Description
Book SynopsisThe concept of political culture is youngborn from the need to explain the dramatic sociological and political changes that occurred in Europe both during and after the Second World War. The practice of examining the culture of political parties in depth through an ethnographic field study of a country's social structure is, so far, a neglected one.
Larissa Adler Lomnitz and Ana Melnick rectify the lack of attention to this area with respect to Chile in Chile's Political Culture and Parties: An Anthropological Explanation. This volume examines Chile's political culture by considering its origin and the persistence of its grammar, which the authors define as the ability of each member of society to function within social categories and rules. This grammar, they believe, is what gives character to national culture.
Lomnitz and Melnick argue that political parties in Chile are a conglomeration of horizontal networks of friends. Class is perfectly established within C
Trade Review
“Chile’s Political Culture and Parties is a seminal, scholarly, original, and highly recommended reading for students of Chile’s history, politics, and contemporary culture.” —Reviewer’s Bookwatch
“[A]n excellent comprehensive study.... A useful addition to Chilean history and politics with some original and novel interpretations.” —Choice
“Lomnitz and Melnick have made an important contribution to the study of political culture, and they have shed new light on the cultural dimensions of party organizations. Their book should be highly recommended to scholars with an interest in these topics.”—Canadian Journal of Political Science
“In this interesting book on Chilean political culture, Lomnitz and Melnick present an anthropological model for understanding the workings of political parties.”—Journal of Anthropological Research
