Module 2 Flashcards
(12 cards)
How does Mary Douglas understand ritual? What kind of power lies within ritual practice?
A uniform process that follows certain protocol to reinforce normative social order BUT also an opportunity for change which can result in a “dangerous” situation.
According to Mary Douglas, what exactly is “dirt”?
Dirt is that which promotes disorder in the environment, consisting of hygienic concerns and social conventions
How does Durkheim explain the sacred and profane?
Sacred and profane were entirely separate elements of existence
What is medical materialism?
The use of psychological or psychoanalyical explanation for religious phenomena or religious experiences
Explain Douglas’ concept of compartmentalization. How does this link to ‘order’?
compartmentalization describes how humans organize things into ‘natural’ categories, like how shoes don’t belong on the bed. this works into order b/c humans like to organize
Ambiguity vs anomaly
Ambiguity is an experience that can be interpreted in 2+ ways.
anomaly is something that doesn’t fit into our predetermine classifications
How does society (in general) react when facing ambiguity/anomaly?
- choose one of the interpretation of ambiguity
- The anomaly is physically controlled/removed
- Society doesn’t like acceptance of anomalies which strengthens their resolve against it
Anomalies are classified and dangerous & therefore avoided
Ambiguity can be used positively to enrich meaning
What kind of power lies within the margins of society according to Douglas
a dangerous form of power which is unpredictable and does not conform to the mainstream social expectations.
Explain the differences between internal and external forms of power. Provide examples for each category.
Internal - power that comes from within the psyche of an individual
- Evil eye, witchcraft, and prophecy
External - symbols which are used by the individual
- Spells, curses and charms
How does the individual reflect the concerns of society more generally?
There is a level of ambiguity in ritual practices where there is a threshold where the individual doesn’t have a recognizable identity within normative social boundaries
Name and explain the 4 types of social pollution using contemporary examples that we discussed in class.
danger pressing on external boundaries
danger which arises as a result of transgressing internal lines of the social system
danger within the margins of these lines
danger which arises from internal contradiction.
Why does the body contain an inherent capacity for danger/pollution?
waste is excreted from bodily orifices which are points of vulnerability and this is why she argues that bodily waste also possesses a dangerous
