Cultural Anthropology: Asking Questions About Humanity

Product Description
What is cultural anthropology, and how can it explain--or even help resolve--contemporary human problems?
Robert L. Welsch and Luis A. Vivanco's
Cultural Anthropology: Asking Questions About Humanity, Third Edition, uses a questions-based approach to teach students how to think anthropologically, helping them view cultural issues and everyday experiences as an anthropologist might.
Inspired by the common observation that ninety-nine percent of a good answer is a good question,
Cultural Anthropology combines a question-centered pedagogy with the topics typically covered in an introductory course. It emphasizes up front what the discipline of anthropology knows and which issues
are in debate, and how a cultural perspective is relevant to understanding social, political, and economic dynamics in the contemporary world.
Cultural Anthropology also represents an effort to close the gap between the realities of the discipline today and traditional views that are taught at the
introductory level by bringing classic anthropological examples, cases, and analyses to bear on contemporary questions.
Review
"The level of accessibility is astonishing, considering that the textbook is packed with information and helpful visuals that make teaching this course feel like a new experience each semester. What I love about this text is that it balances classic organization with overall topical coverage."--Max
Jacob Stein,
University of Alabama
"
Cultural Anthropology approaches the subject in much the same way that anthropologists approach the study of humans: with questions. It does an excellent job of not just presenting information, but also inviting the reader to discover the information for themselves in a manner that is very
organic."--Paul Wegner,
Naugatuck Valley Community College
"The approach of
Cultural Anthropology is to encourage multi-level thinking. Students are challenged in each chapter to think critically, think like an anthropologist, and come to know a particular anthropologist as problem solver. I cannot offer enough praise."--Pamela A. Maack,
San Jacinto College
About the Author
Robert L. Welsch is Guest Curator at the Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College.
Luis A. Vivanco is Professor of Anthropology at University of Vermont.