Personal Experience & Social Structure
The anthropology of gender reveals how cultures worldwide understand masculinity, femininity, and beyond. Combined with the anthropology of sexuality and diverse kinship systems, these studies show how societies shape our most intimate relationships and identities in dramatically different ways.
Gender Across Cultures
The anthropology of gender demonstrates that what many consider “natural” differences between men and women are actually culturally constructed. From Two-Spirit traditions to Hijra communities, human societies have long recognized gender diversity beyond Western binary categories.
Taking on gender & sex for Intro to Anthropology using The Human Story textbook
How Feminist Anthropology transformed our thinking, a deep dive
Sexuality & transgender issues for the History of Anthropological Thought
Kinship, Family, Marriage
Anthropology reveals that kinship, family, and marriage are far more complex than simple biological relationships or universal social institutions. From bilateral descent in the United States to matrilineal systems among Indigenous societies, kinship systems organize social life in remarkably varied ways across cultures. Anthropological evidence shows that all kinship ties—even biological ones—require active maintenance and continuous creation. This perspective challenges deterministic views that reduce family to biology, revealing instead how humans create meaningful relationships that organize social life across cultures and through time.
My most recent reflections on kinship
From Cultural Anthro 2022, an attempt at an Anthropology of Kinship
An Intro-to-Anthro take on Nuclear Family Myths