Rethinking Relation-Substance Dualism
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A01=Aurelie Nevot
Anthropology
anthropology of China
anti-substantialist perspectives
Author_Aurelie Nevot
Category=JHMC
Category=QDHR5
cosmology of relationship
dualism
dualism in anthropological theory
eq_bestseller
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
ethnographic theory
nature-culture
philosophical anthropology
relationism
structural anthropology
substance-relation
Product details
- ISBN 9781032426648
- Weight: 520g
- Dimensions: 156 x 234mm
- Publication Date: 27 May 2025
- Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Paperback
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This book analyses anthropological debates on “relationism” (referring to methodological and theoretical issues) and sets out to reconsider these discussions with regards to the notion of “substance” (generally associated with the body). Reflecting on the philosophical origins and implications of these two concepts, the author aims to bring them to the heart of contemporary anthropological discourse and addresses the erasure (or blurring) of “substance” in favour of “relation.” The argument put forward is that the conceptual pairing of “substance-relation” should be substituted for the “nature-culture” dualism that has been dominant in structural anthropology. The chapters engage with the work of scholars such as Philippe Descola, Eduardo Viveiros de Castro, and Wang Mingming as part of a decentring and questioning of the tradition in which anthropology is rooted. The book also considers the role that the anthropology of China plays in the re-evaluation of the relationship between relation and substance. The concept of “submutance” is introduced with Chinese ethnographic material to explore the possibility of moving beyond the relation-substance dualism of Western heritage. This is valuable reading for scholars interested in the theory and history of anthropology.
Aurélie Névot is an anthropologist and research professor at the French National Scientific Research Centre (CNRS).
