Anthropology is the study of humankind, past and present, that draws and builds upon knowledge from social and biological sciences, as well as the humanities and the natural sciences. In the United States anthropology is traditionally divided into the four field approach developed by Franz Boas in the early 20th century: biological or physical anthropology, social anthropology or cultural anthropology, archaeology and linguistic anthropology. Ethnography is one of its primary methods as well as the text that is generated from anthropological fieldwork.
The dialectics of form. “General Forms have their vitality in Particulars, and every Particular is a Man” (William Blake). Most … Continue reading How the informal economy took over the World – Part 2 by Keith Hart
A la recherche du temps perdu (In search of lost time) The idea of an informal economy was born at … Continue reading How the informal economy took over the world by Keith Hart
The authors of this well-written book tell how they were pushed by their editor into writing for a general audience. … Continue reading Seeing Culture Everywhere: A Book Review by Keith Hart
With all due respect and no malice intended but the George Floyd murder is not the first time African American … Continue reading Why George Floyd Matters
IV. The informal economy has taken over the World The idea of an informal economy was born in the 1970s … Continue reading New Preface to Globalization from Below: The World’s Other Economy by Keith Hart
Cultural critique, the use of anthropology to draw critical attention to institutions that readers take for granted, is as old … Continue reading Cultural Critique: Anthropological – by Keith Hart
By now, the entire world is aware of the historic and unprecedented events occurring in the United States. It seems trite to characterize these events as an aberration that will soon pass over.
In his Discourse on the Origins and Foundations of Inequality among Men (1754) Jean-Jacques Rousseau was concerned, not with individual variations in natural endowments, but with the artificial inequalities of wealth, honour and the capacity to command obedience that he derived from social convention.
Continue reading “Agriculture in Human Evolution – by Keith Hart”
Food in a New Economic Order
What is ‘new’ about neo-liberalism? It is a world economic order based on selective freedom, on the freedom of money to move where it will (but not people, machines, products or information) and on the freedom of strong states to impose their will on the weak.
Continue reading “The Political Economy of Food in an Unequal World-by Keith Hart”
Sometime in June 1971, an incident occurred that completely changed my attitude toward the US Army. In fact, I was never the same again.
It was Christmas Eve and it just so happened that I pulled guard duty. The post I was assigned to was a 30-foot tower that stood facing toward the Bien Hoa Airport.
With all the violence in the world and the ever growing movement of mankind toward more violence, it appears there is always a war somewhere in the world.
In the study of epidemiology, one has an opportunity to learn about communicable and non-communicable diseases.
As we approached the millennium, with the dotcom boom roaring away, I wanted to write a book that would sum up 30 years of teaching and point forward at the same time.
Continue reading “An Anthropologist in the World Revolution – Pt. 2 by Keith Hart”
Michael Wesch, an assistant professor of cultural anthropology at Kansas State University, well-known for his inspiring YouTube lectures and documentary shorts, has received over a hundred applications for his graduate course in ‘digital ethnography’ from around the world.
Continue reading “An Anthropologist in the World Revolution – Pt. 1 by Keith Hart”
On the eve of the one-hundred and eighth anniversary of W.E.B. Du Bois’ newspaper The Crisis, we are presenting, in its entirety, a lecture from the distinguished anthropologist, mentor and head of the Anthropology Department at Columbia University for many years – Dr. Franz Boas on the subject of the “race” problem.
On the eve of the one-hundred and eighth anniversary of W.E.B. Du Bois’ newspaper The Crisis, we are presenting, in its entirety, a lecture from the distinguished anthropologist, mentor and head of the Anthropology Department at Columbia University for many years – Dr. Franz Boas on the subject of the “race” problem.
Many of us know that political corruption is not new to the world. It is an unsavory, human practice with … Continue reading The Culture of Corruption
Recently, a colleague contacted me with a very interesting and specific question. At the time, I was on the road … Continue reading Teaching Anthropology in 2018
A recent death in the family necessitated a return to the United States after living abroad for the past ten … Continue reading There’s Something in the Water
Book Review: The Rise and Fall of Nations: Ten Rules of Change in the Post-Crisis World by Ruchir Sharma, London: … Continue reading The Struggle for Power by Keith Hart
World society today resembles nothing so much as the eighteenth century ancient régime that Kant had every reason to believe … Continue reading Anthropology and the New Human Universal by Keith Hart
There is something terribly wrong going on in American schools today. A silent epidemic is spreading throughout the country like … Continue reading Gun Violence in American Schools
Brazil had an opportunity to be a leading, democratic, Latin American country but lost its sense of direction. The political system designed to assist emerging countries grow and prosper does not work there. Instead of growing, as so many predicted it would, over the last seven years the country has fallen apart.
Continue reading “Brazil’s Dichotomous Treatment of Corruption – PT 3”
After the end of the Brazilian military dictatorship, the Liberal Front Party (LFP), Democratic Social Party (PMDB) and Brazilian Social Democratic Party (PSDB) dominated the government of Brazil. For more than 20 years, right wing and centrists autocrats controlled the government and struggled with enormous foreign debt, rampant hyperinflation, and the difficulties of transitioning to democracy.
Continue reading “Brazil’s Dichotomous Treatment of Corruption – PT 2”
Perspectives in Anthropology 