Quest for the Real Samoa: The Mead/Freeman Controversy and Beyond [Hardcover]

Lowell D. Holmes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 1988

Mr. Holmes' study is . . . the basic stuff of competent ethnography, that combination of science and art in which the details of daily life are systematically observed, analyzed and constructed into a cultural account. . . He concludes that Margaret Mead was essentially correct in her depiction of coming of age in Samoa in 1925, concerned as she was to compare it with adolescence in the United States at that time. New York Times Book Review

Thanks to Holmes' compelling review of the `great debate,' we see [all these things] more clearly because he is acting as more than just an informed guide to the facts and the issues; he is providing an insightful exposition on the nature of anthropological inquiry. Science Book & Films

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

While Derek Freeman's Margaret Mead and Samoa ( LJ 5/1/83) is certainly the most celebrated examination of Mead's ideas about Samoan culture, it is neither the first nor the best. In the mid-1950s, Holmes conducted research in the community where Mead had originally studied and found her work quite credible. Here he both reports on his restudy and tries to explain why Freeman arrived at such radically different conclusions. This book is important not only for its careful descriptions of Samoan life throughout the 20th century, but because it summarizes the critiques of Freeman's book that have appeared in professional journals worldwide. Glenn Petersen, Sociology & Anthropology Dept., Baruch Coll., CUNY
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Thanks to Homes' compelling review of the great debate, ' we see [all these things] more clearly because he is acting as more than just an informed guide to the facts and the issues; he is providing an insightful exposition on the nature of anthropological inquiry."-Science Books & Films

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 211 pages
• Publisher: Bergin & Garvey (March 30, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0897891627
• ISBN-13: 978-0897891622
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,305,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Travel > Australia & South Pacific > South Pacific

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