Anthropology in the Public Arena: Historical and Contemporary Contexts

This detailed survey of the evolution of anthropology in Britainis also a spirited defence of the public as well as professionalrole of the discipline. The author argues for a broader vision ofthe value of anthropological knowledge that allows for the creativecontributions of popular scientists and literary figures who oftencapture the public imagination and add much to our knowledge ofhuman social relations. Informed by original archival research andengaging narratives of the larger–than–life personalities of publicintellectuals, the author reveals the contributions of neglectedbut crucial figures such as John Layard, Geoffrey Gorer, RobertGraves, and the originators of Mass Observation, today sonline repository of anthropological data.

MacClancy is guided by the notion that anthropology scontinued dynamism requires an alliance of interests, popular andacademic, that will recover marginalized studies and recognize thevalue of contributions from outside the university researchcommunity. Its synthesis of diverse topics illuminates ananthropology that enriches the popular cultural discourse andserves as a versatile tool for exploring pressing issues of socialorganization and development. The reframed narrative of Britishanthropological history that emerges is as integral to the futureof the subject as it is informative about its past.

Acknowledgments x

1 Beating the Bounds of Discipline? Innovation at the Marginsand Beyond 1

2 John Layard, Study of a Failure : An InnovativeIntegrated Approach from the Psychoanalyst 58

3 Geoffrey Gorer, Britain s Margaret Mead :Blending Anthropology and Travelogue 81

4 Robert Graves: Empowering Anthropological Modes of Explanationin Myth and Ritual 110

5 Mass Observation: A Radical, Popular Ethnography of thePeople, by the People, and for the People 135

6 The Literary Image of the Anthropologist 158

7 Parting Comments: Public Interest, Multiple Anthropologies184

Bibliography 193

Index 228

Jeremy MacClancy is professor in social anthropology atOxford Brookes University, UK, and director of theuniversity s Anthropology Centre for Conservation,Environment and Development (ACCEnD). His research has includedmajor studies of the cultural dimensions of nationalism in thePacific islands of Vanuatu, and a prize–winning analysis of thepoliticized development of a Basque cuisine innorthern Spain. Prof MacClancy is author and editor of booksincluding Consuming Culture (1992), PopularizingAnthropology (1996), Exotic No More: Anthropology on theFront Lines (2002), and Expressing Identities in the BasqueArena (2007).