The Ritual Animal

The Ritual Animal PDF Author: Harvey Whitehouse
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199646368
Category : Ritual
Languages : en
Pages : 251

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Book Description
Copying rituals has allowed cultural groups to proliferate over time. Rare, traumatic rituals produce strong cohesion in small relational groups, whereas daily/weekly rituals produce cohesion in expandable communities. This study presents a theory of how these two ritual modes have influenced history over thousands of years.

The Ritual Animal

The Ritual Animal PDF Author: Harvey Whitehouse
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199646368
Category : Ritual
Languages : en
Pages : 251

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Book Description
Copying rituals has allowed cultural groups to proliferate over time. Rare, traumatic rituals produce strong cohesion in small relational groups, whereas daily/weekly rituals produce cohesion in expandable communities. This study presents a theory of how these two ritual modes have influenced history over thousands of years.

Social Zooarchaeology

Social Zooarchaeology PDF Author: Nerissa Russell
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139504347
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 561

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Book Description
This is the first book to provide a systematic overview of social zooarchaeology, which takes a holistic view of human-animal relations in the past. Until recently, archaeological analysis of faunal evidence has primarily focused on the role of animals in the human diet and subsistence economy. This book, however, argues that animals have always played many more roles in human societies: as wealth, companions, spirit helpers, sacrificial victims, totems, centerpieces of feasts, objects of taboos, and more. These social factors are as significant as taphonomic processes in shaping animal bone assemblages. Nerissa Russell uses evidence derived from not only zooarchaeology, but also ethnography, history and classical studies, to suggest the range of human-animal relationships and to examine their importance in human society. Through exploring the significance of animals to ancient humans, this book provides a richer picture of past societies.

Wild Rituals

Wild Rituals PDF Author: Caitlin O'Connell
Publisher: Chronicle Books
ISBN: 1797201611
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
Wild Rituals explores how embracing the rituals of the animal kingdom can make us more connected to ourselves, nature, and others. Behavioral ecologist and world-renowned elephant scientist Caitlin O'Connell dives into the rituals of elephants, apes, zebras, rhinos, lions, whales, flamingos, and many more. This fascinating read helps us better understand how we are similar to wild animals, and encourages us to find healing, self-awareness, community, and self-reinvention. • Filled with fascinating stories on 10 different animal rituals • Features original full-color photos, from the Caribbean to the African savannah • Demonstrates the profound way we are similar to the wild creatures who captivate us Wild Rituals journeys into the desert, tundra, and rainforest to reveal the importance of rituals and how they can help us find a simpler, more meaningful way of living. In a culture of technology where we find ourselves living at a greater distance from nature and each other, this remarkable book taps into the unspoken languages of creatures around the world. • Caitlin O'Connell is on the faculty at Harvard Medical School and an award-winning author who spent more than 30 years studying animals in the wild. • Makes a great gift for anyone curious about nature, animals, and how humans compare to and interact with both • Add it to the shelf with books like Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel by Carl Safina; Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de Waal; The Inner Life of Animals: Love, Grief, and Compassion—Surprising Observations of a Hidden World by Peter Wohlleben; and The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness by Sy Montgomery.

Mourning Animals

Mourning Animals PDF Author: Margo DeMello
Publisher: MSU Press
ISBN: 1628952717
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 467

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Book Description
We live more intimately with nonhuman animals than ever before in history. The change in the way we cohabitate with animals can be seen in the way we treat them when they die. There is an almost infinite variety of ways to help us cope with the loss of our nonhuman friends—from burial, cremation, and taxidermy; to wearing or displaying the remains (ashes, fur, or other parts) of our deceased animals in jewelry, tattoos, or other artwork; to counselors who specialize in helping people mourn pets; to classes for veterinarians; to tips to help the surviving animals who are grieving their animal friends; to pet psychics and memorial websites. But the reality is that these practices, and related beliefs about animal souls or animal afterlife, generally only extend, with very few exceptions, to certain kinds of animals—pets. Most animals, in most cultures, are not mourned, and the question of an animal afterlife is not contemplated at all. Mourning Animals investigates how we mourn animal deaths, which animals are grievable, and what the implications are for all animals.

Animals in Ritual and Economy in a Roman Frontier Community

Animals in Ritual and Economy in a Roman Frontier Community PDF Author: Maaike Groot
Publisher: Amsterdam University Press
ISBN: 9089640223
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 285

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Book Description
Religion - Opfer - Ritus - Ernährung.

Animal Intimacies

Animal Intimacies PDF Author: Radhika Govindrajan
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022656004X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 235

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Book Description
“A delightful read [and] an important addition to human-animal relations studies.” —Anthropology Matters What does it mean to live and die in relation to other animals? Animal Intimacies posits this central question alongside the intimate—and intense—moments of care, kinship, violence, politics, indifference, and desire that occur between human and non-human animals. Built on extensive ethnographic fieldwork in the mountain villages of India’s Central Himalayas, Radhika Govindrajan’s book explores the number of ways that human and animal interact to cultivate relationships as interconnected, related beings. Whether it is through the study of the affect and ethics of ritual animal sacrifice, analysis of the right-wing political project of cow-protection, or examination of villagers’ talk about bears who abduct women and have sex with them, Govindrajan illustrates that multispecies relatedness relies on both difference and ineffable affinity between animals. Animal Intimacies breaks substantial new ground in animal studies, and Govindrajan’s detailed portrait of the social, political and religious life of the region will be of interest to cultural anthropologists and scholars of South Asia as well. “Immerses us in passionate case studies on the multiple relationships between Kumaoni villagers and animals in Uttarakhand.” —European Bulletin of Himalayan Research “A memorable and innovative ethnography.” —Piers Locke, University of Canterbury

The Ritual Killing and Burial of Animals

The Ritual Killing and Burial of Animals PDF Author: Aleksander Pluskowski
Publisher: Oxbow Books Limited
ISBN: 9781842174449
Category : Animal remains
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The killing and burial of animals in ritualistic contexts is encountered across Europe from Prehistory through to the historical period. This volume presents the state of research across Europe to illustrate how comparable interpretative frameworks are used by archaeologists working with both prehistoric and historical societies. Key questions include: How easy is it to identify ritually killed animals in the archaeological record? Can we tell if an animal has been killed specifically for such a purpose? Is it possible to reconstruct the rites associated with their deposition? What insights can be gained about the religious paradigms and ritual systems of the societies engaged in animal sacrifice? Together, the 16 papers represent a snapshot of the current state of research on this fundamental, recurring and spectacular aspect of human societies in the past.

Ritual: A Very Short Introduction

Ritual: A Very Short Introduction PDF Author: Barry Stephenson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199943583
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 143

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Book Description
Ritual is part of what it means to be human. Like sports, music, and drama, ritual defines and enriches culture, putting those who practice it in touch with sources of value and meaning larger than themselves. Ritual is unavoidable, yet it holds a place in modern life that is decidedly ambiguous. What is ritual? What does it do? Is it useful? What are the various kinds of ritual? Is ritual tradition bound and conservative or innovative and transformational? Alongside description of a number of specific rites, this Very Short Introduction explores ritual from both theoretical and historical perspectives. Barry Stephenson focuses on the places where ritual touches everyday life: in politics and power; moments of transformation in the life cycle; as performance and embodiment. He also discusses the boundaries of ritual, and how and why certain behaviors have been studied as ritual while others have not. Stephenson shows how ritual is an important vehicle for group and identity formation; how it generates and transmits beliefs and values; how it can be used to exploit and oppress; and how it has served as a touchstone for thinking about cultural origins and historical change. Encompassing the breadth and depth of modern ritual studies, Barry Stephenson's Very Short Introduction also develops a narrative of ritual's place in social and cultural life. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Behaviour Behind Bones

Behaviour Behind Bones PDF Author: Sharyn Jones O'Day
Publisher: Oxbow Books
ISBN: 1782979115
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 685

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Book Description
This book is the first in a series of volumes which form the published proceedings of the 9th meeting of the International Council of Archaeozoology (ICAZ), held in Durham in 2002. The 35 papers present a series of case studies from around the world. They stretch beyond the standard zooarchaeological topics of economy and ecology, and consider how zooarchaeological research can contribute to our understanding of human behaviour and social systems. The volume is divided into two parts. Part 1, Beyond Calories, focuses on the zooarchaeology of ritual and religion. Contributors discuss ways to approach questions of ritual and religion through the faunal record, and consider how material culture depicting and/or associated with animals can provides clues about ideology, religious practices and the role of animals within spiritual systems. Part 2, Equations for Inequality, looks at questions of identity, status and other forms of social differentiation in former human societies. Contributors discuss how differences in food consumption, nutrition, and food procurement strategies can be related to various forms of social differentiation among individuals and groups.

The Social Lives of Animals

The Social Lives of Animals PDF Author: Ashley Ward
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 1541600843
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 346

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Book Description
A rat will go out of its way to help a stranger in need. Lions have adopted the calves of their prey. Ants farm fungus in cooperatives. Why do we continue to believe that life in the animal kingdom is ruled by competition? In The Social Lives of Animals, biologist Ashley Ward takes us on a wild tour across the globe as he searches for a more accurate picture of how animals build societies. Ward drops in on a termite mating ritual (while his guides snack on the subjects), visits freelance baboon goatherds, and swims with a mixed family of whales and dolphins. Along the way, Ward shows that the social impulses we’ve long thought separated humans from other animals might actually be our strongest connection to them. Insightful, engaging, and often hilarious, The Social Lives of Animals demonstrates that you can learn more about animals by studying how they work together than by how they compete.