Projects, revisited: A concept for the anthropology of the good

Abstract

In this article, I revisit the concept of project as it has been elaborated in anthropological theory in order to evaluate its relevance for contemporary debates regarding the anthropology of the good. In anthropological theory, projects have been understood as culturally constituted desires and aspirations that endure beyond a given moment to guide social action. I identify additional theorizations of the concept of project by tracing its development through 20th-century existential phenomenology and its incorporation into anthropology. As a result, I clarify two understandings of projects: as a dimension of social action and as an existential structure. I argue for the importance of distinguishing these two dimensions of projects and propose that this more robust theorization of the concept offers analytical tools for considering the politics of the good.