Linton's axe

is an axiom used to show the ever-changing relations between form, use, meaning, and function. Following this axiom, the same ax becomes a markedly different object when it is engaged in the act of cutting wood, decapitation, war, or serving as a prop in a ritual.

LINTON'S AXE: USE, MEANING, FUNCTION (1) USED TO CUT WOOD (2) FUNCTIONS TO PROVIDE FUEL (3) MEANING USE + FUNCTION An axe, for example, following Linton's formulation, has to the group employing it form, use, meaning, and, ultimately, function. (the study of man 402-19) Even if form may remain constant, use and meaning, as well as function, may vary. An axe is used to cut wood, it functions to produce fuel, its meaning is associated with its use and function. But when an axe is brandished in a dance, used for decapitation, or in war, its use and function may change. It may, in short, come to be associated with quite different institutions than that of the economic business of woodgetting. (spencer 1965: 3)

linton's axe, n.Definitions

linton's axe