Thinking Anthropologically : A Practical Guide for Students

In This Section:

I. Author Bio

II. Author Letter

Phillip Carl Salzman is a professor at the McGill University Department of Anthropology. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1972. He has conducted ethnographic research primarily among nomadic and pastoral peoples, in Baluchistan (Iran), Rajasthan (India), and most recently in Sardinia (Italy).

Patricia C. Rice is professor emeritus at the West Virginia University Division of Sociology and Anthropology. Her other publications include Biological Anthropology and Prehistory: Exploring Our Human Ancestry.

II. Author Letter

Dear Colleague,

Thinking Anthropologically: A Practical Guide for Students opens to students a foundational understanding of major topics in anthropology through presentation of those topics in short, original chapters with examples. Most students in basic anthropology classes come into the class without really knowing what anthropology is all about, or they may think they do, but are incorrect. When students begin to think like anthropologists early on they will not only enjoy the class more, they will do better work.

Teachers of anthropology may find TA useful in providing this kind of background coverage, thus allowing alternative focus in lectures and other readings. For example, Thinking Anthropologically might be assigned in conjunction with several ethnographies in a cultural anthropology class. It may also be used as a digestible preface and overview for a large, general textbook in a four-field introductory class.

The First Edition of TA covered the following major topics to help students begin to think anthropologically: patterns, holism, theory, science, change, disagreement among experts, ethics, and applications. In subsequent editions, we have added, partly following the suggestions of teachers who have used earlier editions, a set of new chapters to cover topics that provide further basic understanding for students, as well as those of great current interest.

The Second Edition added two new original chapters, which also appear in the Third Edition:

    · "Making Ideas Researchable," Philip Carl Salzman (McGill University) and Patricia C. Rice (West Virginia University)

    · "Thinking Anthropologically About ‘Race’: Human Variation, Cultural Construction, and Dispelling Myths, " Yolanda T. Moses (University of California, Riverside)

There are also two new original chapters in the Third Edition:

    · "Thinking With Gender," Paloma Gay y Blasco (University of St. Andrews, Scotland)

    · "Fieldwork: Collecting Information," Philip Carl Salzman (McGill University, Canada), Barbara J. King (College of William and Mary), Norah Moloney (Institute of Archaeology, University College London), and Norma Mendoza-Denton (University of Arizona)

All of the articles in the First and Second editions have been revised for the Third Edition in the light of suggestions by instructors. We would welcome comments and suggestions by colleagues, in the hope of improving future editions. How would Thinking Anthropologically serve you and your students better? Please feel free to contact us at philip.salzman@mcgill.ca and pat.rice@mail.wvu.edu.

Sincerely yours,

Philip Carl Salzman and Patricia C. Rice

McGill University and West Virginia University