Synopses & Reviews
Theorist Clifford Geertz's influence extends far beyond anthropology. Indeed the case could be made that he has been abandoned by anthropology and that his legacy has been transferred to a more diffuse community of scholars interested in interpretation. This volume reflects the breadth of his influence, looking at Geertz as a theorist rather than as an anthropologist. To date, there has been no impartial, comprehensive, and authoritative work published on this critical figure. Contributors include an interdisciplinary team of leading scholars investigating the three core components of contested legacy: theory, method, and writing.
Review
“Interpreting Clifford Geertz is a rich, many-sided, and illuminating collection of essays. This volume views Geertz's work from different countries and disciplines and explores its ambiguities and inconsistencies, while also emphasizing that much remains to be learned from it.” --Peter Burke, Emmanuel College, the University of Cambridge
“The oeuvre of Clifford Geertz is like a rare gem, demanding examination of its endless facets to appreciate its profundity and radiating influence. Congratulations to the editors for doing just that—bringing together the best and most diverse set of minds to assess this monumental figure in twentieth-century intellectual life. The result is an exceptional book, doing full justice to Geertz and furthering his labors.” --Neil J. Smelser, University Professor of Sociology Emeritus, University of California, Berkeley
“This is the definitive statement on Geertz. I cannot imagine a more consistently interesting and insightful collection of reflections about Geertz's corpus, and its position in the meaning-centered social sciences. It will be required reading among cultural sociologists for many years to come.” -- Ronald N. Jacobs, University at Albany, author of The Space of Opinion
Synopsis
"Meaning is everywhere and everybody must interpret. Nobody argued this more persuasively than Clifford Geertz. From Balinese cock fights to sheep raids to theater states, Geertz showed that there is no escape from the sticky webs of meaning that capture our lives. But what exactly is Geertz saying, and should we still listen to him? After all, many argue that his ideas have run out of steam. This book confronts Geertz and his critics, offering surprising answers from various disciplines and identifying for the first time the contours of "the Geertz Effect.""--
Synopsis
Theorist Clifford Geertz's influence extends far beyond Anthropology. This volume reflects the breadth of his influence, looking at Geertz as a theorist rather than as an anthropologist. To date there has been no impartial, comprehensive, and authoritative work published on this critical figure.
About the Author
Jeffrey C. Alexander is a Professor of Sociology at Yale University. Philip Smith is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Yale University. Matthew Norton is a PhD candidate at Yale University.
Table of Contents
The Rise and Fall and Rise of Clifford Geertz--Jeffrey Alexander and Philip Smith * Part I: Geertz, Text, and Structure * Semiotics & Thick Description (Barthes & Geertz)--Peter Brooks * Balinese Cockfight Decoded: Reflections on Geertz and Structuralism--Philip Smith * On Not Doing Systems--Joseph Errington * Part II: Geertz, Interpretation, and Meaning * Geertzian Irony--Georgia Warnke * Clifford Geertz and the Strong Program: The Human Sciences and Cultural Sociology--Jeffrey Alexander * Maximal Interpretation in Clifford Geertz and the Strong Program: Towards a New Epistemology--Isaac Reed * Thick Description as a Cosmopolitan Practice: A Pragmatic Reading--Paul Lichterman * 'Malarial and Diffident': The Vision of Clifford Geertz--Robin Wagner-Pacifici * Part III: Geertz and the Disciplines * Thick Description, Thin History: Did Historians Always Understand Clifford Geertz?--Stuart Clark * Scientific Cultures--Peter Galison * Geertzs Legacy Beyond the Modes of Cultural Analysis of His Time: Speculative Notes & Queries in Remembrance--George Marcus * “To locate in the tenor of their setting the sources of their spell: Clifford Geertz and the ‘Strong Program in Cultural Sociology--Mats Trondman * Ritual, Power, and Style: The Implications of Negara for the Sociology of Power--Bernhard Giesen * Part IV: Geertz, Life, and Work * Clifford Geertz as a Cultural System--David Apter * On Clifford Geertz: Field Notes from the Classroom--Robert Darnton * The Geertz Effect--Matthew Norton