Patterns of Culture

Patterns of Culture, originally published in 1934, is an anthropological text by Ruth Benedict. Translated into 14 languages and with three updated English editions, the book is considered a classic in American anthropology. This study guide uses the most recent, 2005 edition published by Mariner Books, which includes a foreword by Louise Lamphere, a preface by Margaret Mead, and an introduction by Franz Boas, the founding father of cultural anthropology.

Benedict popularized the idea of cultural relativism—that we should not judge other cultures by our standards but view them on their own terms. Just as significantly, she helped establish the “Culture and Personality” school of anthropological thought, which was a dominant academic paradigm in the United States until World War II and defined the field of psychological anthropology as we know it today.

Patterns of Culture set the groundwork for thinking about the relationship between culture and personality. Following in the tradition of Franz Boas, Benedict treats culture as a mental phenomenon that is learned, integrated, and shared. She takes Boas’s approach a step further, however, asking what brings coherence to a culture.