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Anthropology (1)

‘four-fields’ anthropology

Cambridge University Press (1)

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1 results

1 - Visions of Anthropology
Alan Barnard, University of Edinburgh
Book:

History and Theory in Anthropology

Published online:

09 December 2021

Print publication:

16 December 2021, pp 1-14
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Summary

Especially in North America, anthropology is dominated by the ‘four-fields’ approach. This was introduced by German immigrant Franz Boas in the late nineteenth century, and it still dominates. The idea is that anthropology consist of these elements: biological, archaeological, linguistic, and cultural components. The cultural one is dominant, and this book is basically about cultural anthropology. Other important notions include the division into ethnography and theory; the idea of a paradigm; diachronic, synchronic, and interactive perspectives; and the emphases on society and on culture.