Ritual: Key Concepts in Religion by Andrew Strathern (English) Hardcover Book

Author Biography

Pamela J. Stewart is Research Associate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh, USA.
Andrew Strathern is Mellon Professor of Anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh, USA.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: Problems of Definition
2. Early Grand Theorists
3. The Fieldwork Revolution: Malinowski, Racliffe-Brown and Functionalism
4. Structure and Process: Victor Turner
5. Ancestor Worship: Meyer Fortes and Psychological Interpretations
6. Sacrifice
7. Contemporary Processual and Post-Processual Approaches: Questions of Meanings and Exegesis 8. Performance and Perfomativity
9. New Cognitive Approaches: Old Wine in New Bottles?
10. Conclusions: Back to Framing and Values
Bibliography
Index

Promotional

An introduction to the concept of ritual, a key component in the study of religion.

Long Description

Ritual has emerged as a major focus of academic interest. As a concept, the idea of ritual integrates the study of behavior both within and beyond the domain of religion. Ritual can be both secular and religious in character. There is renewed interest in questions such as: Why do rituals exist at all? What has been, and continues to be, their place in society? How do they change over time? Such questions exist against a backdrop of assumptions about development, modernization, and disenchantment of the world. Written with the specific needs of students of religious studies in mind, Ritual: Key Concepts in Religious Studies surveys the field of ritual studies looking at it both historically within anthropology and in terms of its contemporary relevance to mass phenomena.

Review Quote

Ritual: Key Concepts in Religion provides an important, powerful and provocative advance in the study of ritual. Braiding together reflection on rituals in many places with cutting edge analysis, the authors demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of existing concepts. They make possible a greatly enriched performance of theorizing ritual.

Promotional "Headline"

An introduction to the concept of ritual, a key component in the study of religion.

Feature

Ritual is a popular course option, and a key component in the study of religion.

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