Partial Connections

by Marilyn Strathern

Updated with a new Preface, this seminal work challenges the routine ways in which anthropologists have thought about the complexity and quantity of their materials. Marilyn Strathern focuses on a problem normally regarded as commonplace; that of scale and proportion. She combines a wide-ranging interest in current theoretical issues with close attention to the cultural details of social life, attempting to establish proportionality between them. Strathern gives equal weight to two areas of contemporary The difficulties inherent in anthropologically representing complex societies, and the future of cross-cultural comparison in a field where 'too much' seems known. The ethnographic focus of this book emphasizes the context through which Melanesianists have managed the complexity of their own accounts, while at the same time unfolding a commentary on perception and the mixing of indigenous forms. Revealing unexpected replications in modes of thought and in the presentation of ambiguous images, Strathern has fashioned a unique contribution to the anthropological corpus. This book was originally published under the sponsorship of the Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania.

Genres: Anthropology, Ethnography, Nonfiction, Philosophy

Paperback

First published June 1, 1991

Reviews

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

dame strathern is the bomb diggity

[Melian]

Well, it took 2 hours of discussion to understand this book but I’m glad I did. I only wish my CLASSMATES had put in even 1/4 of the effort

[Saaya · Rating 4 out of 5]

The theoretical parts were inspiring, but I kind of lost interest when the author applied her theory to her field; a common pattern I find in dense ethnographies.