Foundations of Anthropological Theory PDF Download

Author: Robert Launay
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
ISBN: 9781405187756
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 316

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Book Description
Foundations of Anthropological Theory presents a selection of key texts that reflect the broad range of anthropological thought on human behavior, from Herodotus and Ibn Battuta to Adam Smith and Adam Ferguson. Enables the reader to situate the modern discipline of anthropology within the larger context of intellectual history Features key texts from the ancient and medieval worlds through to the Enlightenment Considers the presumptive rights of Europeans to judge the inherent moral worth of non-Western civilizations Provides fascinating insights into the ways historians, philosophers, missionaries, and even writers of fiction have made valuable contributions to modern anthropological inquiry

Author: Paul A. Erickson
Publisher: University of Toronto Press
ISBN: 1442606614
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 603

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Book Description
In the latest edition of their popular overview text, Erickson and Murphy continue to provide a comprehensive, affordable, and accessible introduction to anthropological theory from antiquity to the present. A new section on twenty-first-century anthropological theory has been added, with more coverage given to postcolonialism, non-Western anthropology, and public anthropology. The book has also been redesigned to be more visually and pedagogically engaging. Used on its own, or paired with the companion volume Readings for a History of Anthropological Theory, Fourth Edition, this reader offers a flexible and highly useful resource for the undergraduate anthropology classroom. For additional resources, visit the "Teaching Theory" page at www.utpteachingculture.com.

Author: C. Clifford Boyd, Jr.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119226384
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 372

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Book Description
Provides comprehensive coverage of everything that students and practitioners need to know about working in the field of forensic anthropology Forensic anthropology has been plagued by questions of scientific validity and rigor despite its acceptance as a section in the American Academy of Forensic Sciences nearly half a century ago. Critics have viewed it as a laboratory-based applied subfield of biological anthropology, and characterised it as emphasising methodology over theory. This book shows that these views are not only antiquated, but inadequate and inaccurate. Forensic Anthropology: Theoretical Framework and Scientific Basis introduces readers to all of the theoretical and scientific foundations of forensic anthropology — beginning with how it was influenced by the early theoretical approaches of Tyler, Morgan, Spencer and Darwin. It instructs on how modern forensic science relies on an interdisciplinary approach — with research being conducted in the fields of archaeology, physics, geology and other disciplines. This modern approach to theory in forensic anthropology is presented through the introduction and discussion of Foundational, Interpretive and Methodological theories. Sections cover: Bias and Objectivity in Forensic Anthropology Theory and Practice; The Theory and Science Behind Biological Profile and Personal Identification; Scientific Foundation for Interpretations of Antemortem, Perimortem, and Postmortem Processes; and Interdisciplinary Influences, Legal Ramifications and Future Directions. Illustrates important aspects of the theory building process and reflects methods for strengthening the scientific framework of forensic anthropology as a discipline Inspired by the “Application of Theory to Forensic Anthropology” symposium presented at the 67th annual meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences Chapters written by experts in the field who were presenters at the symposium Forensic Anthropology: Theoretical Framework and Scientific Basis is ideal for university courses in anthropological science, forensic science, criminal science and forensic archaeology.

Author: R. Jon McGee
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Humanities, Social Sciences & World Languages
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 680

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Book Description
A comprehensive and accessible survey of the history of theory in anthropology, this anthology of classic and contemporary readings contains in-depth commentary in introductions and notes to help guide students through excerpts of seminal anthropological works. The commentary provides the background information needed to understand each article, its central concepts, and its relationship to the social and historical context in which it was written.

Author: Richard R Wilk
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429974892
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 376

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Book Description
This book introduces economic anthropology to countries where it has never been taught before, including Vietnam, China, Brazil, Argentina, and Italy. It identifies the fundamental practical and theoretical problems that give economic anthropology its unique strengths and vision.

Author: Scott Atran
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521438711
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 378

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Book Description
Inspired by a debate between Noam Chomsky and Jean Piaget, this work traces the development of natural history from Aristotle to Darwin, and demonstrates how the science of plants and animals has emerged from the common conceptions of folkbiology.

Author: Christina Toren
Publisher: Berghahn Books
ISBN: 0857455168
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 228

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Book Description
Epistemology poses particular problems for anthropologists whose task it is to understand manifold ways of being human. Through their work, anthropologists often encounter people whose ideas concerning the nature and foundations of knowledge are at odds with their own. Going right to the heart of anthropological theory and method, this volume discusses issues that have vexed practicing anthropologists for a long time. The authors are by no means in agreement with one another as to where the answers might lie. Some are primarily concerned with the clarity and theoretical utility of analytical categories across disciplines; others are more inclined to push ethnographic analysis to its limits in an effort to demonstrate what kind of sense it can make. All are aware of the much-wanted differences that good ethnography can make in explaining the human sciences and philosophy. The contributors show a continued commitment to ethnography as a profoundly radical intellectual endeavor that goes to the very roots of inquiry into what it is to be human, and, to anthropology as a comparative project that should be central to any attempt to understand who we are.

Author: S.F. Nadel
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136542779
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 441

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Book Description
Focussing on the methodology of social anthropology this book covers the following: · The aims of social anthropology · Observation and description · Psychology in observation · The material of observation · Institutions · Groupings · Explanation · Experimental anthropology · Psychological explanations · Function and pattern. Originally published in 1951

Author: Marvin Harris
Publisher: Rowman Altamira
ISBN: 9780759101333
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 824

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Book Description
The best known, most often cited history of anthropological theory is finally available in paperback! First published in 1968, Harris's book has been cited in over 1,000 works and is one of the key documents explaining cultural materialism, the theory associated with Harris's work. This updated edition included the complete 1968 text plus a new introduction by Maxine Margolis, which discusses the impact of the book and highlights some of the major trends in anthropological theory since its original publication. RAT, as it is affectionately known to three decades of graduate students, comprehensively traces the history of anthropology and anthropological theory, culminating in a strong argument for the use of a scientific, behaviorally-based, etic approach to the understanding of human culture known as cultural materialism. Despite its popularity and influence on anthropological thinking, RAT has never been available in paperback_until now. It is an essential volume for the library of all anthropologists, their graduate students, and other theorists in the social sciences.

Author: James W Lett
Publisher: Westview Press
ISBN:
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
The Human Enterprise presents a wide-ranging but well-integrated analysis of contemporary anthropological theory. The author explains clearly and cogently how to evaluate scientific theories and encourages students to think critically about the nature of theory itself. Thoughtful and thought-provoking, this text should be a stimulating addition to courses on anthropological theory.Part One examines the philosophical foundations of anthropological theory, with particular attention to the nature of scientific inquiry and the mechanisms of scientific progress. The author proposes an original approach to the comparison and evaluation of competing scientific paradigms. Part Two explores the nature of social science and describes distinctive features of anthropology such as the concept of culture and the emic/etic distinction.The author then surveys the range of research strategies employed by anthropologists and presents a detailed analysis of cultural materialism, structuralism, and symbolic anthropology. The final section uses two celebrated issues—the argument about the image of limited good and the sacred cow controversy—to illustrate the current nature of paradigmatic debate and to indicate how a clearer understanding of the nature of paradigms and theory might resolve such controversies.