Dame (Margaret) Mary Douglas (née Twomey)
(1921-2007), AnthropologistSitter in 2 portraits
Born in San Remo, Italy, she studied anthropology as a postgraduate student at Oxford, gaining her PhD in 1951. Her fieldwork took her to the Congo. She then taught anthropology at University College, London until 1977, after which she held different academic positions in the USA until 1988. Her most famous book, Purity and Danger: An Analysis of Concepts of Pollution and Taboo (1966) reveals the eclectic nature of her knowledge and interests, covering a vast sweep of topics from adultery to Zoroastrianism. Other writings include Implicit Meanings (1975), The World of Goods (1979) and Leviticus as Literature(1999) about the Old Testament.
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