The Heart of the Pearl Shell

The Heart of the Pearl Shell PDF Author: James F. Weiner
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520336933
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description
For the Foi people who live on the edge of the central highlands of Papua New Guinea, the flow of pearl shells is the "heart" of their social life. The pearl shell is the exchange item that mediates the creation of their most important sexual and social roles. The Heart of the Pearl Shell analyzes a number of myths of the Foi people, elegantly bringing together significant ethnographic materials in a way that has important implications for the development of social theory in anthropology and in Melanesian studies. Scholars of semiotic-symbolic anthropology and of comparative religion will also share the author's interest in the meaning and role of mythology in Foi culture. Instead of relying on orthodox methods of Freudian or structuralist interpretation, James Weiner assumes there is a dialectical relationship between the images of Foi myth and the images of the Foi's social world. He demonstrates how each set of these images is dependent upon the other for its creation. This innovative study locates Foi social meaning in the re-creation and attempted solution of the moral dilemmas that are crystallized in mythology and other poetic usages. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1988.

The Heart of the Pearl Shell

The Heart of the Pearl Shell PDF Author: James F. Weiner
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520336933
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 350

Get Book Here

Book Description
For the Foi people who live on the edge of the central highlands of Papua New Guinea, the flow of pearl shells is the "heart" of their social life. The pearl shell is the exchange item that mediates the creation of their most important sexual and social roles. The Heart of the Pearl Shell analyzes a number of myths of the Foi people, elegantly bringing together significant ethnographic materials in a way that has important implications for the development of social theory in anthropology and in Melanesian studies. Scholars of semiotic-symbolic anthropology and of comparative religion will also share the author's interest in the meaning and role of mythology in Foi culture. Instead of relying on orthodox methods of Freudian or structuralist interpretation, James Weiner assumes there is a dialectical relationship between the images of Foi myth and the images of the Foi's social world. He demonstrates how each set of these images is dependent upon the other for its creation. This innovative study locates Foi social meaning in the re-creation and attempted solution of the moral dilemmas that are crystallized in mythology and other poetic usages. This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1988.

Gender and Kinship

Gender and Kinship PDF Author: Jane Fishburne Collier
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 9780804718196
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 398

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Book Description
A Stanford University Press classic.

Women in Between

Women in Between PDF Author: Marilyn Strathern
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780847677856
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description
In 1971 Marilyn Strathern provided what has now become a classic ethnographic text, Women In Between. Significantly, this pioneering contribution to feminist anthropology focuses on gender relations rather than on women alone. Re-issued now, Women in Between examines the attitudes of the Hagen people and analyzes the power of women in their male-dominated system. Strathern cites case studies of marriage arrangements, divorce, and traditional settlement disputes to illustrate women's status in Hagen society.

The Metamorphoses of Kinship

The Metamorphoses of Kinship PDF Author: Maurice Godelier
Publisher: Verso Books
ISBN: 184467746X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 657

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Book Description
With marriage in decline, divorce on the rise, the demise of the nuclear family, and the increase in marriages and adoptions among same-sex partners, it is clear that the structures of kinship in the modern West are in a state of flux. In The Metamorphoses of Kinship, the world-renowned anthropologist Maurice Godelier contextualizes these developments, surveying the accumulated experience of humanity with regard to such phenomena as the organization of lines of descent, sexuality and sexual prohibitions. In parallel, Godelier studies the evolution of Western conjugal and familial traditions from their roots in the nineteenth century to the present. The conclusion he draws is that it is never the case that a man and a woman are sufficient on their own to raise a child, and nowhere are relations of kinship or the family the keystone of society. Godelier argues that the changes of the last thirty years do not herald the disappearance or death agony of kinship, but rather its remarkable metamorphosis—one that, ironically, is bringing us closer to the “traditional” societies studied by ethnologists.

The Politics of Reproductive Ritual

The Politics of Reproductive Ritual PDF Author: Jeffery M. Paige
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520311736
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
"A welcome addition. They argue that rituals of reproduction in preindustrial societies are essentially political. In these societies, they say, men need to control the reproductive power of women in order to establish political power; where there is no law or central government, ritual is used as a way of gaining control. The type of ritual will vary, they conclude, according to the economic base of the society. . . .for those whoa re interested in the subject, this book is indispensable. Its thesis is challenging and the documentation is excellent. Paige and Paige have mad ean essential contribution to a long debate, and their theory is sure to stir new and lively controversy." --Science Digest This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1981.

Gender in Amazonia and Melanesia

Gender in Amazonia and Melanesia PDF Author: Thomas Gregor
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520228529
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 403

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Book Description
Amazonia and Melanesia are half a world in distance, yet their cultures bear similarities in the areas of sex and gender. This work looks at ways in which sex and gender are elaborated, obsessed over, and internalized.

The Pacific Islands

The Pacific Islands PDF Author: Moshe Rapaport
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
ISBN: 0824865847
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 474

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Book Description
The Pacific is the last major world region to be discovered by humans. Although small in total land area, its numerous islands and archipelagoes with their startlingly diverse habitats and biotas, extend across a third of the globe. This revised edition of a popular text explores the diverse landforms, climates, and ecosystems of the Pacific island region. Multiple chapters, written by leading specialists, cover the environment, history, culture, population, and economy. The work includes new or completely revised chapters on gender, music, logging, development, education, urbanization, health, ocean resources, and tourism. Throughout two key issues are addressed: the exceptional environmental challenges and the demographic/economic/political challenges facing the region. Although modern technology and media and waves of continental tourists are fast eroding island cultures, the continuing resilience of Pacific island populations is apparent. This is the only contemporary text on the Pacific Islands that covers both environment and sociocultural issues and will thus be indispensable for any serious student of the region. Unlike other reviews, it treats the entirety of Oceania (with the exception of Australia) and is well illustrated with numerous photos and maps, including a regional atlas. Contributors: David Abbott, Dennis A. Ahlburg, Glenn Banks, John Barker, Geoffrey Bertram, David A. Chappell, William C. Clarke, John Connell, Ron Crocombe, Julie Cupples, Derrick Depledge, Colin Filer, Gerard J. Fryer, Patricia Fryer, Brenden S. Holland, E. Alison Kay, David M. Kennedy, Lamont Lindstrom, Rick Lumpkin, Harley I. Manner, Selina Tusitala Marsh, Nancy McDowell, Hamish A. McGowan, Frank McShane, Simon Milne, R. John Morrison, Dieter Mueller-Dombois, Stephen G. Nelson, Patrick D. Nunn, Michael R. Ogden, Andrew Pawley, Jean-Louis Rallu, Vina Ram-Bidesi, Moshe Rapaport, Annette Sachs Robertson, Richard Scaglion, Donovan Storey, Andrew P. Sturman, Lynne D. Talley, James P. Terry, Randolph R. Thaman, Frank R. Thomas, Caroline Vercoe, Terence Wesley-Smith, Paul Wolffram.

Gender Analysis in Papua New Guinea

Gender Analysis in Papua New Guinea PDF Author: Elizabeth C. Brouwer
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 9780821343944
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 164

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Book Description
In October 1996, The East Asia and Pacific Region developed a Regional Gender Action Plan that stressed the importance of country-specific strategies regarding gender issues. This report on gender in Papua New Guinea intends to lay the foundation for such a strategy. The report provides an outline of the key historical, economic, demographic, political, geographic, socio-cultural, legal and institutional issues that are relevant to understanding the status of women in Papua New Guinea today.

Gender And Society In The New Guinea Highlands

Gender And Society In The New Guinea Highlands PDF Author: Marilyn G. Gelber
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429712367
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 207

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Book Description
The societies of the New Guinea Highlands are among the last-contacted horticulturalist peoples of the world. Endemic warfare, elaborate systems of exchange, flamboyant personality styles, and exaggerated forms of antagonism between the sexes have made them a subject of interest to anthropologists for three decades. This book examines the relationship between the sexes, especially the attitudes and behavior of men toward women, as a result of the economic, political, and structural constraints of Highland social organization. Hostility toward women, which is evident in a high level of violence toward women and an articulated fear of association with them, is given special attention. Dr. Gelber's study is unique not only because it treats gender relations in the entire culture area of the Highlands, but also because a broad array of types of anthropological analysis—ecosystemic, population-regulatory, economic, sociopolitical, psychological, and ideational—are considered for their relevance to the phenomenon of intersexual hostility. The author's emphasis on underlying problems of explanation and theory, as well as the treatment of attitudes and beliefs as a function of socioeconomic constraints, is a departure from previous modes of analysis and raises new issues in anthropological theory and in the study of gender.

Tahitian Transformation

Tahitian Transformation PDF Author: Victoria S. Lockwood
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781555873172
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
As culturally diverse, non-Western communities are drawn into the international division of labour, capitalism takes root in a number of ways. This book describes how capitalism has become a part of the lives of rural Tahitians, starting with the arrival of Westerners to the islands and detailing the nature of the transformation brought about by missionaries, merchants, and French colonisers - a transformation whose pace has accelerated with the islands' rapid modernisation and incorporation into the French welfare state.