Below is a lecture by Philippe Descola hosted by the Department of History and Civilization, at the European University Institute, and organised in collaboration with the Collège de France and the Ambassade de France in Italy.

In his speech, Descola explores different ways to conceive of structural transformations in anthropology, and builds on these ideas to approach the epistemological consequences of comprehending ontological pluralism as a group of transformations.

Philippe Descola is a French anthropologist noted for studies of the Achuar, one of several Jivaroan peoples, and for his contributions to anthropological theory. Descola’s research started in philosophy and then he later became a student of Claude Lévi-Strauss. His book Beyond Nature and Culture (2013) from University of Chicago Press is essential reading.