Available From UC Press

Writing Culture

The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography

These seminal essays place ethnography at the intersection of interpretive anthropology, cultural studies, social history, travel writing, discourse theory, and textual criticism. They grapple with issues of power and poetics in contemporary situations of globalization, post-coloniality, and post-modernity. Since its publication in 1986, Writing Culture has been a source of generative controversy and innovation in anthropology. It continues to inspire scholars and activists across the humanities, social sciences, and arts who are concerned with experimentation and ethics in cultural analysis.

This anniversary edition is augmented with a new foreword by Kim Fortun, Associate Professor of Science and Technology Studies at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, exploring the legacies of Writing Culture in the twenty-first century.

James Clifford is Professor, History of Consciousness Department, at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

George E. Marcus is Chancellor's Professor, Department of Anthropology, at the University of California, Irvine.

“Humanists and social scientists alike will profit from reflection on the efforts of the contributors to reimagine anthropology in terms, not only of methodology, but also of politics, ethics, and historical relevance. Every discipline in the human and social sciences could use such a book.”—Hayden White, author of Metahistory

"A distinguished, original, and highly significant collection."—Stephen Greenblatt, author of The Swerve: How the World Became Modern

336 pp.6 x 9Illus: 1 b/w photograph

9780520266025$34.95|£30.00Paper

Oct 2010