How and why do humans create so many different forms of life? This book presents an original and powerful answer to this central problem of anthropology.Why Humans Have Cultures asks three basic questions: what unity underlies cultural diversity? What are the origins of that diversity? How can we understand it? Michael Carrithers argues that it is the ways in which people interact with each other, rather than technological advances, that have been of crucial importance in human history. The human capacity for social interaction, whether on a grand scale or between individuals, is a prime mover in the continual process of social innovation. The imaginative and flexible nature of human social intelligence has created the vast and complex web of different cultures, societies, and histories which exist today.In this lucid and thought-provoking book, Michael Carrithers draws both on ancient and contemporary examples to show how this perspective forms a firm foundation for the study of culture, society, and history. It is necessary, he argues, to look at societies rather than technologies in order to produce challenging, useful, and reliable knowledge about ourselves.

Why Humans Have Cultures: Explaining Anthropology and Social Diversity

History

Carrithers, Michael

World

Oxford University Press

The Buddha, Confucius, Jesus, and Muhammad each founded a system of thought which in its own way has shaped the lives and thinking of countless generations across the world. This unique volume presents four self-contained studies of the founders of the world's greatest religious traditions. Originally written for the Past Masters series, these authoritative studies provide a unique guide to some of the most influential ideas in human history. Each of the contributors explores the distinctive features of the particular religious tradition and reveals why it has had such a profound and lasting influence on the way people think today. Founders of Faith provides new insights into the different ways in which men and women in both the East and West have sought to make sense of some of the most intractable problems of human existence.

Founders of Faith: The Buddha by Michael Carrithers; Confucius by Raymond Dawson; Jesus by Humphrey Carpenter; Muhammad by Michael Cook (Oxford Paperbacks)

Biographies & Memoirs

Cook, Michael

CARPENTER, Humphrey

DAWSON, Raymond

Arts & Literature

In this valuable introduction, Michael Carrithers guides us through the complex and sometimes conflicting information that Buddhist texts give us about the life and teaching of the Buddha. He discusses the social and political background of India in the Buddha's time and traces the development of his thought. He also assesses the rapid and widespread assimilation of Buddhism and its contemporary relevance. Well-paced and informative, this introduction will enlighten not only those who study Buddhism and comparative religion but anyone intrigued by the remarkable philosophy of one of the greatest religious thinkers. About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.

Buddha: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

Examines the development of the ideas of Buddha and analyzes the reasons for the spread of his religious teachings

The Buddha (Past Masters)

In this valuable introduction, Michael Carrithers guides us through the complex and sometimes conflicting information that Buddhist texts give us about the life and teaching of the Buddha. He discusses the social and political background of India in the Buddha's time and traces the development of his thought. He also assesses the rapid and widespread assimilation of Buddhism and its contemporary relevance. Well-paced and informative, this introduction will enlighten not only those who study Buddhism and comparative religion but anyone intrigued by the remarkable philosophy of one of the greatest religious thinkers.About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.

The Buddha (Past Masters Series)

Why Humans Have Cultures examines three basic questions: what unity underlies human cultural diversity? What are the origins of that diversity? How can we understand it? The author argues that it is the ways in which people interact-rather than technological advances-that have been of crucial importance in human history. In this thought-provoking book, Carrithers draws on ancient and contemporary examples to show how this perspective forms a solid foundation for the study of culture, society, and history.

Why Humans Have Cultures: Explaining Anthropology and Social Diversity (OPUS)

The Forest Monks of Sri Lanka: An Anthropological and Historical Study (Oxford University South Asian Studies Series)

Reference

Words, Language & Grammar

¿Por qué los humanos tenemos culturas?: Una aproximación a la antropología y la diversidad social (Spanish Edition)

Anthropology

Alianza Editorial

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Books by Carrithers, Michael