Anthropology of Moralities

Monica Heintz received her PhD in Social Anthropology in Cambridge in 2002, and was appointed Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology in 2003. She is currently Lecturer in Social Anthropology at the University of Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense, the author of ‘Be European, Recycle Yourself: Changing Work Ethic in Romania (LIT, 2006) and the editor of Weak State, Uncertain Citizenship: Moldova (Peter Lang, 2008).

“The significance of this volume and its nine contributions results from displaying a picture that shows the polarization of the ways moralities are being studied but also conveys its theoretical potential for confronting what some sociologists call ‘Durkheim’s dilemma’, i.e. comprehending morality between its social dimension (structure; duty; obligation) and subjective dimension (agency; desirability of the good; creativity).”  ·  Social Anthroplogy/Anthropologie Sociale ”Observing, describing and assessing values cross-culturally, the authors propose various methodological approaches to the study of moralities, illustrated with rich ethnographic accounts, thus offering a valuable guide for students of anthropology, sociology and cultural studies and for professionals concerned with the empirical and cross-cultural study of values.”  ·  International Journal of Anthropology

• AcknowledgementsChapter 1. Introduction: Why There Should Be an Anthropology of MoralitiesMonica HeintzChapter 2. Norm and Spontaneity: Elicitation with Moral Dilemma ScenariosThomas WidlokChapter 3. Life History and Personal Experience: The Moral Conceptions of a Muscovite ManJarrett ZigonChapter 4. Morality, Value and Radical Cultural ChangeJoel RobbinsChapter 5. Accelerated Globalisation and the Conflicts of Values Seen Through the Lens of Transnational Adoption: A Comparative PerspectiveSigne HowellChapter 6. Morality, Self and Power: The Idea of the Mahalla in UzbekistanJohan RasanayagamChapter 7. Moralising Female Sexuality: The Intersections between Morality and Sexuality in Rural VietnamHelle RydstrømChapter 8. Narrative Ethics: The Excess of Giving and Moral Ambiguity in the Lao Vessantara-JatakaPatrice LadwigChapter 9. Adopting an Obligation: Moral Reasoning about Bougainvillean Children’s Access to Social Services in New IrelandKaren SykesChapter 10. Between Facts and Norms: Towards an Anthropology of Ethical PracticeMark GoodaleReferencesNotes on ContributorsIndex