The Rebirth of Anthropological Theory

266 Pages·1984·3.45 MB·English

by  Stanley R. Barrett

THE REBIRTH OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEORY
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STANLEY R. BARRETT
The Rebirth of
Anthropological Theory
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO PRESS
Toronto Buffalo London
© University of Toronto Press 1984
Toronto Buffalo London
Printed in Canada
ISBN 0-8020-5638-5
Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data
Barrett, Stanley R., 1938-
The rebirth of anthropological theory
ISBN 0-8020-5638-5
1. Ethnology. I. Title.
GN316.B37 1984 306.01 C83-099139-5
.For Kaye, Jason, and Maria
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Contents
PREFACE XI
PARTI
THE CURRENT STATE OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEORY:
A CRITIQUE
1
Introduction 3
2
An Overview of Theory 8
Theoretical Orientations 9
Clusters of Theoretical Orientations 10
British and American Anthropology 15
Basic Theoretical Orientations 19
Back to the Armchair 50
Conclusion 51
3
Paradigms or Pseudo-paradigms 53
Kuhn's Central Ideas 54
TheTwoKuhns 56
Pre-paradigms 57
Pseudo-paradigms 62
Conclusion 69
viii Contents
4
Conceptual Contradictions 73
Ideal and Actual Theory 74
Explaining Theoretical Shifts 76
Some Examples of Conceptual Contradictions 79
Other Conceptual Contradictions 83
Salvage Theory 84
Backward Theory 93
Anthropology and Sociology: An Unrecognized Dialectic 94
Future Orientations 97
5
Theory as Myth 100
What Is Myth? 100
Some Comparisons of Myth and Theory 102
Conclusion 114
6
Structuralism and the Second Burial of Emile Durkheim 115
Durkheim 115
Formal Analysis 121
Promises of Structuralism 122
Problems with Structuralism 125
Structuralism and Positivism 132
Two-Headed Anthropology 135
Structuralism and Marxism 136
Salutary Nature of Field-work 138
PART 2
CONTRADICTION AS THE BASIS OF SOCIAL LIFE: A SOLUTION
7
Contradictions in Everyday Life 145
Contradiction and Conflict: Operational Definitions 146
The Micro Level 150
The Middle Level 158
The Macro Level 169
Conclusion 172
ix Contents
8
Neutralizing Mechanisms 177
Basic Mechanisms 177
Power as the Imposition of Stability 182
Mock Change 189
Conclusion 192
9
The Illusion of Simplicity 195
Defining Complexity 195
The Emerging Synthesis 199
Basic Elements 201
Leach, Murphy, and Bailey 202
10
Reflections on Our Future 211
Rebirth Step 1: Urban-Industrial Society 212
Objections 213
Rebirth Step 2: Social Problems and Inequality 220
Racism and the Failure of Anthropology 222
Objections 228
Ethics and Subversion 234
Rebirth Step 3: The Dialectical Perspective 237
BIBLIOGRAPHY 245
INDEX 263