This text traces the development of Levi-Strauss's thought, from his early work on the function of the incest taboo to his identification of a timeless "wild" or "primitive" mode of thinking behind the processes of human culture. The book also explores the major contribution that Levi-Strauss has made to contemporary aesthetic history - how his work on American-Indian mythology provides a key insight into the way in which art itself comes into being.

