After Nature : English Kinship in the Late Twentieth Century (Lewis Henry Morgan Lectures)

Rating:
Summary: Worth sticking at this one!
Review: I was lucky enough to be lectured by Prof Strathern whilst at Cambridge, and her work made alot more sense when explained in person! She's a lady with real passion and belief, and beneath the complex prose of her work lies real substance. After Nature provides a fascinating insight on her views on post-modernism, the body and the nature of consumer choice in the late 20th c. It is an excellent example of how anthropology can inform contemporary cultural studies. So many studies of contemporary society end up in a meaningless mass of jargon and mumbo-jumbo, often hiding the fact that the author hasn't really got anything to say apart from a demonstration of academic prowess. Strathern, however, hides really powerful thinking behind a wall of complex prose. Read only with sufficient supplies of caffeine and/or nicotine! Worth sticking at.