Human Nature and Social Life
Perspectives on Extended Sociality

What distinguishes humans from nonhuman 'others'? And how do these distinctions shape human sociality and the ways that humans relate to their others? Human Nature and Social Life brings together a collection of articles by prominent anthropologists to address these questions. The articles show how the fundamentally social nature of humans results in an extension of sociality to virtual, semiotic-material and nonhuman spheres, with humans therefore becoming part of 'extended socialities'. However, as the book's contributors demonstrate, human distinctness significantly bears upon these extended socialities, and the manner in which humans partake in them. Taking an ethnographic approach to its subject, this book demonstrates the continued value of studying the specificities of the human condition, and sets itself as a counterweight to current refutations of human exceptionalism.

Reviews & endorsements

'This is a timely volume that casts new light on current debates on the question of the human, while seeking to reposition the concept of 'society' on new ground: the scope is broad, the perspectives multiple, and the arguments, offered by a plethora of prominent anthropologists, most challenging. It will certainly make a significant contribution to the future of the discipline.' Kostas Retsikas, Kostas Retsikas, author of Becoming – An Anthropological Approach to Understandings of the Person in Java

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Product details

• Date Published: June 2017
• format: Hardback
• isbn: 9781107179202
• length: 214 pages

• dimensions: 235 x 157 x 16 mm
• weight: 0.44kg
• contains: 7 tables
• availability: Available