Structural Anthropology (Vol. 1 & 2)

Author: Claude Lévi-Strauss (France), translated by Zhang Zuojian
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Claude Lévi-Strauss is a retired honorary professor at the Collège de France, a member of the French Academy of Sciences, an internationally renowned anthropologist, the main founder of the French structuralist academic trend in humanities, and the only surviving among the original five "structuralist masters." In the French culture that highly values theoretical humanities, the two "national ideological heroes" after World War II should be: the existentialist philosopher Sartre and the structuralist anthropologist Lévi-Strauss. The Chinese edition of "The Collected Works of Claude Lévi-Strauss" (hereinafter referred to as "The Collected Works") was published by the China Renmin University Press as the author approached his centenary, which holds multifaceted significant meanings. In brief, the publication of "The Collected Works" marks the active development of Sino-French academic exchanges in humanities in recent years, as well as an important academic achievement of Chinese humanities and social sciences since the implementation of the reform and opening-up policy. It also demonstrates that China has taken another step forward in aligning with the global academic community. Regarding the main themes and significance of the author's academic thought, the translators have introduced them in the postfaces of each book. Here, I would like to briefly discuss the position of Lévi-Strauss's academic thought in the overall Western humanities and social sciences and its potential significance for the modernization of Chinese humanities and social sciences. Lévi-Strauss's academic thought occupies a unique position in the history of post-war Western humanities and social sciences, and its uniqueness is first reflected in his dual identity as a professional anthropologist and a structuralist philosopher. In the field of anthropology, as a theoretical anthropologist, his professional influence over the past 50 years has been almost unmatched. As a "structuralist philosopher," his influence during the heyday of the structuralist movement was so strong that it even rivaled Sartre and once surpassed him. In reality, he was the founder of the French structuralist trend in the 1960s and 1970s, and post-structuralism subsequently influenced the direction of culture and academia in France and the West for an entire generation. What is more important than Sartre is that his influence was not limited to sociocultural trends but also permeated all specialized fields of humanities and social sciences, becoming an important part of the theories and methodologies of many disciplines. It can be said that Lévi-Strauss's structuralism has facilitated the convergence of interdisciplinary theoretical operations in various related disciplines, to the extent that his structural theory, centered on anthropology, can be radiated to many other related disciplines. At the same time, as a critic of traditional Western philosophy, his theoretical methodology can directly influence the epistemological thinking of humanities and social sciences. This book is a compilation of articles published by the author over the years, representing his most important achievements in anthropological research. The selection and arrangement of these articles are designed to provide readers unfamiliar with anthropology with a framework-based understanding of the discipline's issues. Through several representative examples, it introduces the development direction and problems that anthropology can address. The book discusses the relationship between ethnology and history, the customs and institutions of Native American societies, the relationship between anthropology and linguistics and psychology, and examines the position of anthropology in the broader field of social sciences, as well as the teaching issues of anthropology. It explains the past and future of the discipline, defines its scope of work, and outlines the prospects of the issues it raises.