Primitive Culture Volume I (Dover Books on Anthropology and Folklore) - Softcover

Tylor, Edward Burnett

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0486807509 ISBN 13: 9780486807508

Publisher: Dover Publications, 2016

Synopsis

Use of the term "culture" as an expression of the full range of learned human behavior patterns began with this classic two-volume work, first published in 1871. Edward B. Tylor, the first Professor of Anthropology at the University of Oxford, declared that culture is "that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society." Tylor is credited with the establishment of anthropology as a scientific discipline, and his groundbreaking work was highly influential in the development of cultural evolution as the foundation for anthropologic studies.
Tylor's unilinear model of development maintains that humans share a common history, evolving from a single primitive form. His studies of the languages, rituals, and beliefs of societies from around the world pioneered the use of statistical data and substantiated his view of a universal pattern of development in all cultures. Volume I of Primitive Culture focuses on social evolution, language, and myth. Volume II focuses on Tylor's interpretation of animism in society, offering details of the endlessly varied ideas and beliefs regarding the soul, spirits, and gods.

About this title

About the Author

English academic Edward Burnett Tylor (1832–1917) was the first Professor of Anthropology at the University of Oxford. Tylor, who conducted fieldwork in Mexico during the mid-1850s, maintained an evolutionary view of the development of culture and religion. He posited that animism, or the belief in spirits, formed the original basis of religion.

Edition details

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 0486807509
• ISBN 13: 9780486807508
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 512