Claude L}}vi-Strauss The Formative Years [Hardcover]

Original analysis of and introduction to Claude L?vi-Strauss, the most celebrated of twentieth-century anthropologists.The most celebrated of twentieth-century anthropologists, Claude Lévi-Strauss' work has been influential across the entire field of the humanities and social sciences. Christopher Johnson looks at the formative part of his career, examining his definitions of anthropology, his theory of structuralism, his ideas on modern and 'primitive' civilizations, and his autobiographical writing, and showing how these different parts of his work link up. This book aims to explain not only what Lévi-Strauss thinks, but how he thinks, and to explore the different intellectual contexts which have shaped his thought.The most celebrated of twentieth-century anthropologists, Claude Lévi-Strauss' work has been influential across the entire field of the humanities and social sciences. Christopher Johnson looks at the formative part of his career, examining his definitions of anthropology, his theory of structuralism, his ideas on modern and 'primitive' civilizations, and his autobiographical writing, and showing how these different parts of his work link up. This book aims to explain not only what Lévi-Strauss thinks, but how he thinks, and to explore the different intellectual contexts which have shaped his thought.Claude Lévi-Strauss, the most celebrated of twentieth-century anthropologists, has influenced the entire field of the humanities and social sciences. Looking at the formative part of his career, Christopher Johnson examines his definitions of anthropology; theory of structuralism; ideas on modern and primitive civilizations; and autobiographical writing. This book explains Lévi-Strauss' thought and explores the different intellectual contexts that influenced it.Introduction: before and after structuralism; 1. The place of anthropology; 2. The model of exchange; 3. From kinship to myth; 4. Structuralisl“7