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%T Gellner's Structural-Functional-Culturalism %A Hann, Chris %J Sociologický časopis / Czech Sociological Review %N 2 %P 173-181 %V 9 %D 2001 %K Gellner, Ernest %= 2009-02-26T11:17:00Z %> https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-53524 %X Enlightenment traditions celebrating the individual & knowledge that is universally valid are only one stream in the social philosophy of Ernest Gellner. As a philosopher, he vehemently rejected Wittgensteinian relativism. As a social anthropologist, he prioritized the study of 'structure' & 'function,' rather than cultural 'costume.' Yet his theory of nationalism relies on a concept of culture that I suggest derives ultimately from the Herderian countercurrent to enlightenment universalism. This notion of culture has a surprising affinity with the world view of Clifford Geertz. The paper argues that such holistic notions of 'a culture' are unconvincing anthropologically, increasingly unrealistic sociologically, & antiliberal politically. %C MISC %G en %9 journal article %W GESIS - http://www.gesis.org %~ SSOAR - http://www.ssoar.info