Ideationalism vs. materialism: contrasting goals, contrasting ends

Abstract

Recent debates over the meaning and content of culture have divided anthropology into two main camps: ideationalists and materialists. On one aspect of the controversy, food taboos and preferences, the ideationalist viewpoint is ~epresented in the writings of the neostructuralists, and that of the materialists in the works of the cultural materialists. The explanations offered by the respective schools are indicative not only of their conceptions of culture, but also of the contributions of each toward making anthropology a relevant area of study and a useful tool in solving the problems facing humanity.