Sahlins argues that human behavior cannot be reduced to mere biological imperatives because culture interposes itself as a unique, symbolic meaning system between human genetics and social practice. He takes aim at "vulgar sociobiology," demonstrating through vast cross-cultural examples that fundamental social structures—especially human kinship systems—are constructed on variable cultural rules rather than calculated genetic or evolutionary self-interest. Furthermore, Sahlins provides an ideological critique, revealing that sociobiological models often reflect Western capitalist frameworks mistakenly projected onto nature. Ultimately, this foundational text remains an indispensable defense of the autonomy of cultural anthropology, asserting that while biology sets physical limits, it is the symbolic faculty of culture that dictates human society.

Marshall Sahlins was Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor of Anthropology at the University of Chicago. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, he was a Guggenheim Fellow and visiting professor at the University of Paris, Nanterre