Creativity and Cultural Improvisation (ASA Monographs (Berg Hardcover)) [Hardcover]

Elizabeth Hallam (Editor), Tim Ingold (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 184520526X | ISBN-13: 978-1845205263 | Publication Date: June 12, 2007

There is no prepared script for social and cultural life. People work it out as they go along. Creativity and Cultural Improvisation casts fresh, anthropological eyes on the cultural sites of creativity that form part of our social matrix. The book explores the ways creative agency is attributed in the graphic and performing arts and in intellectual property law. It shows how the sources of creativity are embedded in social, political and religious institutions, examines the relation between creativity and the perception and passage of time, and reviews the creativity and improvisational quality of anthropological scholarship itself. Individual essays examine how the concept of creativity has changed in the history of modern social theory, and question its applicability as a term of cross-cultural analysis. The contributors highlight the collaborative and political dimensions of creativity and thus challenge the idea that creativity arises only from individual talent and expression.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Creativity and Cultural Improvisation' brings forward fresh views on social and cultural sites of creativity... an excellent, fresh and innovative work. Anthropological Notebook

About the Author

Elizabeth Hallam is Senior Lecturer in Social Anthropology, Department of  Anthropology, and Tim Ingold is Professor, Department of Anthropology, both at University of Aberdeen.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Berg Publishers (June 12, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184520526X
• ISBN-13: 978-1845205263
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,601,284 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)