Mirror for Humanity: A Concise Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

by Conrad Phillip Kottak

Written by a prominent scholar in the field, this concise, up-to-date introduction to cultural anthropology carefully balances coverage of core topics with contemporary changes in the field. Since no single or monolithic theoretical perspective orients this book, instructors with a wide range of views and approaches can use it effectively. The combination of brevity and readability make Mirror for Humanity a perfect match for cultural anthropology courses that use readings or ethnographies along with a main text.

Genres: Anthropology, Nonfiction, Textbooks, Academic, Education, Sociology, School

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Pablo Gómez-Abajo]

Un manual de antropología un tanto superficial, pero creo que está bien como texto introductorio al campo. Recomendable.

[Tarmia]

I had to read this book for an anthropology class at university. And I think it was successful since it didn't bore me out of my mind. So, congratulations to Kottak.

[William Barber]

Read this for skewl, was alright

[Seth]

Anthropology 202 texbook, not too bad really, packed with interesting info, but once again it is a textbook.

[Carlos Martínez]

Era el libro de referencia de mi clase de antropología y me ha encantado. Creo que hace una introducción clave a los temas de investigación, siempre con algún ejemplo contemporáneo, referencias y resúmenes que facilitan repasar los conceptos. Para un primer contacto con esta ciencia, más que recomendable

[Megan Ray]

This is a very well written inside and the reality of other cultures.

[Victoria]

had to read this for a course requirement this sem

[Eduardo RM]

Great introduction. For anything else, deeper, go to the authors well known on each area. Mind the time when something was written.

[Paula]

Me fastidia que un libro de antropología esté tan enfocado a EEUU pero por lo que dijo la profe es porque está pensado para ser material escolar allí. Está bien como introducción.

[Morgan]

I read this for my Intro to Cultural Anthropology course in college and thought it was a good starter for the basics of Anthropology. Had a lot of in-depth information and was very useful for understanding concepts and terms. The best way to get through this book, because it is a textbook and is in a textbook format, is to take it bit by bit. There are places where you can easily stop within a chapter and still understand what is going on.

Very nice Anthropology book.

[Elena Prieto]

Buen manual para acercar la Antropología Cultural a los que no conozcan esta disciplina.

Se detallan numerosos ejemplos que facilitan la comprensión del texto. Por otra parte, he de decir que a veces despista el hecho de que se intenten expresar algunas ideas de manera políticamente correcta, e inmediatamente en el siguiente capítulo ese mismo tacto para tratar el tema desaparezca y se exprese una opinión sin tapujos reforzada con ejemplos algo extremos.

[Pam]

This book was a good intro to cultural anthropology which was required for college. The case study questions at the end of every chapter provided great discussion questions. I also love textbooks that provide a chapter summary at the end of every chapter + glossary of terms at the back of the book = great way to study for a test!

[Mike]

This is the Anthropology,book that where learning from in college. This book is well written, learning the terms is sometimes challenging.

Buy some flashcards for the terms if your having trouble.

[GockBh]

Probably the most engaging, thoughtfully written and enriching book I’ve read this year! I’m glad I came across with it.

It’s an introductory book to anthropology, so don’t expect to have the author dive deep into any particular topic. Some reviewers seemed to be expecting differently.

[Maggie]

Used for intro to cultural anth class. Well suited for quarter length class but still a textbook, yawn.

[Claudia Altamirano]

A good short introduction

[Kulsoom]

A very general overview of things studied in cultural anthropology. There is quite a lot to understand about people and humans and the world.

[Ryan Daley]

Great introduction to cultural anthropology - but it is a text book so not a great sit down and enjoy read. But it is a nice concise education.