Introduction to the Work of Marcel Mauss
Marcel Mauss (1872-1950) was a French Sociologist and Anthropologist whose works include a comparative study of the relation between forms of exchange and social structure. Mauss was the nephew of the celebrated sociologist Emile Durkheim, who was his early mentor.
History
Mauss studied Philosophy at Bordeaux and the History of Religion at the E'cole Pratique des Hautes E'tudes, where he later began his career as a Professor of Primitive Religion. He also taught at the College of France and was the co-founder of the Ethnology Institute at the University of Paris.
Theories/Speculation
Mauss collaborated with Durkheim on the seminal works "Suicide" (1897), which examined suicide rates by religion, age, sex and marital status, and "Primitive Classification" (1901-02), which argues that the origins of religious or moral classifications are revealed in the organizational structure of societies.
Considerations
Mauss also worked with Durkheim to create L'annee Sociologique, a journal in which Durkheim's ideas and sociological methods were expressed. While producing the journal, Durkheim died and Mauss became the journal's editor.
Identification
"The Gift" (1925) is arguably Mauss' most influential work, as it clarifies his theory of gift exchange and contract in relation to the peoples of Melanesia, Polynesia and northwestern North America.
Famous Ties
Mauss' views on the theory and method of ethnology influenced many distinguished social scientists, including the celebrated French academic Claude Lévi-Strauss.
