• NEW - Recent research and developments in anthropological theory on contemporary issues—e.g., globalization and change, tourism and cultural colonialism, and symbolic responses to culture change.

  • Allows students to better understand how contemporary issues fit into their study of cultural anthropology. Ex.___

• NEW - New research on gender—And a consistent representation of gender throughout the book.

  • Allows students to see how both men and women have been a part of the history of anthropology and its ongoing success. Ex.___

• NEW - Revised “A Closer View” boxes.

  • Provides a concise discussion of key concepts in the chapter. Ex.___

• NEW - Reorganized/reordered chapters—Enhances their contribution to other anthropological pedagogical devises, including videos and ethnographies.

  • Provides a better flow of material to the students. Ex.___

• NEW - Internet Exercises—Added to each chapter.

  • Allows students to explore and expand the information presented in the chapters. Ex.___

• Anthropology as a human-centered discipline—Rather than as an abstract conceptual system.

  • Introduces ideas in a logical order based on students' curiosity about their own participation in humanness. Ex.___

• Chapters that build systematically on each other—Each chapter builds on concepts presented in earlier chapters.

  • Broadens and deepens students' understanding of cultural anthropology with each successive chapter. Ex.___

• Ethnographic extracts—In Part V, Human Ways of Life. Includes Foragers: The !Kung of Africa, the Ainu of Japan, and the Kwakiutl of western Canada (Ch. 11); Pastoralists: The Nandi of Africa, the Basseri of Iran, and the Yolmo of Nepal (Ch. 12); Horticulturalists: The Yanomamo of Venezuela and Brazil, the Mundugumor of New Guinea, and the Yap Islanders of the Pacific (Ch. 13); Intensive Agriculturalists: The Aztecs of Central Mexico, the Nayar of southern India, the Han of northern China (Ch. 14).

  • Gives students an idea of what life is like in societies that are very different from their own. Ex.___

• Applied Anthropology—Discussed in Part VI, The Adventure of Anthropology Continues. Focuses on the changes in types of groups studied by anthropologists (Ch. 15); provides examples of work in applied anthropology and includes boxes written by H.B. Kimberley Cook and Paul Bohannan (Ch. 16).

  • Lets students see the practical side of anthropology and its impact on current social issues. Ex.___

DR. MARI WOMACK is a writer and anthropologist specializing in symbols, religion, gender, anthropological theory and methods, and American popular culture. A research scholar at the UCLA Center for the Study of Women, she is scriptwriter for the PBS television series Faces of Culture and co-editor of The Other Fifty Percent, a reader on gender. Dr. Womack hones her classroom skills by teaching at several California institutions, including UCLA and Santa Monica College. The Santa Monica College chapter of Alpha Gamma Sigma, the student honor society, presented her with its Instructional Excellence Award in spring 2000.

Formerly an international radio broadcaster for Voice of America, Dr. Womack has been quoted in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and The Wall Street Journal, and has appeared on a number of television programs, including the Today show, applying anthropological insights to contemporary issues. As a journalist, she has reported on news events ranging from U.S. presidential elections to earthquakes. She has interviewed a number of distinguished subjects, from Benezir Bhutto of Pakistan, to Nobel Prize-winning scholars, to film stars.

Dr. Womack's current interests center on producing books on anthropology for the classroom and the general public. She has been asked to edit readers on psychological anthropology and comparative religion and has completed the writing stage for two books on symbols: Symbols and Meaning and Sport as Symbol: Images of the Athlete in Art, Literature and Song. Her book on symbols for the public will be called Gods, Heroes, and Demons: The Importance of Symbols in Everyday Life.