Primitive man and his ways; patterns of life in some native societies

While this book is horribly outdated now (it lists the thylacine as still being alive) it is a terribly interesting one. In particular, I enjoyed the chapter about the Cargo Cult and some of the religious rites of the Plains Indians.

Few books are available that really dignify "natives" with the truth of their surprisingly diverse, courageous, and rich lives. This is one. KBS is the Keeper of Ethnographical Dept of National Museum, Copenhagen, and the author of numerous anthropological works. He notes how life is organized by tribe, totem and taboo (title of another work of his), among people who adapted themselves to the rigors of their wilderness environment.

1. Australian Aborigines.
2. Plains Indians.
3. The Lapps.
4. The Tuareg.
5. Powhatan and Pamlico.
6. The Maori.

He shares photographic plates of materials from the National Museum.

His theories bracket this ethnological material under chapters on "environment and culture" and "adaptation and cultural development". show more The former includes the adaptive maxim -- "the lower in the scale and the less specialized they are, the better they will be able to survive under changing conditions". This supports our dawning and dire concerns for the survival of our highly and helplessly specialized peers.

The latter touches upon the influence of urbanization and cities. show less