In societies across the world, people have different culturally-shaped senses of what their lives mean: people may live for money, love, honour or fame; for family, company, country or religion. This course examines the processes through which meanings of life are formulated and maintained in day-to-day life in societies past and present; it also explores life meaning as a way of comprehending the evolution of human societies. The course uses the concept of "meanings of life" as a window into the anthropological understanding of cultural difference and cultural evolution.
4 units · Letter or Credit/No Credit
In societies across the world, people have different culturally-shaped senses of what their lives mean: people may live for money, love, honour or fame; for family, company, country or religion. This course examines the processes through which meanings of life are formulated and maintained in day-to-day life in societies past and present; it also explores life meaning as a way of comprehending the evolution of human societies. The course uses the concept of "meanings of life" as a window into the anthropological understanding of cultural difference and cultural evolution.
Offered in Autumn 2026 at Stanford University.