[Setting boundaries: the anthropology of spatial & social organization]

Despite the suggestion of a strictly anthropological approach, Setting Boundaries will attract the attention of a variety of disciplines. The 12 authors of articles in this book present spatial boundaries from physical, social and spiritual perspectives in ways that provide a satisfying convergence of understanding. These case studies consider architectural, historical, economic, linguistic and political parameters to society and space. The discussions are both diverse and dynamic. Deborah Pellow, editor of this collection, asserts that the conceptualization of space is "classified, and that classification is accomplished by the creation of boundaries" (p. 215). Her understanding of spatial organization is categorization by culture, categorizations in which use of space is symbolized by custom. The global orientation of the case studies allows the reader to realize both the commonalities and the distinctiveness of the cultural use of space. Roderick J. Lawrence presents a methodology which collates official descriptions of living areas with expectations and reality, based in class, in the historical, rental experience in Switzerland. Susan Carlisle's "Boundaries in France" considers French mentalite in terms...