The Thrashing of Margaret Mead

I went to see Paul Shankman talk about his book "The Thrashing of Margaret Mead: Anatomy of a Controversy," at the beginning of the semester but had trouble registering to post about it.

He discussed his book and research into the controversy over Mead's work in Samoa and essentially weather the adolescent girls there lied to her or told the truth about their sexuality. The entire controversy hinges around a revisiting of her work and sources by Derek Freeman.

Shankman presented a dispassionate and panoramic view of the controversy. He compiled a lot of evidence that Freeman was full of shit and had an egotistical and or moral agenda to fulfill. Freeman's whole case hinged on one then elderly woman who he said was Mead's primary contact/source for her findings but this did not seem to be the case upon further inquiry and cast doubt on the credibility of Freeman's accusations. Shankman was able to show on the old analog projector a snide Christmas letter that read something to the effect of "...you are wrong and I dislike you.. merry Xmass" but written in a superficially pleasant/academic tone (its been a while so I can't remember it verbatim).

I think Shankman did his very best to give Freeman the benefit of the doubt... But Freeman reminded me of an internet troll you see on various forums online. He just wrote a lot of trollish letters and attacked the reputation of the defenseless dead instead.