Far Afield

French Anthropology between Science and Literature

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Anthropology, Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism
Cover of the book Far Afield by Vincent Debaene, University of Chicago Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Vincent Debaene ISBN: 9780226107233
Publisher: University of Chicago Press Publication: April 4, 2014
Imprint: University of Chicago Press Language: English
Author: Vincent Debaene
ISBN: 9780226107233
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication: April 4, 2014
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Language: English

Anthropology has long had a vexed relationship with literature, and nowhere has this been more acutely felt than in France, where most ethnographers, upon returning from the field, write not one book, but two: a scientific monograph and a literary account. In Far Afield—brought to English-language readers here for the first time—Vincent Debaene puzzles out this phenomenon, tracing the contours of anthropology and literature’s mutual fascination and the ground upon which they meet in the works of thinkers from Marcel Mauss and Georges Bataille to Claude Lévi-Strauss and Roland Barthes.
           
The relationship between anthropology and literature in France is one of careful curiosity. Literary writers are wary about anthropologists’ scientific austerity but intrigued by the objects they collect and the issues they raise, while anthropologists claim to be scientists but at the same time are deeply concerned with writing and representational practices. Debaene elucidates the richness that this curiosity fosters and the diverse range of writings it has produced, from Proustian memoirs to proto-surrealist diaries. In the end he offers a fascinating intellectual history, one that is itself located precisely where science and literature meet.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Anthropology has long had a vexed relationship with literature, and nowhere has this been more acutely felt than in France, where most ethnographers, upon returning from the field, write not one book, but two: a scientific monograph and a literary account. In Far Afield—brought to English-language readers here for the first time—Vincent Debaene puzzles out this phenomenon, tracing the contours of anthropology and literature’s mutual fascination and the ground upon which they meet in the works of thinkers from Marcel Mauss and Georges Bataille to Claude Lévi-Strauss and Roland Barthes.
           
The relationship between anthropology and literature in France is one of careful curiosity. Literary writers are wary about anthropologists’ scientific austerity but intrigued by the objects they collect and the issues they raise, while anthropologists claim to be scientists but at the same time are deeply concerned with writing and representational practices. Debaene elucidates the richness that this curiosity fosters and the diverse range of writings it has produced, from Proustian memoirs to proto-surrealist diaries. In the end he offers a fascinating intellectual history, one that is itself located precisely where science and literature meet.

More books from University of Chicago Press

Cover of the book The Aeneid by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Integrating the Inner City by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Wrong-Doing, Truth-Telling by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book The Social Citizen by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Locations of Buddhism by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Enchanted America by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Gentleman Troubadours and Andean Pop Stars by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book The Democratic Constitution by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book The Structure of Policy Change by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Agents and Patients by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book What Soldiers Do by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Translation as Muse by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Dangerous Work by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book A Fistful of Shells by Vincent Debaene
Cover of the book Dandyism in the Age of Revolution by Vincent Debaene
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy