The Interpretation of Cultures

The Interpretation of Cultures: Selected Essays, published in 1973, is a seminal text in which cultural anthropologist Clifford Geertz articulates a view of what culture is, the role of culture in social life, and how to study culture. It is, as Geertz himself states, “a treatise in cultural theory as developed through a series of concrete analyses” (viii). Geertz draws on a variety of theory from the social sciences, bringing together anthropology, sociology, psychology, philosophy, history, political science, and linguistics; he also engages in much conceptual revision as he does so. By pointing out where and how previous theory has inadequately dealt with various concepts in the study of human society, he strives to demonstrate the centrality of cultural anthropology to the social sciences as a whole. Furthermore, this conceptual revision happens not through theoretical abstractions, but rather through empirical analysis.

Summary

The book is organized into five parts. In Part 1, which consists only of one chapter, Geertz lays the groundwork for his ensuing analyses by explaining what culture is and what anthropology seeks to do as an interpretive endeavor. Part 2, consisting of two chapters on the concept of man and the concept of the mind, is particularly concerned with specificity: Geertz asserts that the power of an interpretive approach to the study of culture lies in the ability of anthropology to draw out general theory from the multifaceted, complex situations that the anthropologist at once describes and interprets. Geertz continues articulating his conceptions of what it is to be human and what it is to think, both undergirded by the specificity of one’s cultural context, in his concrete analyses in later parts of the work.

Part 3 concerns religion as a culture system: After defining religion in a way that illuminates its role as a culture system, Geertz discusses specific examples of Balinese and Javanese religious tradition and their role in social integration and social change. In Part 4, Geertz deals with ideology as a culture system, with the central object of analysis being sociopolitical development in newly independent states and the role of nationalist ideology in that development. Although he discusses several countries, he focuses on Indonesia, where the bulk of his fieldwork took place. 

Part 5 contains three chapters that are connected by the theme of “savagery,” not in an evaluative or derogatory sense of the term, but rather in a way that is concerned with the psychic unity of humankind and what conclusions can be drawn from specific Balinese examples. Geertz starts with an examination of Claude Levi-Strauss’ work and then analyzes the connections among a people’s sense of personhood, time, and social conduct, contextualizing his discussion of Balinese cockfighting. 

In sum, The Interpretation of Cultures demonstrates how Geertz’s conception of culture as organized symbol systems that orient people to their environments, along with his insistence that the aim of anthropology is to interpret the meaning of those symbols, can be applied to concrete analyses of what constitutes and is happening in human societies. It remains an invaluable starting point for students of anthropology specifically, and the social sciences as whole.