Argonauts of the Western Pacific An Account of Native Enterprise and Adventure in the Archipelagoes of Melanesian New Guinea
"Argonauts of the Western Pacific" by Bronisław Malinowski is an ethnography published in 1922. This groundbreaking work documents the Trobriand people of the Kiriwana island chain near New Guinea, focusing on their complex trading system called the kula. Malinowski revolutionized anthropology by practicing "participant observation"—living among his subjects rather than studying them from afar. The book redefined ethnographic fieldwork and established intensive fieldwork as the foundation of modern social anthropology, earning comparison to Shakespeare's impact on literature.
Related Subjects
Barter -- Papua New Guinea -- Trobriand IslandsEthnology -- Papua New Guinea -- Trobriand IslandsFolklore -- Papua New Guinea -- Trobriand IslandsKula exchange -- Papua New Guinea -- Trobriand IslandsMassim (Papua New Guinean people) -- Rites and ceremoniesTrobriand Islands (Papua New Guinea) -- Social life and customs
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