Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture Paperback | Pages: 288 pages

Details Containing Books Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture

Title	:	Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture
Author	:	Marvin Harris
Book Format	:	Paperback
Book Edition	:	Anniversary Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 288 pages
Published	:	December 17th 1989 by Vintage (first published December 1st 1974)
Categories	:	Anthropology. Nonfiction. History. Sociology. Science. Religion

Chronicle As Books Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture

This book challenges those who argue that we can change the world by changing the way people think. The author shows that no matter how bizarre a people's behavior may seem, it always stems from concrete social and economic conditions. It is by isolating and identifying these conditions that we will be able to understand and cope with some of our own apparently senseless life styles. In a devastating attack on the shamans of the counterculture, the author states the case for a return to objective consciousness and a rational set of political commitments.

Declare Books Conducive To Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture

Original Title:	Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture
ISBN:	0679724680 (ISBN13: 9780679724681)
Edition Language:	English

Rating Containing Books Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture

Ratings: 3.91 From 3148 Users | 251 Reviews

Piece Containing Books Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture

Cow, Pigs, Wars and Witches is an interesting book on anthropology that attempts to make sense of things like the Hindu reverence for cows, Jewish prohibitions on swine flesh, tribes that burned goods in a show of wealth, cargo cults and the like. I wasnt convinced, though. The author, Marvin Harris, argues that each of these oddities and many others discussed in the book arose as a means for the culture involved to adjust to its specific ecological surroundings, sometimes to preserve the

I did not like this book. It never occurred to me to question why Hindus would rather starve than eat a sacred cow.This book seemed to me to be an old white guys anthropological "opinion," giving Western explanations for cultural practices.

Marvin Harris intends to apply scientific theory to some of the great cultural riddles of the world. Why do Hindus love cows? Why do Jews hate pigs? Unfortunately, like an evolutionary biologist trying to explain why humans have pinky toes, he comes across as making up just-so stories. The theories are plausible, but that doesn't make them accurate. The truth in a just-so story is always in what it tells us about the storyteller. In this case, he's a 1970s academic. One more thing: Since I'm not

Very interesting and engaging read until the last couple of chapters. Wouldn't have easily guessed this was written in the mid 1970s until later on. Marvin Harris makes pretty plausible explanations for many cultural norms such as why the cow is holy in India and why certain cultures/religions don't touch pork while others revere its consumption. I am all for anchoring behavioral phenomenon in practical roots, and that's what Harris does really well in the first few chapters where he breaks down

I indeed have no anthropology background at all. This book left such impression on me since it offers one way to understand the often-seem-nonsense cultures of people in the other parts of the world. Marvin Harris' explanations are all plausible, but one could also disagree with him. All I know is that the author explains the culture using the concept claimed as his expertise. And for me, they make senses, for most of the part.

All those religious traditions that seem utterly stupid, confounding, and sometimes surprising as well as the events in history such as 'witchcraft' whose root causes we generally don't know, is the main topic of this book. What a book such a motivation makes! I won't give any spoilers but I want to say, if such a strong ambition to search for truth doesn't deserve respect, then I don't what does. After so many years, I've yet to come across such a book, and I keep on seeing Marvin Harris as a

Why do Jews and Muslims refuse to eat pork? Why were thousands of witches burned at the stake during late medieval Europe? These and other riddles are explored by famous anthropologist Marvin Harris, and his conclusions are simple: people act within social and ecological contexts that make their actions meaningful. Put another way: cultural ideas and practices that seem strange to us may actually be vital and necessary to the people of those cultures.Harris is especially good at explaining how