Anthropology (Earthwatch with InfoTrac and CD-ROM) - Softcover

Haviland, William A.

3.55

89 ratings by Goodreads

9780534610203: Anthropology (Earthwatch with InfoTrac and CD-ROM)

Softcover

ISBN 10: 053461020X ISBN 13: 9780534610203

Publisher: Cengage Learning, 2002

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This book offers a comprehensive and balanced presentation on views of human culture, evolution, and prehistory. Haviland presents the principles and processes of anthropology, both physical and cultural, including ethnology, linguistics, and prehistoric archaeology. As he integrates research and ideas from several schools of thought, the author cites current research and uses his lively trademark writing style to engage students and keep them interested in "real world" anthropology. The first section of the text covers selected aspects of physical anthropology and prehistoric archaeology as they relate to the origin of humanity, the origin of culture, and the development of human biological and cultural diversity. The second section covers the essentials of cultural anthropology, and challenges students to think about the diversity of the human condition while at the same time supporting them with a fascinating examination of the field of cultural anthropology, its findings, and its relevance to the modern world. Haviland's commitment to challenging student ethnocentrism is continued and reinforced in this new edition.

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About the Author:

William A. Haviland is professor emeritus at the University of Vermont, where he founded the Department of Anthropology and taught for 32 years. He holds a PhD in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania. He has carried out original research in archaeology in Guatemala and Vermont; ethnography in Maine and Vermont; and physical anthropology in Guatemala. This work has been the basis of numerous publications in national and international books and journals, as well as in media intended for the general public. His books include The Original Vermonters, coauthored with Marjorie Power, and a technical monograph on ancient Maya settlement. He also served as consultant for the award-winning telecourse Faces of Culture, and he is co-editor of the series Tikal Reports, published by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Besides teaching and writing, Dr. Haviland has lectured to many professional and nonprofessional audiences in Canada, Mexico, Lesotho, South Africa, and Spain, as well as in the United States. He served as expert witness for the Missisquoi Abenaki of Vermont in an important court case over aboriginal fishing rights. Dr. Haviland was named University Scholar by the Graduate School of the University of Vermont in 1990; received a Certificate of Appreciation from the Sovereign Republic of the Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi, St. Francis/Sokoki Band in 1996; and was given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Center for Research on Vermont in 2006. Now retired from teaching, he continues his research, writing, and lecturing from the coast of Maine. He serves as a trustee for the Abbe Museum in Bar Harbor, focused on Maine's Native American history, culture, art, and archaeology. His most recent books are At the Place of the Lobsters and Crabs (2009) and Canoe Indians of Down East Maine (2012).

Review:

"An up-to-date, colorful, and exciting text covering all the major four-field topics, yet with special applied emphasis. Each chapter problematizes several issues and then addresses them within the text. Chapters do not push one theory but remain adaptable to several different theoretical approaches. Haviland shows sensitivity to race, gender, and lifestyle issues while remaining a mainstream text. Beautifully illustrated and easy for students to absorb, with all the ancillaries and Internet support that students expect today. This is, plainly, the best introductory anthropology text in the field."

"Haviland's work is up-to-date and accurate, especially the human evolution section. This is one of the major reasons our department has used the various editions of the book for over a decade. In each edition, the author and publisher make concerted efforts to keep the work as current as possible.... The modules strategically placed in the work are, in my opinion, one of the major attractions of the work. It seems the author took great care in selecting materials that are informative and entertaining."

"One feature I really appreciate is the numerous Anthropology Applied and Original Study features. In the past I used a supplemental reader that provided additional examples of ideas brought out either in the text or the lecture/discussion. Because Haviland's text includes a number of illustrative examples, I feel free to forego the use of a separate reader."

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