Legal anthropology is an interdisciplinary science on the border between anthropology and theory of law and the state. During its beginnings in 1920s it was dealing with legal and political systems of primitive societies and from such findings it tried to extract generally applicable principles that could be utilized also in the case of modern societies. Legal anthropology understands any legal system as an integral part of the society in which it is being used. Therefore it requires a research not only of the legal system but of the society as a whole (material conditions, culture, language, etc.) and also of man with his biological qualities, thinking, and habits. However, this science needs to overcome the trend of its ideologization and its use as a «tool» in an effort to prove the «superiority of non-Western cultures» or even«the corruption of the whole masculine aggressive Western civilization.» Like any scientific method or theory, legal anthropology must be used critically and with the understanding of it limitations.
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