Bronislaw Malinowski

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how Bronislaw Malinowski is one of the twentieth century's most prominent and influential anthropologists and how he is highly regarded for his pioneering work in the field of ethnographic fieldwork, giving a major contribution to the study of Melanesia and of reciprocity. In particular, the paper looks at how Malinowski's work can best be described as operating from a functionalist approach to society and how the majority of Malinowski's work has occurred in the field, studying the cultures of numerous indigenous peoples.

From the Paper:

"As a theory, functionalism studies the structure and workings of a given society. A functionalist sees society as being comprised of inter-dependent segments which work together in order to fulfill the functions needed for the society as a whole to survive. To do this, the individuals who make up the society are socialized into roles and behaviors, each of which specifically fulfill a specific need of the society. Thus, according to a functionalist, all behavior is structural, or aimed at accomplishing a specific societal goal. For this reason, the functionalist views rules and regulations are created in order to organize the relationships between the various members of society. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Malinowski, Bronislaw. (1990): A Scientific Theory of Culture and Other Essays. Raleigh: University of North Carolina Press.
• Malinowski, Bronislaw. (1939): "The Groups and the Individual in Functional Analysis." The American Journal of Sociology. V. 44, p. 938 - 964.

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