[Marshall Sahlins] Infrastructualism - Claude Levi-Strauss In Memorium

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1、ClaudeLevi-StraussInMemoriumInfrastructualismMarshallSahlinsIhavetomakeadoubleapology:firstforframingmyhomagetoProfessorLévi-Straussinautobiographicalterms;andthenforcompoundingtheimproprietybyrepeatingareminiscenceofhisseminarthatIhaverecentlyputinprint.Icomedangerouslycl

2、osetotheoldquipabouttheprofessorwhosaid,“That’senoughtalkingaboutme.Let’stalkaboutyou.Howdidyoulikemylastbook?”MyexcuseistheextraordinaryvalueLevi-Strauss’sworkhashadforme,andinparticulartheproductivevalueofthetensionbetweenstructuralismandthevariousspeciesofmaterialismand

3、economismprevailinginthelate1960s,whenIhadtheprivilegeofbeingassociatedwiththeLaboratoire.RecalltheseminalpassageinLapenséesauvagewhereLévi-Straussdistinguishestheconceptualschemesethnologistsstudy,forallthatsuchschemesdefineandgovernpractices,fromMarx’sconceptofpraxis--wh

4、ich,heagreeswithSartre,“constitutesthefundamentaltotalityofthesciencesofman.”(Itseemsthatinthe60smostParisianintellectualsfeltobligedtodefinetheirownconceptualpracticeinrelationtoMarxism;evenifyouwerenotaMarxist,youwereonly“peumarxiste,”hardlyaMarxist.)Thenotionofa“mediati

5、onbetweenpraxisandpractices”towhichLévi-StraussthenrefersislikewisereminiscentofSartre’s“mediations”ofthematerialuniversalsbytheparticularitiesofbiographyandhistory,ifinLevi-Strauss’scasethemediatoris“theconceptualschemebytheoperationofwhichmatterandform,neitherwithanyinde

6、pendentexistence,arerealizedasstructures,thatisasentitieswhicharebothempiricalandintelligible.”YetthisconceptualmediatorisimmediatelyrecuperatedinMarxiancategories,thatis,as“superstructure,”towhichrealmLévi-Strausswouldmodestlyconfinehisownstructuralisttheory.Intheevent,th

7、einfrastructurebecomesexogenoustoethnology:thesubjectmatter,rather,ofhistoryandtheotherhumansciencesthatinformit:1Itistothistheoryofsuperstructures,scarcelytouchedonbyMarxthatIhopetomakeacontribution.Thedevelopmentofthestudyofinfrastructuresisataskwhichmustbelefttohistory-

8、-withtheaidofdemography,technology,historicalgeographyandethnography.Itisnotprincipallyth