Malinowski presents in this book his definitive statement of the theory of functionalism. As the essential clue to the understanding of human behavior, primitive and civilized, he analyzes the functional principle that culture is an examination of the fundamentals of anthropology for the purpose of constructing a general system to explain the facts of culture by this principle. Originally published 1944. A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make available again books from our distinguished backlist that were previously out of print. These editions are published unaltered from the original, and are presented in affordable paperback formats, bringing readers both historical and cultural value.

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The book was published posthumously in 1944 and represents both a reevaluation and summing up of Malinowski's functional theory of culture. Polish born Bronislaw Malinowski is credited as one of the world’s greatest anthropologists, renowned for marrying the living realities of human life with the cold calculations of science. A necessary addition to the bookshelf of any collector of Malinowski’s work or student of anthropology, this classic volume is republished now with a introductory biography of the author.