“The past is a foreign country”? Acculturation theory and the anthropology of globalization

 

João Leal*

* Centro em Rede de Investigação em Antropologia, Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas da Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal; joao.leal@fcsh.unl.pt.

 

ABSTRACT

Contemporary anthropology has developed a consistent interest in the study of modes of circulation of people, objects and ideas associated with current cultural globalization. This interest is usually presented as a new development in anthropological theory and its possible predecessors, such as diffusionism and acculturation theory, dismissed as irrelevant. Focusing on the works of Melville Herskovits and Roger Bastide, this article argues for a less biased imaged of acculturation theory and stresses the ways in which some of its achievements can inspire current approaches to cultural globalization.

Keywords: globalization, acculturation theory, history of anthropology, diffusionism, Melville Herskovits, Roger Bastide.

 

“The past is a foreign country”? A teoria da aculturação e a antropologia da globalização

RESUMO

A antropologia contemporânea tem vindo a desenvolver um interesse consistente pelo estudo dos modos de circulação de pessoas, objectos e ideias associados à globalização. Esse interesse é usualmente apresentado como um novo desenvolvimento na teoria antropológica e os seus possíveis antecedentes, como o difusionismo e a teoria da aculturação, são vistos como irrelevantes. Debruçando-se sobre o trabalho de Melville Herskovits e de Roger Bastide, este artigo defende a necessidade de uma imagem menos distorcida da teoria da aculturação e sublinha o modo como alguns dos seus contributos podem inspirar as discussões contemporâneas sobre globalização cultural.

Palavras-chave: globalização, aculturação, história da antropologia, difusionismo, Melville Herskovits, Roger Bastide.

 

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