The Nature of Race Relations

In a recent article in Social Forces Professor M. F. Ashley Montagu has made a studied attempt define the nature of race relations.' Since Mr. Montagu has written very much on this subject2 and since this article brings into focus his major conclusions, there should be some value in an examination of their validity. Moreover, there should probably be an added justification for this critique because both the approach and the variety of explanations presented have some considerable currency in the literature. In his discussion Mr. Montagu presents four rather distinct explanations of race relations based upon the concepts (a) ethnocentrism or instinctive group behavior, (b) class and caste relationships, (c) modern imperialism, and (d) social myths. The way in which these concepts are developed as hypotheses is remarkable as an achievement in involved thinking. To begin with the author criticizes Sir Arthur Keith for the latter's emphasis upon the inborn nature of and for his assertion that Nature employs prejudices to secure the separation of man into permanent groups. However, Montagu gives the following as his first major hypothesis

Race (biology) · Sociology · Contemporary Sociological Theory and Practice · Gender Studies · Political Economy and Marxism · Political Philosophy and Ethics

• The Politics of Applied Black Studies

  Open Access•Ravi K Perry•Journal of Applied Social Science•2012

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