Note: please do not use any of these questions as your own.
On pp. 8-9, Malinowski writes that “Good training in theory, and acquaintance with its latest results, is not identical with being burdened with ‘preconceived ideas.’” He goes on to differentiate between “preconceived ideas” and “foreshadowed problems.” Discuss the difference between the two and offer examples.
Do you see any evidence of “anthropology as cultural critique” in Malinowski’s text? (e.g., see p. 25)
What does Malinowski mean when he says on P.11:
“An Ethnographer who sets out to study only religion, or only technology, or only social organisation cuts out an artificial field for inquiry, and he will be seriously handicapped in his work.”
How might Malinowski’s three “principles of method” be useful for anthropologists today? How might they be problematic in current times?
Answer Malinowski’s question “What is then this ethnographer’s magic, by which he is able to evoke the real spirit of the natives, the true picture of tribal life?” (p. 6) Is this a good and worthy practice? Why or why not? Is it even possible?