inevitable question, “so what do you do?” arises. “Anthro-what??” As a diverse field with a ridiculous range of study (pretty much all of humanity, across all of time), it’s easy to forgive the flurry of questions that emerge: wait so do you study apes or do you dig up ancient human bones? do you get paid to travel or do you work in a lab? Yes.
Strangely, these conversations usually went better than when I tried to explain what I was actually doing every day (as in, why I’m not a doctor but do medical research). Suffice it to say, anthropology is a tragically under-marketed field.
Luckily, the ever-expanding world of podcasts has more or less given a solution: give them a quick anthropology elevator pitch, and then recommend a fancy podcast to check out! For some reason, people find it more digestible to listen to someone talk about the latest discoveries of archaic proto-human ancestors when they can pause or play at anytime, as opposed to hearing you blab on about it at a party. For some reason…
The great thing about this kind of ‘evangelizing,’ is that people will then come back to you with a fire in their eye about something they learned, that they are excited about, and then you can finally start getting into some of the juicy details about how you fit in to this whole thing. With that said, here are a few Anthropology-related podcasts that can appeal across the board:
SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human
A production from the increasingly well-known Sapiens.org online magazine of anthropology, this podcast has been a favorite of mine for some time. This is due both to the excellent quality of topics spanning culture, biology, language and archaeology, but also because the depth that each episode goes into, which provides a particularly strong insight into what makes anthropology so compelling. Episodes such as ‘Do You Dream What I Dream?’ which explores the cross-cultural impact of dreaming through an enthnographic lens, and ‘Where Have All the Denisovans Gone?’ which explores other branches of the human evolutionary tree, exemplify just a few of the fascininating and pivotal questions that motivate anthropological study. They are also a regular presence on Medium, so check their articles out here as well.
The Arch and Anth podcast
The Arch and Anth podcast is another mainstay of active anthropology podcasts, offering an impressive overview of topics both archaeological and cultural. As well as being frequently updated (three episodes/week), the show is accessible, targetting a broad audience in its overview but never holding back on depth. They also have a weekly blog if you’re interested in media beyond audio format.
Honorable Mentions
While there are other great anthropology-specific podcasts, I’ll mention two other podcasts here that cover more philosophical ground that others don’t. One is ‘Philosophize This’, a podcast offering a layman’s introduction to the history of philosophy from its ancient origins to the modern day. Another is ‘Why Are We Talking About Rabbits’ which is an idiosyncratic blend of cultural, philosphical and historical perspectives with an anthropological edge to it. Both of these podcasts, despite not being produced by anthropologists, speak to the kind of diverse, interdisciplinary leanings incorporated in the discipline, which is one of its most unique characteristics. It showcases that ‘anthropology’ isn’t just for ‘anthropologists’, a sentiment recognized by anthropologists in the field and the lab alike.
Anthropologists often draw on influential works of philosophy, as much as scientific or literary works, in their exploration of human nature and culture. Indeed, the earliest years of cultural anthropology were heavily influenced by 19th century social philosophers, such as Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, Karl Marx, and others, while the 20th century brought insight from thinkers of the Frankfurt School, feminism, structuralism and post-structuralism, critical theory and more. ‘Philosophize This’ has a number of well-produced episodes that give insight on influential figures or movements from across the last two centuries such as Freud, Simone de Beauvoir, Michel Foucault, and plenty of others that have influenced the field one way or another. Why Are We Talking About Rabbits, features a perspective that integrates much of these topics as well, and relates it to contemporary culture in a way similar to the kind of discussions anthropology students regularly have in university courses.
I hope you find these podcasts stimulating and helpful for those asking the question, what the heck is anthropology anyways? I think they go a long way in showing how important it is that our society contemplates fascinating questions on human origins, cultural differences and history in a deeper, more active manner, especially because these questions grow in relevance with every passing day. So go listen and come back to let me know what you learned and what questions were sparked in your mind.
Hungry for even more podcasts to check out? Did these not strike your fancy but you think another one will? You can find even more anthropology podcasts below:
https://www.podchaser.com/lists/the-best-anthropology-podcasts-107Zzoo73j
