Franz Boas: In Praise of Open Minds

A thought-provoking account of the life and work of Franz Boas and his influential role in shaping modern anthropology

Franz Boas (1858-1942) is widely acknowledged for his pioneering work in the field of cultural anthropology. His rigorous studies of variations across societies were aimed at demonstrating that cultures and peoples were not shaped by biological predispositions. This book traces Boas’s life and intellectual passions from his roots in Germany and his move to the United States in 1884, partly in response to growing antisemitism in Germany, to his work with First Nations communities and his influential role as a teacher, mentor, and engaged activist who inspired an entire generation.

Drawing from Boas’s numerous but rarely read writings, Noga Arikha brings to life the man and the ideas he developed about the complex interplay of mind and culture, biology and history, language and myth. She provides a comprehensive picture of the cultural contexts in which he worked, of his personal and professional relationships, and of his revolutionary approach to fieldwork. He was celebrated in his lifetime for the cultural relativism he developed and the arguments he marshaled against entrenched racialism. But his was a constant battle, and Arikha shows how urgently relevant his voice and legacy have become again today.

Noga Arikha is a research associate at the European University Institute in Florence. She is the author of The Ceiling Outside: The Science and Experience of the Disrupted Mind and Passions and Tempers: A History of the Humours. She currently lives in Florence, Italy.