Abstract

This introduction to social and cultural anthropology has become a modern classic, revealing the rich global variation in social life and culture across the world.

Presenting a clear overview of anthropology, it focuses on central topics such as kinship, ethnicity, ritual and political systems, offering a wealth of examples that demonstrate the enormous scope of anthropology and the importance of a comparative perspective. Unlike other texts on the subject, Small Places, Large Issues incorporates the anthropology of complex modern societies. Using reviews of key works to illustrate his argument, Thomas Hylland Eriksen's lucid and accessible overview remains an established introductory text in anthropology.

This fourth edition is updated throughout and increases the emphasis on the interdependence of human worlds. It incorporates recent debates and controversies, ranging from globalisation and migration research to problems of cultural translation, and discusses the challenges of interdisciplinarity in a lucid way.
This classic volume is quite simply the best introduction there is to social and cultural anthropology. Deeply grounded in the history of anthropological thought, it is also thoroughly up to date. More than that, it is unfailingly engaging, clear and accurate. There is no better place to go to begin to learn why anthropology has been and remains a vital discipline in the contemporary world.
Joel Robbins, Sigrid Rausing Professor of Social Anthropology, University of Cambridge
Authoritative, challenging, accessible, up-to-date, this is a splendid introduction to modern social anthropology. I would press it on anyone who wants a better grasp of the diversity of human ways of living. And it is a must-read for students.
Adam Kuper, Centennial Professor of Anthropology, London School of Economics
Small Places, Large Issues shows us Thomas Hylland Eriksen in his admirable triple capacity as an anthropologist: the scholar, with depth and breadth of knowledge, and with a critical sense; the statesman, negotiating with fairness between anthropological camps; and the journalist, with a sense of what is new, zooming between close-up and Big Picture, and writing clearly about it all.
Ulf Hannerz
This wonderfully lucid introduction to social and cultural anthropology readily captures students' attention. By delineating the past and present development of the discipline, Eriksen underscores continuities and challenges that inform the practice of anthropology in today's world. In presenting anthropology as a means for elucidating large issues through the analysis of small places, the book speaks eloquently to anthropology's intellectual vibrance and practical value.
Noel Dyck, Professor of Social Anthropology, Simon Fraser University