Against the Anthropological Grain

Wilcomb E. Washburn

“Readers can benefit from exposure to a cross-grained critic, especially one who write well and accessibly as Washburn does.” — Choice

Washburn critically examines key anthropological beliefs, especially the importance of cultural relativism and Western colonialism’s harmful effects on Third World cultures. He turns the tables on theorists from the discipline. The questions raised force us to rethink our entrenched assumptions about the human condition, national identity and the future of anthropology. “

This volume is a selection of essays written between 1967 and 1996. Washburn argues that anthropology lost credibility after WW II when it abandoned history and scientific objectivity on the one hand, and adopted ideologies of collectivism and political action on the other.,. [R]eaders can benefit from exposure to a cross-grained critic.” — R. Berleant-Schiller, Choice