How much do you know about Claude Lévi-Strauss' Race et Histoire?

What is Race et Histoire?

What was the purpose of the series of research on "race" by UNESCO?

What does Lévi-Strauss refute in his book?

According to Lévi-Strauss, how should cultures be judged?

What does Lévi-Strauss believe about progress?

What does Lévi-Strauss believe about the existence of cultures?

What does Lévi-Strauss believe about true creation?

Why was the book written?

What was the reception of the book?

Who is Joseph Arthur de Gobineau?

Race et Histoire is a book by Claude Lévi-Strauss, published in 1952.
The book was part of a series of research on "race" by anthropologists and geneticists, published by UNESCO.
Lévi-Strauss refutes the racialist theory of Joseph Arthur de Gobineau, who believed in the superiority of certain races and the degeneration caused by miscegenation.
Lévi-Strauss argues that cultural diversity is much richer than what we can ever know, and that cultures develop differently and cannot be judged by a universal standard of progress.
He questions our tendency towards ethnocentrism and the tendency to view other cultures as "stationary" or "cumulative" based on their similarity to our own.
Lévi-Strauss believes that progress is not necessarily continuous and that it occurs through mutations and combinations of inventions.
He argues that no culture exists alone and that progress is the result of coalitions between cultures.
Lévi-Strauss believes that true creation requires a certain deafness to the call of other values, and that communication with other cultures can lead to the loss of originality.
The book was written in response to UNESCO's campaign against racism.
The book caused controversy at the time, but Lévi-Strauss was later invited back to speak at UNESCO and his ideas were received with acceptance and respect.
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Test your knowledge on Claude Lévi-Strauss' groundbreaking book "Race et Histoire" with this quiz. Learn about his ideas on cultural diversity, ethnocentrism, and progress through coalitions between cultures. Challenge yourself to remember the controversies surrounding the book's publication and its impact on UNESCO's campaign against racism. Keywords: Claude Lévi-Strauss, "Race et Histoire," cultural diversity, progress, UNESCO.