Ruth Benedict

Ruth Fulton was born in New York on June 5, 1887 to a surgeon and a teacher. A childhood illness left her partially deaf, causing a shyness that she carried with her throughout her life and achievements. She attended Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York for her undergraduate study. In 1914 she married Stanley Benedict, a biochemist at Cornell Medical College in New York City. Heartbroken upon finding she couldn’t conceive, Benedict became absorbed in intellectual activity and she found the discipline that would enrich her life: Anthropology.

Ruth Benedict was one of few women in the field of Anthropology at the time. In 1921, she began to study under Franz Boas, the “Father of American Anthropology,” at Columbia University. Her approach to anthropology was revolutionary and holistic and was motivated by her belief in cultural relativity, a rare perspective even today. She quickly achieved her Ph.D. in Anthropology in 1923.

In 1922, she began teaching at Bernard College where she met the fascinating Margaret Mead with whom she had a life-long friendship. From 1922-1939, Benedict did field studies of the Serrano, the Zuni, the Cochiti, the Pima, and the Blackfoot Indians. Benedict’s husband wasn’t supportive of her career and in 1931 they split up. It is generally thought that she and Mead were lovers at this time. Stanley died in 1936.

The relationship between Mead and Benedict has been the source of much curiosity.

Her book, Patterns of Culture, was published in 1934 and “remains one of the most widely read books in the social sciences ever written” (webster.edu). She rose quickly in the field of academia to recognition taking several positions throughout the next few years including acting executive director of the Department of Anthropology and Columbia and president of the American Anthropological Association. She also did some work for the government during World War II studying Japanese and German culture. Ruth Fulton Benedict died in 1948.

Benedict's Patterns of Culture

Hochman, Susan K. "RUTH FULTON BENEDICT." Webster.Edu. N.P., N.D. Web. 03/04/2012. <http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/ruthbenedict.html >

"Ruth Benedict." Vcencyclopedia.vassar.edu. Vassar Encyclopedia. N.D. Web. 03/04/2012.                 <http://vcencyclopedia.vassar.edu/alumni/ruth-benedict.html >

"Ruth Benedict." Columbia.edu. Columbia University Department of Anthropology. N.D. Web. 03/04/2012. < http://www.columbia.edu/cu/anthropology/about/main/one/benedict.html >

--Brittany M Fisher