The United States on the eve of the Second World War was still a society largely isolated from the world. Facing enemies with unfamiliar cultural traditions, the U.S. government turned to anthropologists for insight. The result was a research effort that continued long after the war, aimed, in the words of Margaret Mead, at analyzing the cultural..

Preface Introduction PART I: INTRODUCTION The Study of Culture at a Distance Margaret Mead Chapter 1. The Purpose and Scope of This Manual Chapter 2. The Needed Skills and Their Place in Cultural Analysis Chapter 3. Theory and Practice Theory and Methods Derived from Anthropology Theory and Methods Derived from Other Disciplines Chapter 4. Anthropological Models for the Study of Culture at a Distance The Single Informant The Study of Living Communities PART II: NATIONAL CHARACTER National Character: Theory and Practice Geoffrey Gorer PART III: GROUP RESEARCH A: The Organization of Group Research Margaret Mead B: Five Illustrations of Groups at Work Introduction Rhoda Métraux Chapter 1. Formulation of a Working Hypothesis: French Dyadic Relationships Chapter 2. Formulation of a Working Hypothesis: The Swaddling Hypothesis Chapter 3. Intragroup Interviewing: On thc Definition of Terms The Chinese First Teacher Sincerity Chapter 4. Relations between Men and Women: Has the Woman a Soul? The Position of the Woman Woman’s Position Redefined Chapter 5. Themes in Italian Culture: A First Discussion PART IV: WORK WITH INFORMANTS A: Informants in Group Research Rhoda Métraux B: Three Illustrations of Written Work by Informants I. Polish Personality Does Responsibility Mean Command? Attitudes toward Various Parts of the Body When Is a Pole Allowed to Be Soft? II. My Inner Self III. Russian Sensory Images On the Sense of Touch  On the Sense of Smell On the Sense of Hearing C: Ten Illustrations of Interviews with Informants I: Interview with a Syrian Woman: Life History II: Interview with a Syrian Man: Life History III: Interview with a Polish Peasant Woman: Parents and Children IV: Interview with a French Couple: Dyadic Relations in the Foyer V: nterview with a Young Frenchman: Friendship VI: Interview with a Chinese Scholar: Friendship VII: Interview with Two Jewish Men: Sheyneh and Prosteh Yiden VIII: Interview with Two Jewish Women: Sheyneh and Prosteh Yiden IX: Interview with a Russian Actor: Interpretation of Roles X: Interview with Four Russians: Images of Hate, Guilt, and Love PART V: WRITTEN AND ORAL LITERATURE Introduction Rhoda Métraux Chapter 1. Relations between Men and Women in Chinese Stories Virginia Heyer Chapter 2. The Image of the Leader in Soviet “Post-October Folklore Nelly Schargo Hoyt Chapter 3. A Russian Double Image Cluster: “Not-So: So” The “Not-So: So” Images in Russian Folklore Nelly Schargo Hoyt Rumor Cluster and Image Cluster: Detail from Group Discussion Russian “Visual” Thinking Leopold H. Haimson Chapter 4. Trends in Affectlessness Nathan Leites PART VI: FILM ANALYSIS A: Movie Analysis in the Study of Culture Martha Wolfenstein B: Five Illustrations of Film Analysis Introduction Rhoda Métraux I: Notes on an Italian Film, The Tragic Hunt Martha Wolfenstein II: Notes on Two French Films The Father Figure in Panique Jane Belo Notes on La Belle et La Bête Geoffrey Gorer III: An Analysis of Seven Cantonese Films John Hast Weakland IV: An Analysis of the Soviet Film The Young Guard Plot Summary Margaret Mead Comparison of the Film and the Novel Vera Schwarz (Alexandrova) V: An Analysis of the Nazi Film Hltlerjunge Quex Gregory Bateson PART VII: PROJECTIVE TESTS A: The Use of Projective Tests in Group Research Margaret Mead B: Two Illustrations of the Use of Projective Tests with Chinese Subjects             Visual Perception and Spatial Organization: A Study of Performance on the Horn-Hellersberg Test by Chinese Subjects Elisabeth F. Hellersberg Some Aspects of Personality of Chinese as Revealed by the Rorschach Test Theodora M. Abel and Francis L. K. Hsu PART VIII: IMAGERY Resonance in Imagery Rhode Métraux PART IX: END LINKAGE: AN ANALYTICAL APPROACH A: History of the Approach Margaret Mead B: Formulation of End Linkage Gregory Bateson C: Four Applications of End Linkage Analysis Applications of End Linkage Formulations to Anglo-American Relations in World War II Margaret Mead Male Dominance in Thai Culture Ruth Benedict Non-Reciprocity among East European Jews Natalie F. Joffe A Note on the Spectator in French Culture Rhoda Métraux PART X: APPLICATIONS OF STUDIES OF CULTURE AT A DISTANCE A: Political Applications of Studies of Culture at a Distance Margaret Mead B: Seven Applications of Studies of Culture at a Distance Japanese Character Structure and Propaganda Geoffrey Gorer Some Problems of Cross-Cultural Communication between Britain and the United States: Based upon Lecturing in Britain and the United States during World War II Margaret Mead History as It Appears to Rumanians Ruth Benedict Courage: Cumulative Effects of Sacrifice Sula Benet Chinese Family Images in International Affairs John Hast Weakland The Soviet Style of Chess Leopold II. Haimson The Soviet Image of Corruption Martha Wolfenstein APPENDIXES   Appendix A: Recommendations for the Organization of Group Research Margaret Mead Appendix B: A List of Participants in Columbia University Research in Contemporary Cultures and Successor Projects Bibliography Index