Argonauts of the Western Pacific: An Account of Native Enterprise and Adventure in the Archipelagoes of Melanesian New Guinea (1922)

Discuss the role of magic in enforcing social hierarchy and cooperation in the Trobriand Islands.

What roles do myth and magic play in transmitting cultural knowledge?

How does Malinowski justify his methodology in the Introduction and throughout the book? How does it depart from the methods used by anthropologists who came before him?

What is the role of the rich, detailed descriptions of native life and custom? How do these details interact with Malinowski’s broad claims about native life?

Describe the roles of gifts in Trobriand society. How is gift exchange used as a tool of manipulation, goodwill, and/or social control?

Discuss the meaning of the Kula in terms of its economic and social significance.

Malinowski wrote Argonauts as a first-person narrative and included himself as one of the characters. Discuss Malinowski’s narrative style and explain its significance in relation to his research methodology.

Answer the questions Malinowski poses on Page 230: “The question which presents itself first, in trying to grasp the native outlook on the subject is: what is myth to the natives? How do they conceive and define it? Have they any line of demarcation between the mythical and the actual reality, and if so, how do they draw this line?”