History And Theory In Anthropology -

By the early 20th century, a massive shift occurred, led by , the "Father of American Anthropology." Boas rejected universal laws in favor of Historical Particularism , arguing that every culture is a product of its own unique history. He introduced the concept of cultural relativism—the idea that a culture should be understood on its own terms rather than judged against a European standard.

In the mid-20th century, introduced Structuralism , looking for the deep, underlying patterns of the human mind. He argued that beneath the surface of different myths and kinship systems lies a universal mental structure based on "binary oppositions" (like nature vs. culture). History and Theory in Anthropology

Simultaneously in Britain, and A.R. Radcliffe-Brown developed Functionalism . They moved away from history altogether, focusing instead on how cultural institutions (like religion or kinship) function to meet biological needs or maintain social stability in the present moment. 3. Structuralism and the Symbolic Turn By the early 20th century, a massive shift

The history of anthropology is not just a timeline of discoveries, but a shifting landscape of how we define "humanity" and "culture." Since its formal inception in the 19th century, the discipline has oscillated between trying to find universal laws of human behavior and documenting the unique, irreducible nuances of specific societies. 1. The Victorian Foundation: Unilineal Evolutionism He argued that beneath the surface of different

The Evolution of Anthropological Thought: History and Theory