Culturally Intact: Anthropologist Douglas Raybeck

by Mark Daly       

                Decked in his black baseball cap with the word “Posse” written across the front, a reference to his favorite nonprofit organization that helps public high school students get into college, Professor Douglas Raybeck stood at the front of the lecture hall in Thompson Hall at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on a recent Tuesday morning. Raybeck, who is 6-foot-4, with a white beard and large circular glasses and known for rewarding students with quarters when they answer difficult questions, looked up at more than 100 students.  It was an overbearing sight, he later said, as this was the first time he had ever taught a class so large.

                As the clock above his right shoulder struck 9:30 a.m., he began to count down, a signal that class was beginning. “Five. Four. Three. Two. One.” Raybeck had the floor.

                This is the way each class begins for Anthropology 104 students. Raybeck, who has been teaching since 1970, has always practiced this technique in his classes. He has been studying various cultures for more than 40 years, and has learned how other cultures communicate and behave. Besides studying cultures in Southeast Asia, where he has done most of his fieldwork, he has even studied student culture, and he cites that as the reason for doing some things that some students might find unusual. But it’s all in the service of teaching, which he says he is “addicted to.” Raybeck said, “It’s a great deal of fun, to watch kids get better and to get stuff is enormously rewarding.”  

                An example of something he has observed, Raybeck said, “It is often the case that those who come in late are not well prepared.” It is something he has recognized, and something he has tried to change, at least in his classroom.

                From his early days at Kirkland College in upstate New York, to Hamilton College, and most recently to his time in Amherst teaching at both Amherst College and UMass, Raybeck has encouraged students to be well read on the material and to be on time for class. In order to do that, he practices what he calls “soft penalties,” where he asks students who arrive late to class questions about the assigned reading for that day. Raybeck said, “Students can really drag in all over the place and that one, interrupts the class, and two, doesn’t do the student much good.”

                If you know the answer, “you’re good,” states Raybeck, but if you don’t, Raybeck says, “goodbye.” For some, this might seem tough, but for Raybeck, that’s something he has uncovered about this culture, and something he was determined to change.

                UMass sophomore Lauren Caska likes his unique practice. In an email, she said, “it’s a good way of making sure that kids won't be late because they don't want to be quizzed. At the same time I think that a lot of kids won't show up to class if they are running late.”

                In addition to teaching, Raybeck is also an experienced anthropologist and author. In his book titled, “Mad Dogs, Englishmen, and the Errant Anthropologist,” (1996) Raybeck states that “anthropology studies the full range of human behavior and beliefs…. every aspect of existence that we have created or altered.” It requires trained individuals to perform field work in unknown countries, getting involved with specific communities, adapting to their lifestyles, and being able to report back on how others live.

                Ever since he was a young boy, looking through his uncle’s collection of National Geographic, Raybeck has been fascinated with anthropology, he said. That interest led him to pursue anthropology at Dartmouth College and later at Cornell University, where he earned his Ph. D. in Cultural Anthropology in 1975.

                With an interest in Southeast Asian culture, Raybeck chose Wakaf Bharu, a small town in the Tumpat district of Kelantan, Malaysia, to complete his fieldwork. He became a part of the culture, lived in a typical Kelantan house and was taught how to work in the rice fields.

                Since making his first trip in 1968, Raybeck has adapted with the culture and to the people of Wakaf Bharu. After finishing his graduate work at Cornell, he has continued to perform his anthropological studies there, returning once or twice in the 1970s and twice in each of the decades since. In his book, Raybeck said that Kelantan was perfect for his work. He wrote, “It was exotic, little studied, and reasonably accessible.” As an anthropologist, studying another culture has never been easy.

                Having gone back and forth between Malaysia and the United States so many times, Raybeck stated that there are many changes that one must become accustomed to when living in other cultures. The biggest challenge for Raybeck was adjusting to the lack of privacy, something he now says is taken for granted here.  

                Raybeck said he grew up in Chester, N.H., where everyone minds their own business. As he quickly learned, however, Wakaf Bharu was no place like home. Raybeck said, “In a Malay house, the walls are hanging curtains or woven pandanus mats that you can easily hear through. If you’re home, your door is open, so people can walk in.” Raybeck said this was a bit of a culture shock, as there was no place to go and have your “own time.” If you were home, you were expected to socialize.

                Whether it was awaking in the morning to find complete strangers sitting inside his home, eager to make acquaintances, or realizing that some of his neighbors could hear his late night conversations with his wife Karen, who has traveled with him on several trips, Raybeck could only laugh while reminiscing about his misfortunes while learning about privacy, or lack thereof.

                For UMass freshman Lekhya Vaddepati, the key to learning is Raybeck’s experience in Malaysia. She says, “This class is different. Instead of just reading from the text, we get to hear from someone who has actually gone to the areas we are learning about.” She said the things that Raybeck has gone through in his career helps her better understand anthropology.  

                The experience Raybeck brings to the classroom does not only benefit his students, but also his teaching assistants. For Honora Sullivan-Chin, who is studying to earn her Ph. D in Cultural Anthropology, working alongside an experienced anthropologist such as Raybeck has been crucial. She said, “Raybeck is from a different anthropological generation… so a lot of the readings and the focus of the class is probably something I would not have been exposed to.” She says that his work has widened her knowledge, and that is something she says he is grateful for. Whether it is student or an aspiring anthropologist, Raybeck says he is just glad to help.        

                Although he officially retired from Hamilton College three years ago, where he spent the majority of his career, he has not lost his love for Anthropology. Since moving to Massachusetts to live closer to his daughter Alethea, he has taught a total of five classes at Amherst College and is currently teaching his first class at UMass. After publishing another book this year, Raybeck will head back to Wakaf Bharu to visit some of his now close friends, the ones who’ve helped him succeed as an anthropologist.