The Interpretation of Cultures

One of the twentieth century's most influential books, this classic work of anthropology offers a groundbreaking exploration of what culture is
With The Interpretation of Cultures, the distinguished anthropologist Clifford Geertz developed the concept of thick description, and in so doing, he virtually rewrote the rules of his field. Culture, Geertz argues, does not drive human behavior. Rather, it is a web of symbols that can help us better understand what that behavior means. A thick description explains not only the behavior, but the context in which it occurs, and to describe something thickly, Geertz argues, is the fundamental role of the anthropologist.

Named one of the 100 most important books published since World War II by the Times Literary Supplement, The Interpretation of Cultures transformed how we think about others' cultures and our own. This definitive edition, with a foreword by Robert Darnton, remains an essential book for anthropologists, historians, and anyone else seeking to better understand human cultures.

• Outline of a Theory of Practice (Cambridge Studies in Social and Cultural Anthropology)
• Patterns of Culture
• The Elementary Forms of Religious Life
• Social and Cultural Anthropology: A Very Short Introduction
• Coming of Age in Samoa: A Psychological Study of Primitive Youth for Western Civilisation (Perennial Classics)
• Cultures of Arab Schooling: Critical Ethnographies from Egypt
• Local Knowledge: Further Essays In Interpretive Anthropology (Basic Books Classics)
• The Polish Peasant in Europe and America: A CLASSIC WORK IN IMMIGRATION HISTORY
• The Sacred Canopy: Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion
• Purity and Danger (Routledge Classics) (Volume 93)