Cultural Anthropology, 4th edition

This title is part of a new Pearson program pilot offering students the option to rent a print textbook for fall 2017.  By having affordable access to the best learning materials and experiences from day-one, students come to class prepared and ready to succeed.  Additional details on the rental program will be coming soon.

For courses in Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
Examine cultural anthropology through the lens of globalization and culture changeCultural Anthropology introduces students to the concepts and methods that anthropologists bring to the study of cross-cultural diversity. Centering her approach on the roles of globalization and cultural change, author Nancy Bonvillain encourages students to think critically about what is going on in the world, and to examine how events affect cultures. The Fourth Edition has been updated with the latest statistical data and offers discussion of hot-button contemporary topics such as climate change, online communication, and GMOs.
Cultural Anthropology, Fourth Edition is also available via Revel™, an interactive learning environment that enables students to read, practice, and study in one continuous experience. Learn more.

• An important feature distinguishing this text is its thorough focus on culture change, derived from internal processes of adaptation and innovation as well as from external forces through contact with other peoples. In focusing on change, the text highlights the notion that the societies and cultures that people develop are dynamic systems, adapted to new situations and invigorated by new ideas.
• The focus on culture change is carried into the discussions of global trends, whether these are the processes of past colonial expansion or of modern globalization. In Chapter 6, author Nancy Bonvillain establishes the framework for understanding historical processes of European colonial expansion and some of the consequences for cultural development and survival in many parts of the world. These effects are discussed where relevant in subsequent chapters. Discussion of global processes of cultural changes culminates in Chapter 17.
• In Their Own Voices boxes feature the words of indigenous peoples whose lives are discussed in the text. Highlights include:
• Nelson Mandela on the Struggle against Apartheid in South Africa;
• Wedding Songs from North India;
• The Souls of Black Folk;
• Constitution of the Iroquois Confederacy; and
• Testimony from South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Hearings of 1998.
• Case Study features provide extended discussions that enable students to understand complex relationships among various practices. Examples include:
• Sleeping Arrangements in Two Cultures;
• Language and Social Interaction in Japan;
• A Foraging Society: The Dobe Ju/’hoansi;
• Labor Migration in Mexico; and
• Ethnic Identity in Sudan.
• Culture Change features present material focusing on the ways that culture is transformed. These sections stress the interconnections among material change, behavioral practices, and ideology, demonstrating the complex interactions that result from change. Highlights include:
• Dowry in India;
• Transformation of Gender Status in a Foraging Society;
• Transformation of American Work in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries;
• Caste in India; and
• The Development of Religious Denominations.
• Expanded for the Fourth Edition, Anthropology Applied boxes highlight the roles that anthropologists play in applying theory and knowledge to practical concerns. Topics discussed include:
• Cultural Survival;
• Languages Lost and Found;
• Advocacy for Women;
• Medical Anthropology and Ethnomedicine; and
• Ethnomusicology.
• Controversies boxes present differing opinions about key theoretical or research topics. Issues explored include:
• What Are the Limits of Cultural Relativism?;
• Explaining the Incest Taboo;
• Is Male Dominance Universal?;
• Origins of the State; and
• Interpreting “Art”: The Case of Inca Quipus.
• Several pedagogical features help students focus on significant ideas and concepts presented in each chapter. These include a margin glossary and marginal notes, preview and summary questions, critical thinking questions, section reviews, and chapter summaries.

• NEW! The Fourth Edition includes an expanded discussion of climate change as well as new sections on the reactions of indigenous and local communities against national and multinational companies exploiting local resources and harming the environment.
• NEW! Chapter 3 includes new sections on virtual ethnography and engaged anthropology.
• NEW! Chapter 4 offers new sections on language ideologies and online communication.
• NEW! Chapter 8 features new discussions on agricultural use of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and problems of the global availability of potable water.
• NEW! Chapter 10 includes an expanded discussion of widowhood.
• NEW! Chapter 11 offers expanded discussion of gender identity, including transgender identities.
• NEW! Chapter 12 provides an expanded discussion of white privilege and a new discussion of student debt.
• NEW! Chapter 16 includes a new section on Balinese arts.
• NEW! The Fourth Edition offers updated statistical information on economic trends in the United States and globally, refugees worldwide, and other current political issues.
• NEW! Revised and expanded discussions throughout the text clarify terms and concepts. In addition, a number of the chapter opening folktales have been replaced, as have several In Their Own Voices boxes.

• The Fourth Edition includes an expanded discussion of climate change as well as new sections on the reactions of indigenous and local communities against national and multinational companies exploiting local resources and harming the environment.
• Chapter 3 includes new sections on virtual ethnography and engaged anthropology.
• Chapter 4 offers new sections on language ideologies and online communication.
• Chapter 8 features new discussions on agricultural use of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and problems of the global availability of potable water.
• Chapter 10 includes an expanded discussion of widowhood.
• Chapter 11 offers expanded discussion of gender identity, including transgender identities.
• Chapter 12 provides an expanded discussion of white privilege and a new discussion of student debt.
• Chapter 16 includes a new section on Balinese arts.
• The Fourth Edition offers updated statistical information on economic trends in the United States and globally, refugees worldwide, and other current political issues.
• Revised and expanded discussions throughout the text clarify terms and concepts. In addition, a number of the chapter opening folktales have been replaced, as have several In Their Own Voices boxes.