Levy-Bruhl speculates about what he posited as the two basic mind-sets of mankind; "primitive" and "Western." The primitive mind does not differentiate the supernatural from reality, but rather uses "mystical participation" to manipulate the world. Moreover, the primitive mind doesn't address contradictions. The Western mind, by contrast, uses speculation and logic. ‘How Natives Think’ IS an accurate and valuable contribution to anthropology.
1. Collective representations in primitives’ perceptions and the mystical character of such 2. The law of participation 3. The functioning of prelogical mentality 4. The mentality of primitives in relation to the languages they speak 5. Prelogical mentality in relation to numeration 6. Institutions in which collective representatives governed by the law of participation are involved 7. Institutions of which collective representations governed by the law of participation are involved (II) 8. Institutions of which collective representations governed by the law of participation are involved (III) 9. The transition to the higher mental types.
Biography
Lucien Lévy-Bruhl (10 April 1857 – 13 March 1939) was a French scholar trained in philosophy, who made contributions to the budding fields of sociology and ethnology. His primary field of study involved primitive mentality. Lévy-Bruhl was born in Paris. He was an anthropologist who wrote about the 'primitive mind'. Lévy-Bruhl believed in a historical and evolutionary teleology leading from the primitive mind to the modern mind.
