Anthropology Unbound: A Field Guide to the 21st Century

For novice readers who may not regard anthropology as relevant to today's headlines this book is a breakthrough. Durrenberger and Erem show how seeing the world through an anthropological lens enhances our understanding of such current topics as globalization, the new economy, jobs and careers, world trade, the condition of inner cities, and racial and ethnic relations. It provides the best application available of anthropological research to America's current public issues and concerns. It also introduces students to traditional societies, social organization, kinship, and the many other topics vital to a sound introductory understanding of anthropology and its traditions, including the field's theories and its classic and contemporary ethnographies.

Features: Fun, witty, savvy; written in the vernacular of today's students. Challenges tough humanitarian issues other texts gloss over or skip-race, class, gender, globalization, and more. Covers contemporary politics, imperialism, and conflict from an anthropological point of view. Employs a critical political economy perspective balanced by examples of individual and social agency. Uses history, ethnographies, and tools of anthropology to sharpen students' understanding of their own lives and the human condition. Presents complex social theories and key terms in a memorable and easy to understand manner. Poses superior discussion questions compared to most textbooks, vital for teachers, classroom discussion, and individual study.

About the Author:
E. Paul Durrenberger was a professor of anthropology for twenty-five years at the University of Iowa