The Subject of Anthropology: Gender, Symbolism and Psychoanalysis

by Henrietta L. Moore

In this ambitious new book, Henrietta Moore draws on anthropology, feminism and psychoanalysis to develop an original and provocative theory of gender and of how we become sexed beings. Arguing that the Oedipus complex is no longer the fulcrum of debate between anthropology and psychoanalysis, she demonstrates how recent theorizing on subjectivity, agency and culture has opened up new possibilities for rethinking the relationship between gender, sexuality and symbolism.
Using detailed ethnographic material from Africa and Melanesia to explore the strengths and weaknesses of a range of theories in anthropology, feminism and psychoanalysis, Moore advocates an ethics of engagement based on a detailed understanding of the differences and similarities in the ways in which local communities and western scholars have imaginatively deployed the power of sexual difference. She demonstrates the importance of ethnographic listening, of focused attention to people’s imaginations, and of how this illuminates different facets of complex theoretical issues and human conundrums.
Written not just for professional scholars and for students but for anyone with a serious interest in how gender and sexuality are conceptualized and experienced, this book is the most powerful and persuasive assessment to date of what anthropology has to contribute to these debates now and in the future.

Genres: Anthropology, Nonfiction, Social Science

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Henrietta L. Moore is a British social anthropologist. She is the William Wyse Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Cambridge and Director of the Culture and Communications Programme at the Centre for the Study of Global Governance at the London School of Economics (LSE). Previously Moore was a Governor of the LSE; LSE Deputy Director for research and external relations 2002-2005, and served as the Director of the Gender Institute at the LSE from 1994-1999.

Reviews

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not an easy read, but an excellent summary of the major research of theories of gender development, showing how Freud’s views, which emphasize the psychological aspects, were used by Lacan to develop more complex approaches that took into account sociological and cultural influences, and how Lacan’s work served as a foundation for object relations theory, wherein the psyche is formed through social relations. Lots of dense theory to assimilate, but also plenty of fascinating ideas and connections, ably illustrated through the ethnographic record. Moore concludes that masculinity and femininity cannot be divided into simple binary categories, and that gender shouldn’t be viewed as static, fixed, and unchangeable. Rather, gender should be thought of as a process that is never complete. She further argues that psychoanalytic theories are culturally specific, and therefore inappropriate to the study of non-western cultures. In fact, contends Moore, gender theory itself begins from a western perspective, and must therefore be applied with caution:

“The usual charge is that the concept of sexual difference is essentialist, universalistic and heterosexist, and thus ignores cultural diversity, social change, the differences between women and the existence of non-heterosexual desires/subjects.” [p. 208]

“The ethnographic material moves us away from a model that ties our understanding of sexual difference too closely to object choice.” [p. 211]

Moore’s book is a cutting-edge contribution to theories of gender development. She pulls in a wide array of theory and ethnography to develop a complex argument, ultimately culminating in a new way of looking at sexual difference and gender.

“One does not acquire a gender identity by acquiescing to a single model of masculinity and femininity, but rather by living the contrasts between them, including the spaces occupied by their differences and their similarities.” [p. 76]

[Marta]

I did like this book. It takes you to think differently about how we have conceptualized gender. Actually Moore dares to say that a new conceptualization of gender might emerge from her review and reflections. What I think is that it is very important to realize that one thing is to use gender as an analytic category and another is to talk about different systems of sex/gender. What Moore shows us in this book is that different societies, with no exception, organize (create (?) ) their sexual difference in different ways -- that is gender. How every society organizes, classifies, orders in different institutions, in which power is a crucial factor, is their sex/gender system. To use gender as analytic category is to delve into those societies so we can know how they organize, categorize the sexual difference.

[Sam Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite appearing promising because of her interest in sexuality and theory and identity and other good things, it turns out that it's just a tough book to get into. Her writing is dense but without the profundity (so far) that makes it worth it.