CLIFFORD GEERTZ

Clifford Geertz



Clifford Geertz

Introduction

The famed anthropologist Clifford Geertz has given many theories that have influenced the social literature to a greater extent. Clifford Geertz was born in the United States in 1926 and is known as the most influential anthropologist. He is also greatly celebrated for his work in religion as his quoted words “a cultural system” are renowned among the religious scholars. His contributions in the anthropology are great as his findings about the Javanese culture are a pre requisite for developing the rightful anthropological information. His claims are greatly followed and interpreted by other anthropologist. The paper will analyze his claim about the human thoughts to which he has categorized as extremely social one.

Discussion

Clifford Geertz is a renowned anthropologist and is greatly known for his work in the field of anthropology. He has introduced contemporary theories in the cultural system that has been widely accepted by the anthropologists. His claims about the human thoughts were emerged when he was interviewed about the social constructionist. The anthropologist Clifford Geertz has claimed that the human thoughts are exceptionally social, social in its origins, social in its functions, social in its forms and social in its applications (Ashley & Orenstein, 2005, Pp. 32).

His claim about the human thoughts is completely true as he said that the human thoughts are social. It is a natural phenomenon that humans are extremely social and, so is their thought. Similarly, it has also been claimed that the human thoughts are not only social in its secondary level but also in its origins. The individuals are always social in their environment as they interact with each other in the society. Similarly, the thoughts of humans are social even in its function. When people think about something, it functions according to the social issues and social problems (Fred, 2000, Pp. 72).

The human thinking is always in the social form that thinks according to the societal needs of individuals. As humans are living thing, they are surrounded by so many things that they consider ordering remaining integral with the environment. The claim of the Clifford Geertz in its saying that the human thought is social in its application is right. When the human thinks about something and make it happen, it applies that their thinking is also social in its application.

His interpretation of the anthropological work has made it mandatory for the other anthropologist to develop the anthropological information. His findings were based on the survey of many places that included the Bali, Morocco etc. His findings were the result of his surveys that made him adopt different practices of the specific regions (Sherry, 1999, Pp. 123).

There have been made several claims by the Clifford Geertz that includes the culture as a system. He has given several theories that gave rise to the new theories in anthropology and sociology. The work that he did in the Bali was related to religion. In it, he defined different cultures and the ways of the ...