Why Didn’t the Yanomamos Develop Advanced Civilization?

To answer the specified question, one may also need to consider the definition of advanced civilization as a social phenomenon. According to the existing taxonomy, a civilization can be considered advanced when it has a specific social organization and culture, which can be easily distinguishable from other civilizations (Socas-Navarro 111.). In other words, the uniqueness of the social organization and cultural principles based on which Yanomamos interact can define their civilization as advanced. Based on the specified definition, one will have to admit that the Yanomamos culture has several unique aspects to it, yet it shares a range of similarities with other cultures and, therefore, should be seen as a medium-developed civilization. Indeed, closer scrutiny of the Yanomamo civilization will reveal that it is culturally linked to other Amazon tribes. For instance, the Yanomamo culture is based on religious beliefs that are very close to animalism. Specifically, the Yanomamo people follow the principles of animalism by believing that each community should have a spirit animal that would guide the tribe to the ultimate victory (Chen and Gilmore 3). Therefore, the Yanomamo culture has a crucial similarity with a range of Amazon tribal cultures. However, the Yanomamo people are also characterized by a range of cultural and political characteristics that make their civilization entirely unique and separate from the rest of the Amazon tribes. For example, the fact that each member of the Yanomamo culture is seen as an individual rather than an inseparable constituent of the social group should be regarded as an important distinction point that separates the Yanomamo culture from a range of other tribes (Chen and Gilmore 4). Moreover, the language issue needs to be considered as an important argument in determining the uniqueness of the Yanomamo civilization. Particularly, the Yanomamo people have a unique language that is distinctly different from other Amazonian languages, according to the accounts of linguists worldwide (Chen and Gilmore 6). The specified aspect of the Yanomamo culture makes its people an advanced civilization based on the existing interpretation of the subject matter. Nonetheless, there are the characteristics of an advanced civilization that the Yanomamo culture does not meet objectively at present. Specifically, the development of the structural and hierarchical aspects of the target culture seems to be rather slow at present. Without the rigid hierarchy within its community and the identification of social roles and functions, the Yanomamo society cannot be seen as strictly advanced. Therefore, to answer the question of why the specified people are not an advanced civilization, one will have to ask the question about why their interpretation of social functions, particularly its a perspective on the role of an individual, is different from the one of the civilizations that are deemed as advanced. Specifically, among the factors that may have inhibited the advancement of the Yanomamo culture, one should mention the lack of hierarchy within the tribe. As stressed above, the Yanomamo culture is highly individual-oriented, with each member of the society being viewed as a separate unit of the tribe as opposed to being its integral part. Although the specified opinion can be seen as advanced and, thus, indicating the presence of a well-developed society, it fails to meet the criteria thereof. According to the existing theories of social development, hierarchical relationships are an essential constituent of any advanced society (Jokic 11). For instance, the Interactionist Theory by Mead suggests that social roles and relationships define the successful functioning of society (Allen and Henderson 67). Similarly, the Functionalist Theory by Davis and Moore posits that social interactions within the set structure are crucial and defined by the existence of a particular hierarchy within which peaceful negotiations are always an opportunity (Jokic 16). Thus, the lack of a rigid social framework within which individuals can exist implies that the Yanomamo civilization is not advanced. However, it could also be argued that the inclination toward emphasizing the significance of an individual as opposed to stifling uniqueness is the sign of a highly developed society. The fact that the Yanomamo culture does not impose rigid hierarchal standards on its members may also signify that the specified culture has transcended the boundaries of most contemporary societies and shifted to a new level of societal interactions. When viewed through the lens of Marx’s Conflict Theory, the specified situation also shows that the specified arrangement of social roles and relationships allows minimizing the number of conflicts within the community (Ritzer and Stepnisky 26). However, the hierarchy used within the tribe is also limiting in terms of scientific exploration and progress. Specifically, without rigid roles and responsibilities for community members, scientific inquiry is hindered to a significant extent. Thus, terming the Yanomamo civilization as strictly advanced would be rather difficult. While presenting surprisingly high levels of advancement in certain areas, the Yanomamo culture fails to meet the standards for others, which does not allow defining it as either of the two types of civilizations. Therefore, the question of why the Yanomamos have failed to become an advanced civilization remains open, largely due to the lack of cultural sensitivity and the biased interpretation of advancement in the current definition thereof. Because of the inability to approach the analysis of cultural specifics from any other perspective than one of the current dominant societies, the proposed definition cannot be seen as trustworthy. Nevertheless, there is enough evidence that the Yanomamo people have a distinct culture that is strikingly different from other tribes inhabiting the Amazon area.