Bücher der Reihe Anthropology, Culture and Society

This is the first book to cover the entire history of social and cultural anthropology in a single volume. Beginning with a summary of the discipline in the nineteenth century, exploring major figures such as Morgan and Tylor, it goes on to provide a comprehensive overview of the discipline in the twentieth century.The bulk of the book is devoted to themes and controversies characteristic of post First World War anthropology, from structural functionalism via structuralism to hermeneutics, cultural ecology, discourse analysis and, most recently, globalization and postmodernism. The authors emphasise throughout the need to see changes in the discipline in a wider social, political and intellectual context. This is a timely, concise history of a major discipline, in an engaging and thought-provoking narrative, that will appeal to students of anthropology worldwide.

The state is often regarded as an abstract and neutral bureaucratic entity. Against this common sense idea, At the Heart of the State argues that it is also a concrete reality with a morality, embodied in the work of its agents and inscribed in the issues of its time. *BR**BR*A political and moral anthropology, this book is the result of a five-year investigation conducted by ten scholars, based in France. It analyses, amongst other topics, the police, the court system, the prison apparatus, the social services and mental health facilities. Combining genealogy and ethnography, its authors show that these state institutions do not simply implement laws, rules and procedures: they mobilise values and affects, judgements and emotions. In other words, they reflect the morality of the state.

A pioneering analysis of doing ethnographic fieldwork in different types of complex organisations.

An anthropological analysis of how our political and legal systems criminalise protesters

A collection of anthropological studies which reveals the vast, overwhelming presence of security systems across modern Europe.

What are our attitudes towards other animals, and how does this affect our humanity? *BR**BR*This work of anthrozoology explores the myriad and evolving ways in which humans and animals interact, the divergent cultural constructions of humanity and animality found around the world, and individual experiences of other animals. *BR**BR*This book looks at case studies covering blood sports (such as hunting, fishing and bull fighting), pet keeping and 'petishism', eco-tourism and wildlife conservation, working animals and animals as food. It addresses the idea of animal exploitation raised by the animal rights movements, as well as the anthropological implications of changing attitudes towards animal personhood, and the rise of a posthumanist philosophy in the social sciences more generally.

Identifies the micro-social processes and complexities within multilateral organisations which have, up to now, been largely invisible.

Is religion best seen as only a cause of war, or is it a source of comfort for those caught up in conflict? In Checkpoint, Temple, Church and Mosque six senior figures in Anthropology, Sociology, Geography and Development Studies set out to answer this question. *BR**BR*Based on fieldwork conducted in Sri Lanka's most religiously diverse and politically troubled region during the country's civil war (1983-2009), it provides a series of new and provocative arguments about the promise of a religiously based civil society, and the strengths and weaknesses of religious organisations and religious leaders in conflict mediation. *BR**BR*The authors argue that for people trapped in long and violent conflicts, religion ultimately plays a contradictory role, and that its institutions are themselves profoundly affected by war - producing a complex picture in which Catholic priests engage with Buddhist monks and new Muslim leaders, and where Hindu temples and Pentecostal churches offer the promise of healing.

The book explores what characterises a 'good life' and how this idea has been affected by globalisation and neoliberalism.

Dream Zones explores the dreamed of and desired futures that constitute, sustain and disrupt capitalism in contemporary India. *BR**BR*Drawing on five years of research in and around India's Special Economic Zones (SEZs), the book follows the stories of regional politicians, corporate executives, rural farmers, industrial workers and social activists to show how the pursuit of growth, profit and development shapes the politics of industrialisation and liberalisation. *BR**BR*This book offers a timely reminder that the global economy is shaped by sentiment as much as reason and that un-realised expectations are the grounds on which new hopes for the future are sown.

An exploration into the lives of young Arabs growing up in London which critiques 'identity' in favour of race, gender and class.

Western aid is in decline. Non-traditional development actors from the developing countries and elsewhere are in the ascendant. A new set of global economic and political processes are shaping the twenty-first century. *BR**BR*This book engages with nearly two decades of continuity and change in the development industry. In particular, it argues that while the world of international development has expanded since the 1990s, it has become more rigidly technocratic. The authors insist on a focus upon the core anthropological issues surrounding poverty and inequality, and thus sharply criticise what are perceived as problems in the field. *BR**BR*Anthropology and Development is a completely rewritten edition of the best-selling and critically acclaimed Anthropology, Development and the Post-Modern Challenge (1996). It serves as both an innovative reformulation of the field, as well as a textbook for many undergraduate and graduate courses at leading international universities.

An innovative study of human rights from an anthropological standpoint

Leading anthropologist Thomas Hylland Eriksen shows how anthropology is a revolutionary way of thinking about the human world. Perfect for students, but also for those who have never encountered anthropology before, this book explores the key issues in an exciting and innovative way. Eriksen explains how to see the world from below and from within - emphasising the importance of adopting an insider's perspective. He reveals how seemingly enormous cultural differences actually conceal the deep unity of humanity. Lucid and accessible, What is Anthropology? draws examples from current affairs as well as anthropological studies. The first section presents the history of anthropology, its unique research methods and some of its central concepts, such as society, culture and translation. Eriksen shows how anthropology helps to shape contemporary thinking and why it is inherently radical. In the second section he discusses core issues in greater detail. Reciprocity, or exchange, or gift-giving, is shown to be the basis of every society. Eriksen examines kinship in traditional societies, and shows why it remains important in complex ones. He argues nature is partly cultural, and explores anthropological views on human nature as well as ecology. He delves into cultural relativism and the problem of understanding others. Finally, he describes the paradoxes of identity - ethnic, national, religious or postmodern, as the case may be.

Why the concept of individuality is important to people

What if development agencies and researchers are not driven by policy? Suppose that the things that make for 'good policy' - policy that legitimises and mobilises political support - in reality make it impossible to implement?*BR**BR*By focusing in detail on the unfolding activities of a development project in western India over more than ten years, as it falls under different policy regimes, this book takes a close look at the relationship between policy and practice in development. David Mosse shows how the actions of development workers are shaped by the exigencies of organisations and the need to maintain relationships rather than by policy; but also that development actors work hardest of all to maintain coherent representations of their actions as instances of authorised policy. Raising unfamiliar questions, Mosse provides a rare self-critical reflection on practice, while refusing to endorse current post-modern dismissal of development.

Explores new developments in kinship studies in anthropology -- including the impact of new reproductive technologies and changing conceptualisations of personhood and gender.

Western society is individualised; we feel at ease talking about individuals and we study individual behaviour through psychology and psychoanalysis. Yet anthropology teaches us that an individual approach is only one of many ways of looking at ourselves. *BR**BR*In this wide-ranging text Morris explores the origins, doctrines and conceptions of the self in Western, Asian and African societies passing though Greek philosophy, Buddhism, Hinduism, Confuscism, Tao and African philosophy and ending with contemporary feminism. *BR**BR*Scholarly and written in a lucid style, free of jargon, this work is written from an anthropological perspective with an interdisciplinary approach. Morris emphasises the varying conceptions of the self found cross-culturally and contrasts these with the conceptions found in the Western intellectual traditions.

American, Australian and British scholars examine the significance of the use of landscape for studies of identity

A range of distinguished anthropologists and sociologists re-examine the concept of risk in contemporary societies.

'Community' is one of social science's longest-standing concepts. The assumption of much social science has been that humans belong in communities, as social and cultural beings.*BR**BR*The trouble with 'community' is that this is not necessarily so; the personal social networks of individuals' actual experience crosscut collective categories, situations and institutions. Communities can prove unviable or imprisoning; the reality of community life and identity can often be very different from the ideology and the ideal.*BR**BR*In this book, the authors draw on their ethnographic experiences to reappraise the concept and the reality of 'community', in the light of globalisation, religious fundamentalism, identity politics, and renascent localisms. How might anthropology better apprehend social identities which are intrinsically plural, transgressive and ironic? What has anthropology to say about the way in which civil society might hope to accommodate the ongoing construction and the rightful expression of such migrant identities?

Interracial sexual relations are often a key mythic basis for Latin American national identities, but the importance of this has been under explored. *BR**BR*Peter Wade provides a pioneering overview of the growing literature on race and sex in the region, covering historical aspects and contemporary debates. *BR**BR*He includes both black and indigenous people in the frame, as well as mixed and white people, avoiding the implication that 'race' means 'black-white' relations.

***Winner of the Eileen Basker Prize and the Wellcome Medal for Anthropology as Applied to Medical Problems****BR**BR*On the Game is an ethnographic account of prostitutes and prostitution. Sophie Day has followed the lives of individual women over fifteen years, and her book details their attempts to manage their lives against a backdrop of social disapproval. The period was one of substantial change within the sex industry.*BR**BR*Through the lens of public health, economics, criminalisation and human rights, Day explores how individual sex workers live, in public and in private. This offers a unique perspective on contemporary capitalist society that will be of interest both to a broad range of social scientists.*BR**BR*The author brings a unique perspective to her work -- as both an anthropologist and the founder of the renowned Praed Street Project, set up in 1986, as a referral and support centre for London prostitutes.

An introduction to anthropological perspectives on art that links the production of art to political and cultural processes

Maps the contemporary social world of anthropologists and its relation to the wider world in which they carry out their work.

For over ten years, Race and Ethnicity in Latin America has been an essential text for students studying the region. This second edition adds new material and brings the analysis up to date.*BR**BR*Race and ethnic identities are increasingly salient in Latin America. Peter Wade examines changing perspectives on Black and Indian populations in the region, tracing similarities and differences in the way these peoples have been seen by academics and national elites. Race and ethnicity as analytical concepts are re-examined in order to assess their usefulness.*BR**BR*This book should be the first port of call for anthropologists and sociologists studying identity in Latin America.

Questions over immigration and asylum face almost all Western countries. Should only economically useful immigrants be allowed? What should be done with unwanted or 'illegal' immigrants? *BR**BR*In this bold intervention, Alexandra Hall shows that immigration detention centres offer a window onto society's broader attitudes towards immigrants. Despite periodic media scandals, remarkably little has been written about the everyday workings of this system, or about the people responsible for setting immigration policy. Detention, particularly, is a hidden side of border politics, despite its growing international importance as a tool of control and security. *BR**BR*This book also looks at the social life and the relationships between officers and immigrants to explore broad social trends, as well as resistance within the system, and provides rare insights into the treatment of the 'other'.