A Critical Review of the Book “History and Theory in Anthropology” by Alan Barnard

The book “History and Theory in Anthropology” by Alan Barnard, a leading researcher and author of anthropological studies, especially anthropology in South Africa is among valuable works in the field of anthropology. In this book, he examines the theoretical nature of anthropology throughout history and the views of prominent scholars and thinkers of this science and their comparisons, as well as the rooting of theories and schools of thought presented in the field of anthropology. The purpose of this book is to examine the pioneering views of anthropological studies, evolution in all its dimensions, the theory of disseminators in cultural areas, functionalism and structural functionalism, pragmatic theories, processing, and Marxist views, various aspects of relativism, structuralism and post-structuralism, postmodernist views and recent interpretations. Although this work should be regarded as an overview of anthropological theories and related problems since it lacks the details of theorists, approaches, and ideas, its very briefness of the terms and contents, its conceptual clarity and explanation have been diminished and it requires revisions.