After Kinship [Paperback]

An approachable and original view of the past, present, and future of kinship in anthropology.Kinship has historically been central to the discipline of anthropology but what sort of future does it have? What is the impact of recent studies of reproductive technologies, of gender, and of the social construction of science in the West? What significance does public anxiety about the family have for anthropology's analytic strategies? Janet Carsten gives an approachable and original view of the past, present, and future of kinship in anthropology, which will be of interest not just to anthropologists but to social scientists generally.Kinship has historically been central to the discipline of anthropology but what sort of future does it have? What is the impact of recent studies of reproductive technologies, of gender, and of the social construction of science in the West? What significance does public anxiety about the family have for anthropology's analytic strategies? Janet Carsten gives an approachable and original view of the past, present, and future of kinship in anthropology, which will be of interest not just to anthropologists but to social scientists generally.What is the impact on anthropology of recent studies of reproductive technologies, gender, and the social construction of science in the West? What is the significance of public anxiety about the family to anthropology's analytic approach? Janet Carsten presents an original view of the past, present, and future of kinship in anthropology which will be of interest to anthropologists as well as to other social scientists.1. Introduction: after kinship?; 2. Houses of memory and kinship; 3. Gender, bodies, and kinship; 4. The person; 5. Uses and abuses of substance; 6. Families into nation: the power of metaphor and the transformation of kinship; 7. Assisted reproduction. In this creative book, Janet Carsten unsettles and reorients our traditional ideas about kinship. Through her deep understanding of kinl³.