Eric Wolf’s scientific contributions

This collection is a legacy of some of the author's most original work, with a foreword by Aram Yengoyan. Of the chapters, six have never been published and two have not appeared in English until now. Shortly before his death, the author prepared introductions to each section and individual pieces, as well as an intellectual autobiography that introduces the collection as a whole. Sydel Silverman, who completed the editing of the book, says in her preface, “He wanted this selection of his writings over the past half-century to serve as part of the history of how anthropology brought the study of complex societies and world systems into its purview.” The author set the terms for anthropological thinking about peasantries, culture and power, complex societies, and interactions between noncapitalist societies and capitalism.