Quest for the Real Samoa

What is the reality of Samoa? Was Margaret Mead’s early research there valid? Was Derek Freeman’s criticism of Mead’s work justified? Lowell Holmes uncovers the realities behind the myths of the Samoan people pointing out the major differences among Mead’s, Freeman’s and his own findings. Setting a precedent in comparative ethnographic restudies, Holmes illustrates how personal factors (personality, sex, age. marital status) affect the collection and interpretation of data. Although Holmes is often critical of Mead’s findings, he concludes that her Samoan research is by and large reliable and finds that Freeman’s critique points to ideological as well as geographical differences as the main cause of the controversy. More is at stake here than a professional dispute over ethnographies: at issue is the protection of the study of cultural differences from deterministic explanations of any sort. BOOK JACKET