In Gods of the Upper Air, Charles King delves into the world of cultural anthropology at the dawn of the twentieth century, shifting from his usual political science background. The book explores the journey of scientists who found themselves at the forefront of a significant moral battle: the quest to demonstrate that humanity is a cohesive entity, transcending differences in skin color, gender, ability, and customs. King’s narrative is well-researched, with a plethora of sources provided by the author. His descriptive writing vividly captures the era, painting scenes like “Gray cruisers, destroyers, and support vessels clogged the harbor. The surface of the water was an oily rainbow… Airplanes screamed overhead. Below, a dozen Fords sputtered along a narrow concrete road.”
King focuses on Franz “Papa” Boas, an ethnologist, and the cohort of female anthropologists he mentored at Columbia University, including Margaret Mead, Zora Neale Hurston, Ruth Benedict, and Ella Cara Deloria Boas. Mead, a pivotal figure in the book and among the first women to earn a doctoral degree in anthropology from Columbia, is introduced early on. As Mead embarks on a research expedition to American Samoa to study adolescent sexual norms, she grapples with personal challenges, navigating through romantic uncertainties and questioning the significance of her research findings.
By delving into Mead’s personal story, King subtly challenges the reader’s perceptions of societal norms during that period, portraying a progressive rather than a conservative outlook. Through Mead’s uncertainties about her work, King mirrors the broader crisis in the field of anthropology at the time and delves into fundamental questions like the natural divisions of human society, the universality of morality, and the treatment of cultures different from our own.
Under the guidance of her mentor Boas, Mead learns to interpret new discoveries in ways that resonate with both herself and society. Boas, a Prussian-born physicist turned geographer, urged researchers to approach ethnographic studies with a mindset of relativism, emphasizing the need to set aside preconceived notions to understand other cultures objectively. However, Boas’s views clashed with the prevalent beliefs of the era that viewed Western civilization as the standard of cultural advancement.
King vividly describes the academic and personal struggles faced by Boas and his followers, particularly the enthusiastic female students from Barnard College, who became prominent figures in the field of anthropology. Supporting characters like the eugenicist Madison Grant provide additional depth to the narrative, contrasting Boas’s stance by advocating discriminatory immigration policies based on racial hierarchies.
Through conflicts like the one with Grant, King highlights the contemporary relevance of the book’s themes, connecting sociopolitical issues such as immigration, nationalism, and racial equality to the past. Gods of the Upper Air weaves together historical accuracy with compelling storytelling, showcasing how entrenched norms often hinder the acceptance of conflicting facts, potentially impeding ideological progress over time.
