When it comes to classic anthropology, Margaret Mead may garner the lionesses’ share of attention but Ruth Benedict remains the matriarch. Although Benedict today is dismissed by some as a quaint relic of the “culture and personality” school of anthropology, such demurrals underestimate the theoretical sophistication and continuing relevance of Benedict’s work.
Those who understand Patterns [...]
Tags:Apollo·Chrysanthemum and the Sword·culture and personality school·Dionysius·Dobu·Franz Boas·Great Plains·Japan·Kwakiutl·Margaret Mead·Native American·Nietzsche·nomads·particularism·Patterns of Culture·Plains culture area·psychoanalytic·Ruth Benedict·shamans·thick description·variation·vision quest·Zuni
After recently watching “The Cove” and a Mad Men episode titled “The Chrysanthemum and the Sword” — a clever allusion to Ruth Benedict’s justly famous cultural study of Japan, I decided it was time to bone up on Japanese religions. Japan is a multi-faceted nation and getting your head around its history, culture and people [...]
Tags:Buddhisms·cetaceans·chimp abuse·chimp colonies·chimp experimentation·chimp research·chimpanzees·Confucianism·dolphins·Japan·Japanese·Japanese religion·Mad Men·magic·National Institute of Health·primitive religion·Robert Bellah·Ruth Benedict·Shintoism·syncretism·Taoism·The Chrysanthemum and the Sword·The Cove·Tokugawa Religion
