Marcel Mauss: A Biography (review)

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Marcel Fournier, Translated by Jane Marie Todd, Marcel Mauss: A Biography. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2005, 448 pp. academic neophytes among us may take stock in the fact that the famous Marcel launched his career by writing book reviews; likewise, that the author of The Gift attained scholarly greatness despite his tendency to set to work only when goaded by necessity, that is, at the last minute (70). But these cocktail party trivia are hardly the most interesting insights that biographer Marcel Fournier offers into Mauss' life and work. As the book's introduction proudly announces, The intellectual legacy bequeathed by this great scholar, long unappreciated by everyone but anthropologists, is now available to the academic community (1). But after reading this engaging intellectual history, would venture that even anthropology (at least in the United States) generally fails to recognize the scope of Mauss' contributions as both a scholar and a public intellectual. Although the book's allinclusive nature does not allow for much analysis of Mauss' writing (and inhibits, at times, overall readability), it provides a valuable perspective of the man, the disciplines he helped to establish, and their sociopolitical context. first part of the book covers Mauss' childhood in Epinal through his university studies at Bordeaux and the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes in Paris, where he developed his specialization in primitive religion, met influential men such as Sylvain Levi and Henrf Hubert, and played a pivotal role in the creation of famed Annee Sociologique. Aptly entitled Durkheim's Nephew, we learn as much in this section about the uncle as we do the nephew. However, here Fournier also begins the task, pursued throughout the book, of showing that was more than a Durkheimian. Mauss' political activism, began as a university student, is major factor distinguishing him from the more indirect style of his uncle. next section traces Mauss' early teaching career and publications both academic and political. Two chapters in the section are devoted entirely to his socialist activities. A devoted follower of the French Socialist leader jean Jaures, Citizen Mauss was active in various organizations and publications throughout his life, shifting allegiances whenever the goals of these groups no longer fit his always pragmatic and nuanced principles. second section ends with the First World War. Great War, as is well known, was a devastating blow both personally and professionally to the French sociologists. Yet we are surprised to learn that also thrived as a soldier: I ride horses, play soldier...! was made for this and not for sociology (175). He emerged from the war tired but crowned with glory and sporting many medals (184) despite his 46 years. It was in the interwar period, as Fournier relates in his third and fourth sections, that did the work for which he is best known. He was truly prolific during this time: He continued his socialist activities, worked in peace movements, wrote on Bolshevism, violence, and the French economy. He secured legacy by editing his late uncle's previously unpublished work, helped to found the Institut d'Ethnologie, and took up the elephantine task of reviving the Annee, all while suffering many personal losses and health problems. In 1925, he published The Gift, where he investigated the phenomena of reciprocity [insufficiently developed by Durkheim (245)] and developed the notion of total social fact. For Mauss, who preferred to simply work on my materials...and go on to something else rather than developing systematic theories (287), The Gift is a rare example of just such a contribution to general social science theory. tragic effects of World War II are unfortunately relegated to the epilogue, a label that evokes summary, extraneous material. …