Abstract
Mindful anthropology brings together theory and description. Thus, whatever theory we adopt should apply cogently to the data rather than being foisted fashionably on it. It is based on engagement with the data, and a raising of consciousness about it. We must not allow theory to become a straitjacket or a dogma. As new theories come up, practitioners should not reify them. A mindful anthropology remains open-ended in its views of theories, and is open to new twists of analysis. Mindfulness maps well onto embodiment theory as well as phenomenology, and depends always on detail. Mindful anthropology promotes creativity and thoughtful analysis, focusing on people and their actions. Mindful anthropology is not a rigid form of theory but an orientation towards all forms of theorizing and analysis.
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References
Strathern, Andrew J. 1981, reissued 2009. Inequality in New Guinea Highlands Societies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Elton, Geoffrey. 1987. The Practice of History. London: Fontana Books.
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Stewart, P.J., Strathern, A.J. (2017). For a Mindful Anthropology. In: Breaking the Frames. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47127-3_10
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47127-3_10
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