Myth and Meaning: Cracking the Code of Culture
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Average rating4.1
15
Ratings4
Average rating4.1
The anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss was one of the greatest intellectuals of the twentieth century. His work has had a profound impact not only within anthropology but also linguistics, sociology and philosophy. In this short book he examines the nature and role of myth in human history, distilling a lifetime of writing into a few sharp insights. It is a crystalline overview of many of the basic ideas underlying his work, including the theory of structuralism and the difference between 'primitive' and 'scientific' thought and shows why Levi-Strauss remains a hugely important intellectual figure. With a new foreword by Patrick Wilcken.
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Fantastic little book. It is a collection of Lévi-Strauss's spoken answers to a set of interview questions. Yes, it would be very nice if it were twice as long. Given what it is, depth and detail is sacrificed in the name of accessibility and clarity. And even at that, Lévi-Strauss manages to cite numerous books and monographs here. Perhaps most memorable and interesting in this short collection of spoken essays is the last, which is a discussion of how myth and music are very similar branches of the original art and technology of language. Very stimulating stuff, and I would say a good, short introduction to the French structuralist perspective on mythology and culture in general.
