1、Clause Lvi-Strauss By Zhu WenzhaoContents of this presentation：lIntroduction of StrausslStructuralism what is structure what is structuralism Strausss four procedures to structuralismlAnthropological theorieslMyth what is myth Strausss study of myth Introduction of StraussStrauss(28 November 1908 30
2、 October 2009)was born to French parents who were living in Brussels at the time,where his father was working as a painter.He studied law and philosophy,but found neither interesting.Then he took up anthropology.He was a French anthropologist and ethnologist,and has been called,along with James Geor
3、ge Frazer,the“father of modern anthropology”Major worksl野性的思维 La Pense sauvage（1962）l忧郁的热带 Tristes tropiques（1955）l神话学 I-IV Mythologiques I-IV l结构人类学 Anthropologie structurale（1958）l种族与历史 Race et histoire（1952）l 结构人类学之二 Anthropologie structurale deux（1973）l亲属关系的基本结构 Les Structures lmentaires de la p
4、arent（1949）What is Structure?lSomething made up of a number of parts that are held or put together in a particular way.lThe way in which parts are arranged or put together to form a whole;makeup.lThe interrelation or arrangement of parts in a complex entitylIn other words,structure is rules and prin
5、ciples operative in the world,or we can say,the world is composed of many different elements,each of which has its own function,are closely bound up with each other in sort of a pattern or structure.What is structuralism?lStructuralism is an intellectual movement which began in France in the 1950s a
6、nd is first seen in the work of the anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss.lIts essence is the belief that things cannot be understood in isolation-they have to be seen in the context of the larger structures they are part of(hence the term“structuralism”).lIt emphasizes wholeness and synchronicStrausss
7、 four procedures to Structuralism Strauss specified four procedures basic to structuralism.1.Structural analysis examines unconscious infrastructures of cultural phenomena2.It regards the elements of infrastructures as“relational”,not as independent entities.3.It attends single-mindedly to system4.I
8、t propounds general laws accounting for the underlying organizing patterns of phenomenaAnthropological theorieslStrauss sought to apply the structural linguistics of Saussure to anthropology.At the time,the family was traditionally considered the fundamental object of analysis,but was seen primarily
9、 as a self-contained unit consisting of a husband,a wife,and their children.Nephews,cousins,aunts,uncles,and grandparents all were treated as secondary.lHe argued that families acquire determinate identities only through relations with one another.lThus he inverted the classical view of anthropology
10、,putting the secondary family members first and insisting on analyzing the relations between units instead of the units themselves.lKinship:Strauss thought that kinship had four basic elements:brother,sister,father and son from which other relatives were derived.lIn his own analysis of the formation
11、 of the identities that arise through marriages between tribes.Strauss noted that the relation between the uncle and the nephew was to the relation between brother and sister,as the relation between father and son is to that between husband and wife,that is,A is to B as C is to D.Therefore if we kno
12、w A,B,and C,we can predict D,just as if we know A and D,we can predict B and C.The goal of Strausss structural anthropology was to simplify the masses of empirical data into generalized,comprehensible relations between units,which allow for predictive laws to be identified,such as A is to B as C is
13、to D.1.A traditional story rooted in primitive folk beliefs of cultures2.Uses the supernatural to interpret natural events3.Explains the cultures view of the universe and the nature of humanity What is a myth?Strausss study of mythlMythemes(神话素）:Strauss believed that myth,like the rest of the langua
14、ge,is made up of constituent units.But what consists of language is different from that of the myth they belong to a higher and more complex order.For this reason,we shall call them mythemelWhat Strauss believed he had discovered when he examined the relations between mythemes was that a myth consis
15、ts of juxtaposed binary oppositions(二元对立).For example,Oedipus consists of the overrating of blood relations and the underrating of blood relations.lStrauss sees a basic paradox in the study of myth.On one hand,mythical stories are fantastic and unpredictable:the content of myth seems completely arbitrary.On the other hand,the myths of different cultures are surprisingly similar.lHe says that universal laws must govern mythical thought and resolve this seeming paradox,producing similar myths in different cultures.Thank you!
