In a series of dazzling essays and immersive ethnographies, Clifford Geertz wrought a gentle revolution in fieldwork and anthropological writing. Drawing on sociology, philosophy, and literary criticism, he fashioned a unique and compelling approach: humanistic, liberal, richly detailed, and aesthetically alive, repositioning anthropology as a key discipline in the contemporary world. Tracing his development across half a century, and assessing his controversial legacy today, this book captures what made Geertz seminal to thinkers as different as Keith Thomas, Jerome Bruner, and Stephen Greenblatt. Through close readings, it shows why he remains both a stimulus for anthropology and a vital resource for contemporary thought.