Drawing upon his extensive archaeological experience and a wide range of sources, Clark explores how humans, unlike other primates with relatively homogenous behavior within breeding populations, adhere to diverse cultural traditions. These traditions are observed by ethnographers in contemporary societies on the fringes of the modern world and are reconstructed by archaeologists from the “cultural fossils” of the past. The book examines the reconciliation of our “animal appetites” with our awareness of the divine and intimations of immortality, a problem pondered by thinkers from the Old Testament to Darwin. Ultimately, Clark posits that our ability to follow, or reject, culturally inherited patterns is the most decisive factor in our unique identity as humans.
Academic Books, All Books
The Identity of Man Grahame Clark
£20.00
Clark argues that the key difference lies in our capacity for culture, which is inherited through societal belonging and shaped by history, unlike the largely gene-dictated behavior of other animals. This cultural inheritance leads to the vast diversity of traditions observed across human societies.
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