Raymond Firth

Duration: 19 mins 1 sec
Raymond Firth's image
Description: Raymond Firth describes his early education in New Zealand, the influence of Malinowski and his fieldwork in Tikopia in the Pacific. Raymond Firth interviewed by Alan Macfarlane 8th July 1983, poor sound and vision. Generously supported by the Leverhulme Trust.
 
Created: 2011-03-21 15:36
Collection: Film Interviews with Leading Thinkers
Publisher: University of Cambridge
Copyright: Professor Alan Macfarlane
Language: eng (English)
Keywords: anthropology; Tikopia; Malinowski; economics; kinship; Malaya;
Credits:
Actor:  Raymond Firth
Director:  Alan Macfarlane
Reporter:  Sarah Harrison
Transcript:
0:00:07 Anthropology was a hobby at first. As a schoolboy in New Zealand became interested in the Maori people and learnt a certain amount of Maori; first piece of fieldwork was on economics of rural populations in New Zealand; came to England with thoughts of following a career in economics but decided on anthropology

0:01:17 Had gone to the L.S.E. and deliberated for six months between economics and anthropology; interested in relating economics to the study of the Maori; found a copy of Malinowski’s ‘Argonauts’ in a bookshop and realized that it was possible

0:01:55 At L.S.E teacher was Malinowski; Seligman was there; attended Hobhouse’s seminar; Talcott Parsons there and attended Malinowski’s seminar

0:02:40 Attracted by Malinowski’s intellectual vitality, felt he was an international scholar; in his seminar intent on examining the problem posed by the presentation

0:04:23 Also influenced by Evans-Pritchard; they were complementary to each other

0:05:34 Chose to work in Tikopia as wanted to see a Polynesian society relatively uninfluenced by Western contact; might have gone to Rennell Island where Radcliffe-Brown had sent Hogbin; Tikopia interesting as non-monetary society which still retained large element of pagan religion; taught him something about the nature of reciprocity

0:10:32 Of later fieldwork, the Malay work done with Rosemary Firth, was most interesting; division of labour, Raymond looked at fishing economy and Rosemary did the domestic economy, complementing each other

0:12:25 Most interested in the economic field, but also interested in religion and art

0:13:50 If starting now would probably follow the same interests in anthropology; studies of process rather than structure; questions of responsibility and decision-making; anthropology applies, as a discipline, to all human societies

0:16:10 Psychic union of mankind; personal friendships with those studied; codes and language

0:18:08 Given life again, would choose to be an anthropologist
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