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Wild Thought

A New Translation of "la Pensee Sauvage"
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( 1,784 ratings, 97 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Wild Thought presents Claude Lévi-Strauss's foundational theory of structural unity in culture, challenging the assumed superiority of Western modernity. Through insights from linguistics, sociology, and ethnology, it explores the shared structures of human intellect across diverse societies, revolutionising twentieth-century thought.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book is essential for students and scholars of anthropology, philosophy, and cultural studies, as well as readers interested in structuralist theory and critiques of Eurocentrism.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Perhaps the most influential anthropologist of his generation, Claude Lévi-Strauss left a profound mark on the development of twentieth-century thought, equal to that of phenomenology and existentialism. Through a fertile mixture of insights gleaned from linguistics and from sociology and ethnology, Lévi-Strauss elaborated his theory of structural unity in culture and became the preeminent representative of structural anthropology. La Pensée sauvage, published in French in 1962, was his crowning achievement. Ranging over philosophies, historical periods, and human societies, it challenged the prevailing assumption of the superiority of modern Western culture and sought to explain the unity of human intellection.

Unfortunately titled The Savage Mind when it first published in English in 1966, the original translation nevertheless sparked a fascination with Lévi-Strauss’s work among generations of Anglophone readers. Wild Thought: A New Translation of La Pensée sauvage rekindles that spark with a fresh and accessible new translation. Including critical annotations for the contemporary reader, it restores the accuracy and integrity of the book that changed the course of twentieth-century thought, making it an indispensable addition to any philosophical and anthropological library.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praised by the London Review of Books as a breakthrough translation of one of the 20th century's most challenging works, this edition is lauded for its accessibility and fresh perspective. The Bookseller highlights its role in displacing Western cultural superiority, while The Prisma notes the book's argument for intellectual equality among societies. Tim praises the translation for revealing the intellectual richness and joy embedded in Lévi-Strauss's masterpiece.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780226413082

Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 22 February 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: University of Chicago Press

Contributors:

  • Translated by Jeffrey Mehlman
  • Translated by John Leavitt

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 152.0mm

Height: 229.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 328

About the Author

Claude Levi-Strauss (1908-2009) is the most important anthropologist of the twentieth century, a leader in structuralist thought, and one of the key figures in the history of modern thought. He held the chair of social anthropology at the College de France between 1959 and 1982 and was elected a member of the Academie francaise in 1973. His many influential works include Tristes Tropiques, Structural Anthropology, Totemism, and Wild Thought, among others. The Press has published many English editions of his works. Jeffrey Mehlman is University Professor of French at Boston University. He is the author of several books, as well as a translator of many texts by Lacan and Derrida, among others. John Leavitt is a translator and professeur titulaire of anthropology at the University of Montreal. He is the author of Linguistic Relativities and the editor of Poetry and Prophecy.

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