The Character Of Human Institutions

This volume celebrates the life and work of Robin Fox and the idea of a biosocial science. From his early studies of kinship, primates, the brain, evolution, the incest taboo, and aggression, to his later work on literature, politics, civilization, law, the Bible, Shakespeare, and the history of ideas, Robin Fox inspired many with an evolutionary vision of humanity that goes beyond narrow disciplinary boundaries and embraces the universal history of mankind. Fox's work represents an independent biosocial science stream of thinking that accepts the Darwinian mandate while avoiding reductionism by recognizing culture as a natural phenomenon. The essays cover Fox's life and his contributions, and address topics as diverse as the meaning and function of laughter; the unforgiving discipline of writing popular anthropology; extreme drinking rituals among young men training for the British army; Darwin and close-cousin marriage; the universal essence of the epic form as a super-attractor; anthropologists' autobiographies; the conflict between science and anti-science; and the decline of British imperial education. This engaging collection on a mainstream maverick has been edited by Michael Egan. It includes essays by Sir Antony Jay, Lionel Tiger, Howard Bloom, Michael McGuire, Kate Fox, Melvin Konner, Alan Macfarlane, Adam Kuper, Dieter Steklis, Alexandra Maryanski, Bernard Chapais, Jonathan Turner, Linda Stone, Charles Macdonald, Anne Fox, David Jenkins, Frederick Turner, Robert Trivers, and an essay by Robin Fox himself.

There is an historical element throughout philosophy. As Edel notes, this is always in the context of problems, so emphasis will fall on the major objective of reflective analysis of ideas. The major objective of Edel's analysis in The Theory and Practice of Philosophy is the fundamental interrelatedness of problems of method, metaphysics, and value. Each part is an integral whole, complete in itself.That philosophy has this central role in human practice indicates that it should be neither discarded nor deified. This is the explicit premise of the book. Students are likely to be faced increasingly with a demand for clarification on the fundamental issues of life and value. The expectation that philosophy will provide ready-made answers to these kinds of questions is as naive as the demand for any panacea, but this task cannot be turned over to any other department of human knowledge or any other branch of social activity.By placing emphasis on the importance of theory in matters of practice, the need for clear and systematic understanding of the world and man within it, and on the constant role of reflection in the management of human affairs, Edel seeks to shed light on the larger questions of philosophy by examining them in a systematic way. The result is a great text and tool for students and teachers that deals directly with the fundamental issues of our civilization.

Veblen's study indicts the nineteenth-century socio-economic system which based class status on the accumulation of material wealth. More than a century after its original publication, his work still is of surprisingly high relevance, since it casts an astonishingly contemporary and often very satirical eye on American economics and society. Originally released in 1899, "The Theory of the Leisure Class" is considered as the first detailed critique of consumerism.

Hemingway has been labeled a ‘communist sympathizer,’ ‘elitist’, and a ‘rugged individualist.’ This volume embraces the complexity of political advocacy in Hemingway’s novels and short stories. Hemingway’s characters physically, intellectually and spiritually become part of resisting current conditions and affirm the value of resistance, even destruction, regardless of political outcome. Much more than political nihilism, rebellion allows man to realize the potentialities of his greatness as a leader, the realities of his solidarity as a comrade, and the simple sensations of everyday living. Hemingway draws new perspectives on the meaning of politics in our own lives at the same time as his writings affirm boundaries of political thought and literary theory for explaining many of the themes we study.