Marvin Harris was born August 18, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York. He was the primary force behind the development of the theoretical perspective cultural materialism. Harris was trained as an anthropologist, completing his Ph.D. at Columbia University during the early 1950s. Harris continued to teach at Columbia until 1980, serving as Chair of the Anthropology Department for a period of time. Since 1981 he has held the position of Graduate Research Professor of Anthropology at University of Florida.
Although Harris's scholarly activities lie within the field of anthropology, his work in cultural anthropology has been a great resource for various sociologists conducting cross-cultural and comparative research. Utilizing a historical and global perspective, Harris has investigated ways in which material conditions give rise to numerous cultural forms. This approach, dubbed cultural materialism, arose as a synthesis of three other theoretical perspectives: historical materialism, cultural ecology, and evolutionary theory. Historical materialism examines historical social change as inextricably intertwined with the material economic conditions of social life. Cultural ecology focuses upon the ways in which the physical environment influences demographic and cultural patterns. Evolutionary theory places human cultural forms within an evolutionary framework, drawing conclusions about the adaptive functions of various cultural patterns.
As a result of his anthropological research Harris has produced 16 books and numerous articles. In 1968 Harris published what has been called his most scholarly work The Rise of Anthropological Theory. In this volume Harris outlined the history of anthropological theory from 1750 to the present. This work also provided an analysis of the origins of cultural materialism, as well as a systematic presentation of the basic postulates of this theoretical tradition.
Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches: The Riddles of Culture, published in 1974, provided a cultural materialist analysis of phenomena Harris referred to as "cultural riddles." Highlighting the evolutionary component of cultural materialism, Harris demonstrated how certain "riddles of culture" evolved as adaptations to culturally and historically specific material conditions. For example, Harris explained the traditional Hindu sanctification of the cow, and the subsequent ban on eating it, in cultural materialist terms. He also explored the cultural significance of the Jewish-Moslem abomination of the pig, explaining the phenomenon as an adaptive response to the material conditions of Jewish and Moslem life throughout history.
In 1977, Harris's Cannibals and Kings: The Origins of Cultures provided a more systematic presentation of his evolutionary approach to culture and society. Harris outlined a precise theoretical model of social evolution, applying it to the last ten thousand years of human existence. In Cannibals and Kings Harris identified the historical processes of population growth, ecological depletion, and technological change as the primary forces behind the evolution of all major cultural forms.
When Cultural Materialism: The Struggle for a Science of Culture was published in 1979, Harris introduced his most complete delineation of the cultural materialist perspective to date. In addition to his more systematic presentation of the basic principles of cultural materialism, this work also contained many illuminating critiques of other major anthropological theoretical perspectives.
In 1981, Harris produced a short volume entitled America Now: The Anthropology of a Changing Culture, which provided a cultural materialist analysis of significant transitions in American culture since World War II. Four years later Harris published Good to Eat: Riddles of Food and Culture, This work was devoted to an examination of food taboos and dietary patterns throughout history and around the world. Utilizing a cultural materialist framework, Harris explained how the material circumstances of everyday life have historically influenced nutritional practices in a variety of cultural settings.
One of Harris's most recent and influential publications Our Kind: Who We Are, Where We Came From, and Where We Are Going, a collection of essays published in 1990, focused specifically upon the origin and evolution of human beings. In Our Kind Harris explained how humans evolved from lower primates. Harris also asserted that the human acquisition of the ability to speak was integral to the historical development of the variety of diverse cultures throughout the world.
Although Harris's efforts at book publication have slowed in recent years, he still makes significant contributions to the field of anthropology. Publishing articles and writing book reviews in response to recent publications in the field, Harris has continued throughout the 1990s to share his ideas about human cultures. However, Harris's most influential contribution to the field has been his systematic elucidation and application of the cultural materialist theory.
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