Download or read book Women in Ritual and Symbolic Roles written by Anita Spring and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume of essays grew out of a symposium organized by Judith Hoch-Smith and Anita Spring for the 1974 American Anthropological Association meetings in Mexico City. The two-part symposium was enti tled "Women in Ritual and Symbolic Systems: I. Midwives, Madonnas, and Mediums; ll. Prostitutes, Witches, and Androgynes. " The sym posium participants were asked to explore theological, ritual, and sym bolic aspects-both positive and negative-of the feminine cultural do main, using ethnographic materials with which they were familiar. The resulting papers have been revised, edited, and gathered together in Women in Ritual and Symbolic Roles. The theoretical importance of these papers for the study of women's participation in culture and society rests on the assumption that reli gious ideas are paramount forces in social life, that relationships be tween the sexes, the nature of female sexuality, and the social and cul tural roles of women are in large part defined by religious ideas. That this proposition remains valid long after religion itself has ceased to be a living truth in the lives of many people can be seen from the tenacious ness of Judeo-Christian ideas about women in the contemporary West ern world. Both the expansion of life options for women and the creation of more positive cultural images of the female are intimately related to changes in the my tho-symbolic portraits that people carry around in their heads. These portraits are almost exclusively constructed from mythological and religious conceptions inherent in all facets of culture.
Download or read book Women in Ritual and Symbolic Roles written by Anita Spring and published by Springer. This book was released on 2012-12-12 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume of essays grew out of a symposium organized by Judith Hoch-Smith and Anita Spring for the 1974 American Anthropological Association meetings in Mexico City. The two-part symposium was enti tled "Women in Ritual and Symbolic Systems: I. Midwives, Madonnas, and Mediums; ll. Prostitutes, Witches, and Androgynes. " The sym posium participants were asked to explore theological, ritual, and sym bolic aspects-both positive and negative-of the feminine cultural do main, using ethnographic materials with which they were familiar. The resulting papers have been revised, edited, and gathered together in Women in Ritual and Symbolic Roles. The theoretical importance of these papers for the study of women's participation in culture and society rests on the assumption that reli gious ideas are paramount forces in social life, that relationships be tween the sexes, the nature of female sexuality, and the social and cul tural roles of women are in large part defined by religious ideas. That this proposition remains valid long after religion itself has ceased to be a living truth in the lives of many people can be seen from the tenacious ness of Judeo-Christian ideas about women in the contemporary West ern world. Both the expansion of life options for women and the creation of more positive cultural images of the female are intimately related to changes in the my tho-symbolic portraits that people carry around in their heads. These portraits are almost exclusively constructed from mythological and religious conceptions inherent in all facets of culture.
Download or read book Roles and Rituals for Hindu Women written by Julia Leslie and published by Motilal Banarsidass Publ.. This book was released on 1992 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The considerable interest currently being expressed in women and religion has thrown down an important challenge; the need to see women not merely as the passive victims of an oppressive ideology but also perhaps primarily as the active agents of their own positive constructs. This book therefore aims to fill a notable gap in the literature. Twelve contributors study the role of women in Hindu religion by examining textual studies of the part played by women in a variety of religion rituals, both past and present, by exploring the socio-religious context of their various communites; and by using specialist material to draw on cross-cultural conclusions.
Download or read book Dangerous Wives and Sacred Sisters written by Lynn Bennett and published by New York : Columbia University Press. This book was released on 1983 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Human Rights Race and Resistance in Africa and the African Diaspora written by Toyin Falola and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2016-10-04 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Africans and their descendants have long been faced with abuse of their human rights, most frequently due to racism or racialized issues. Consequently, understanding shifting conceptualizations of race and identity is essential to understanding how people of color confronted these encounters. This book addresses these issues and their connections to social justice, discrimination, and equality movements. From colonial abuses or their legacies, black people around the world have historically encountered discrimination, and yet they do not experience injustice opaquely. The chapters in this book explore and clarify how Africans, and their descendants, struggled to achieve agency despite long histories of discrimination. Contributors draw upon a range of case studies related to resistance, and examine these in conjunction with human rights and the concept of race to provide a thorough exploration of the diasporic experience. Human Rights, Race, and Resistance in Africa and the African Diaspora will appeal to students and scholars of Ethnic and Racial Studies, African History, and Diaspora Studies.
Download or read book Donors Devotees and Daughters of God written by Leslie C. Orr and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2000 with total page 318 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Through the use of epigraphical evidence, Leslie C. Orr brings into focus the activities and identities of the temple women (devadasis) of medieval South India, and suggests new ways of understanding the character of the temple woman -- and of the role of women in Indian religion and society.
Download or read book Birthing Justice written by Julia Chinyere Oparah and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-12-22 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is a global crisis in maternal health care for black women. In the United States, black women are over three times more likely to perish from pregnancy-related complications than white women; their babies are half as likely to survive the first year. Many black women experience policing, coercion, and disempowerment during pregnancy and childbirth and are disconnected from alternative birthing traditions. This book places black women's voices at the center of the debate on what should be done to fix the broken maternity system and foregrounds black women's agency in the emerging birth justice movement. Mixing scholarly, activist, and personal perspectives, the book shows readers how they too can change lives, one birth at a time.
Download or read book Religion written by Meredith B. McGuire and published by Waveland Press. This book was released on 2008-04-10 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this insightful examination of religions in their local and global context, the author shows how analyzing religions social context helps us understand individuals lives, social movements, national and ethnic politics, and widespread social changes. Well-researched and theory-based, the text is filled with intriguing anecdotes, empirical data, thought-provoking discussions of both mainstream and nonofficial religions, and historical and contemporary examples that illustrate the interplay between religion and society across cultures. This volume takes an integrated approach to examining religion and includes cross-cultural, historical, and methodological viewpoints. Readers will learn to identify the complex interactions between religion and societal contexts, as well as the ways in which these interactions shape individuals, communities, national politics, and the world.
Download or read book Number Our Days written by Barbara Myerhoff and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 1980-05-09 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Anthropologist Myerhoff's penetrating exploration of the aging process is brilliant sociology--as well as living history--that tells readers about the importance of ritual, the agonies of aging, and the indomitable human spirit. "(The book) shines with the luminous wit of old age".--Robert Bly.
Download or read book Women Pain and Death written by Evy Johanne Håland and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2009-10-02 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Women, Pain and Death: Rituals and Everyday-Life on the Margins of Europe and Beyond” is a cross-cultural and multidisciplinary collection of articles representing different perspectives and topics related to the general theme Women and Death from different periods and parts of Europe, as well as the Middle East and Asia, i.e. areas where, through the ages, there have been a constant interaction and discourse between a variety of people, often with different ethnic backgrounds. The studies illustrate many parallels between the various societies and religious groupings, despite of many differences, both in time and space. The theme, death, is mostly seen from what have been regarded as the geographical margins of society as well as concerning the people involved: women. Thus, the articles, most of them presenting original material from areas which are not very known for English readers, offer new perspectives on the processes of cultural changes. The collection has important ramification for current research surrounding the shaping of a “European identity”, the marketing of regional and national heritages. In connection with the present-day aim of connecting the various European heritages, and developing a vision of Europe and its constituent elements that is both global and rooted, the work has great relevance. One may also mention the new international initiative on intangible heritage, spearheaded by UNESCO.
Download or read book Visionary Women written by Phyllis Mack and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1992 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This study of radical prophecy in seventeenth-century England explores the significance of gender in the thinking and behaviour of hundreds of religious visionaries between 1650 and 1700. The centrepiece of the work is a study of the Society of Friends, or Quakers, by far the largest and most successful of teh radical sectarian groups active during the period of the English civil war and the inter-regnum."--Jacket.
Download or read book The SAGE Handbook of Islamic Studies written by Akbar S Ahmed and published by SAGE. This book was released on 2010-04-22 with total page 673 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ... a welcome addition to the already available introductory works on Islam. The chapters of the book combine depth of analysis and erudition on a wide range of subjects. Thus in a single volume one finds several superbly written papers not only on the foundations of Islam and the manifestations of Islamic culture but also on issues which are at the centre of contemporary debates among Muslims such as multiculturalism, social justice, democracy and diversity. As a sourcebook this work is equally useful for students, academicians and general readers′ - Zafar Ishaq Ansari, Director, Islamic Research Institute, International Islamic University Islamic Studies is at a critical moment in its history. It seeks both to maintain its rich history and to engage with other - sometimes dominant - cultural and political studies. This tension is producing complex changes in both the theory and the practice of Islamic Studies. This timely and stimulating Handbook, edited by world-class experts in the field, provides a comprehensive guide to Islamic Studies today. It examines the main issues in the field and explores the key debates. It provides readers with an indispensable, balanced guide to the roots of Islam and the challenges it faces in the twenty-first century. The Handbook includes discussions of: - Islam as a community of discourse and a global system - Islam, diaspora and multiculturalism - The Qu′ran today - Islam as a moral and judicial system - Islam and politics - Islam and culture - Diversities and Islam Concise, level-headed and penetrating, this collection will be of interest to anyone who studies contemporary Islam. It brings together an unparalleled collection of international scholars who illuminate some of the most urgent and complex issues in the world today.
Download or read book From Blessing to Violence written by Maurice Bloch and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1986-04-30 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This detailed description and analysis of Madagascar's Merina tribe and its ancient circumcision ritual is significant as a basis for the analysis of anthropological theories of ritual in general.
Download or read book Women s Roles in Sub Saharan Africa written by Toyin Falola and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2012-01-06 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This exhaustive exploration of the sociocultural, political, and economic roles of African women through history demonstrates how African women have shaped—and continue to shape—their societies. Women play essential, critical roles in every society; African women south of the Sahara are certainly no different. Women's Roles in Sub-Saharan Africa adds significantly to our understanding of the ways in which women contribute to the fabric of human civilization. This book provides an in-depth exploration of African women's roles in society from precolonial periods to the contemporary era. Topical sections describe the roles that women play in family, courtship and marriage, religion, work, literature and arts, and government. Each of the six chapters has been structured to elucidate women's roles and functions in society as partners, as active participants, as defenders of their status and occupations, and as agents of change. Authors Nana Akua Amponsah and Toyin Falola present a thought-provoking work that looks at the complicated victimhood/powerful-female paradigm in women and gender studies in Africa, and challenge ideological interest in African historiography that privilege male representation.
Download or read book The Archaeology of Household Activities written by Penelope Allison and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-05-13 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This pioneering collection engages with recent research in different areas of the archaeological discipline to bring together case-studies of the household material culture from later prehistoric and classical periods. The book provides a comprehensive and accessible study for students into the material records of past households, aiding wider understanding of our own domestic development.
Download or read book Religion the Social Context written by Meredith B. McGuire and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: McGuire provides students with an integrated overview of the subject and a useful basis for critical evaluation.
Download or read book Re Inventing Africa written by Ifi Amadiume and published by Zed Books. This book was released on 1997-12 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book reveals how conventional anthropology has consistently imposed European ideas of the "natural" nuclear family, women as passive object, and class differences on a continent with a long history of women with power doing things differently. Amadiume argues for an end to anthropology and calls instead for a social history of Africa, by Africans.
