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Themes in the Social SciencesSeries

This series delves into the core of the social sciences, exploring interdisciplinary topics that transcend conventional disciplinary boundaries. It publishes both theoretical and empirical works, shedding light on diverse societies worldwide. The books are designed to enrich advanced undergraduate and graduate studies, fostering critical thinking about complex social phenomena. Expect insightful discussions relevant to anthropologists, sociologists, and other scholars interested in broader societal issues.

Aping Language
Culture and Communication. The Logic by which Symbols are Connected
Themes in the Social Sciences
How societies remember
The Principles of Representative Government

Recommended Reading Order

  • The Principles of Representative Government

    • 256 pages
    • 9 hours of reading
    4.1(179)Add rating

    The book explores the historical roots of democratic institutions, tracing their origins back to aristocratic systems. It examines how these early forms of governance influenced the development of modern republics, highlighting the interplay between aristocracy and democracy. Through this analysis, the author sheds light on the complexities of democratic evolution and the foundational principles that continue to shape political systems today.

    The Principles of Representative Government

  • How societies remember

    3.8(281)Add rating

    In treating memory as a cultural rather than an individual faculty, this book provides an account of how bodily practices are transmitted in, and as, traditions. Most studies of memory as a cultural faculty focus on written, or inscribed transmissions of memories. Paul Connerton, on the other hand, concentrates on bodily (or incorporated) practices, and so questions the currently dominant idea that literary texts may be taken as a metaphor for social practices generally. The author argues that images of the past and recollected knowledge of the past are conveyed and sustained by ritual performances and that performative memory is bodily. Bodily social memory is an essential aspect of social memory, but it is an aspect which has until now been badly neglected. An innovative study, this work should be of interest to researchers into social, political and anthropological thought as well as to graduate and undergraduate students.

    How societies remember

  • Themes in the Social Sciences

    3.6(26)Add rating

    The preparation, serving and eating of food have been studied from a variety of theoretical and empirical perspectives. It is in this context that Jack Goody sets his own observations on cooking in West Africa, examining why a differentiated 'haute cuisine' has not emerged in Africa, as in other parts of the world.

    Themes in the Social Sciences

  • Aping Language

    • 204 pages
    • 8 hours of reading
    3.7(13)Add rating

    The book critiques recent experiments aimed at teaching language to apes, arguing that their achievements represent only crude simulations rather than true language acquisition. It compares these findings with the natural development of language in children, emphasizing the lack of evidence supporting ape language capabilities. Additionally, it surveys the communication systems of apes and monkeys, highlighting significant differences that demonstrate language as a uniquely human trait.

    Aping Language