Product Description

Stone Age Economics is a classic of economic anthropology, ambitiously tackling the nature of economic life and how to study it comparatively.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #68644 in Books
• Published on: 2003-11-20
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

From the Back Cover
Stoneage Economics is a classic of economic anthropology, ambitiously tackling the nature of economic life and how to study it comparatively. This collection of six influential essays is one of Marshall Sahlins' most influential and enduring works, claiming that stone age economies formed the original affluent society. The book examines notions of production, distribution and exchange in early communities and examines the link between economics and cultural and social factors. This edition includes a new foreword by the author.

Customer Reviews

Classic of economic anthropology
Although originally published in 1972, Stone Age Economics still, to me, stands as one of the finest books ever written on economic anthropology. In fact, it is one of the best books on economic rationality, period. Superficially a study of "primitive" economies, it poses a biting critique of entrenched ideas about how economy "must" work. The discussion concerning affluence and the origins of thrift and work is marvelous, as is the piece on "primitive exchange". Few books have had more of an intellectual impact on me.