Abstract

VELHO, Gilberto. Urban anthropology: interdisciplinarity and the frontiers of knowledge. Mana [online]. 2011, vol.17, n.1, pp. 161-185. ISSN 0104-9313.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0104-93132011000100007.

This text deals with the complexity and development of Urban Anthropology. It is also an account of the author's career and his relations with different fields of knowledge, not only Social Sciences like Sociology and Political Science, but also Literature, Philosophy, History and the Arts in general. The text emphasizes the importance of crossing borders and frontiers as a way of enriching different lines of research and thought. Among other groups he cites the Chicago School of Sociology and British Social Anthropology as important examples of interdisciplinary work. The author draws attention to the complexity and heterogeneity of modern contemporary society and to the importance of mobilizing different traditions of work and research, especially when dealing with urban studies centred on the big cities and metropolises.

Keywords : Metropolis; Heterogeneity; Modern Contemporary Society; Interdisciplinarity.