Anthropological Theory: An Introductory History

Thanks for the great book. Perfect condition and got here very quickly -- just in time for the test!

How many times have you heard someone say "This is the best theory book ever!" Well, this time it is ture. This is one of the best, well rounded books I have read in a while. They give clear explanations of the theories, and then give you examples of the literature to apply it to. Their footnotes also help clarify points in the examples. I would recommend this to any serious anthropology major, or anyone interested in anthropology.

I bought this book as a textbook for a class of Anthropolocial Theory and Method. Except for the sociobiology section and Darwin, we read the majority of this work in class. I give this collection of original writings five stars because the commentary seems appropriate, as do the readings. I am greatful that McGee and Warms (over the objection of reviewers) inserted the E. O. Wilson material (sociobiology). I am also greatful that McGee and Warms pointed out the current attitudes toward: 1) Ruth Benedict Fulton and 2) Margaret Mead's Samoan work. I, in short, believe McGee and Warms give fair analysis. My perspective is as a graduate student in anthropology with an undergraduate degree in biology. I can compare ANTHROPOLOGICAL THEORY to another compendium of original writings--Bohannan and Glazer's text which is no longer in print, High Points in Anthropology. Bohannan and Glazer have no index!!! McGee and Warms have a 17-page index that is helpful. The major change I would make to this book is probably a change that needs to be made to anthropological knowledge in general--I do not believe anthropologists (including McGee and Warms) understand evolution. Otherwise, there would be some additional commentary about "lineal evolution."

I used this text for an upper division undergraduate course in social theory. In general, I found the selection of articles to be wise and helpful; I didn't use all of them but used more than I would from any other compilation. The book doesn't adequately cover the recent period, but no text could, and the teacher should choose her own supplements to the core texts found herein. Unlike the first reviewer, my students and I found the extensive footnotes to be the book's most valuable resource. They kept the students' attention, contextualized obscure references, and clearly explained more challenging passages. I did not find that these footnotes interfered with the role of the teacher; instead, they freed the class to spend more time in fruitful interrogation of the authors' ideas and less time buried in minutae. I highly recommend this book for teachers of upperdivision theory courses, and for graduate students looking for an unfair advantage on their rivals as they take their core courses.

This is a book valuable to the upper division undergraduate and new gratuate student. The authors are very good at showing how the theory underlying anthropological ideas have developed through the writings of the greatest thinkers in different periods of history. A great benefit in this book is the extensive footnotes that are quite helpful to the reader. This text is a must for anyone interested in why anthropologists think the way they do.