'Brilliant This is just the book I have been looking for...good format and layout, and is reasonably priced.' - Dr D. Burnett, All Nationas Christian College 'Brilliant examples. I've already used 'the Japanese handkerchief' in my class.' - Dr S. Wright, University of Birmingham 'I especially like the fact that films are recommended for each chapter.' - Dr F. Hughes-Freeland, University of Wales This refreshingly clear and easy-to-read text offers the perfect introduction to social anthropology for anyone approaching the subject for the first time. It is carefully structured so that one chapter builds on the next and it covers all the core topics in an even-handed and illuminating manner, introducing the reader to the depth of divergent views on all the most basic subjects - food, hygiene, gift-exchange, rites of passage, symbolism, religion, politics and the environment. Combining an abundance of unobtrusive reference and further reading for the serious student with an immensely readable and engaging writing style, this book offers a compelling introduction to a growing and exciting subject.

A comprehensive and concise analysis of the deeply rooted differences in customs and habits between "primitive" and "civilized" societies.--

An introduction to the central concerns of social anthropology, presenting an alternative to standard texts. More concerned with the life-worlds of underdevelopment than the primitive or the exotic, it draws on material which evokes current problems of policy and administration in the Third World. The author raises questions of vital importance to contemporary investigation and analysis, and pointers to the future for anthropology.

Women today are being instructed on how they can raise their self-esteem, love their inner child, survive their toxic families, overcome codependency, and experience a revolution from within. By holding up the ideal of a pure and happy inner core, psychotherapists refuse to acknowledge that a certain degree of unhappiness or dissatisfaction is a routine part of life and not necessarily a cause for therapy. Lesbians specifically are now guided to define themselves according to their frailties, inadequacies, and insecurities. An incisive critique of contemporary feminist psychology and therapy, Changing our Minds argues not just that the current practice of psychology is flawed, but that the whole idea of psychology runs counter to many tenets of lesbian feminist politics. Recognizing that many lesbians do feel unhappy and experience a range of problems that detract from their well-being, Changing Our Minds makes positive, prescriptive suggestions for non-psychological ways of understanding and dealing with emotional distress. Written in a lively and engaging style, Changing our Minds is required reading for anyone who has ever been in therapy or is close to someone who has, and for lesbians, feminists, psychologists, psychotherapists, students of psychology and women's studies, and anyone with an interest in the development of lesbian feminist theory, ethics, and practice.

A revised and updated edition of this unique best-selling guide to social and cultural anthropology.

Louis Dumont, who died in 1998, was one of the most important figures in post-war French anthropology. He is well-known for his early work on India, which culminated in Homo Hierarchicus (1966; in English 1972, 1980), an anthropological account of the caste system. He later extended this work into a comparison of the values of Indian and western society in works like Essays on Individualism (1986) and German ideology: From France to Germany and Back (1994). He is also known for pioneering work on kinship in south India and more generally (for example Affinity as a Value, 1983). The current volume represents the fruits of this side of his activities and originated in as a series of lectures providing an account of the British and French schools for students.

This book offers a clear, inviting and fascinating introduction to the social anthropology of Western Europe, illustrating the rich diversity of dialects, cultures and everyday lives of its peoples.

In two volumes, the SAGE Handbook of Social Anthropology provides the definitive overview of contemporary research in the discipline. It explains the what, where, and how of current and anticipated work in Social Anthropology. With 80 authors, contributing more than 60 chapters, this is the most comprehensive and up-to-date statement of research in Social Anthropology available and the essential point of departure for future projects. The Handbook is divided into four sections: -Part I: Interfaces examines Social Anthropology′s disciplinary connections, from Art and Literature to Politics and Economics, from Linguistics to Biomedicine, from History to Media Studies. -Part II: Places examines place, region, culture, and history, from regional, area studies to a globalized world -Part III: Methods examines issues of method; from archives to war zones, from development projects to art objects, and from ethics to comparison -Part IV: Futures anticipates anthropologies to come: in the Brain Sciences; in post-Development; in the Body and Health; and in new Technologies and Materialities Edited by the leading figures in social anthropology, the Handbook includes a substantive introduction by Richard Fardon, a think piece by Jean and John Comaroff, and a concluding last word on futures by Marilyn Strathern. The authors - each at the leading edge of the discipline - contribute in-depth chapters on both the foundational ideas and the latest research. Comprehensive and detailed, this magisterial Handbook overviews the last 25 years of the social anthropological imagination. It will speak to scholars in Social Anthropology and its many related disciplines.