Overview
The curanderos of northern Peru, traditional healing specialists who invoke Jesus Christ and the saints with a mescaline sacrament and a shamanic rattle, are not vestigial curiosities nor are their patients rural illiterates without access to ""modern medicine."" Instead, many of these shamans have thriving urban practices with clients from all levels of society. Sorcery and Shamanism documents the lives and rituals of twelve curanderos, offering a perspective on their curing role and shared knowledge. Authors Donald Joralemon and Douglas Sharon also consider the therapeutic experiences of over one hundred patients, including case histories and follow-ups. They offer a broad view of the shamans' work in modern Peruvian society, particularly in connection with gender-based conflicts. The significant work goes a long way toward dispelling the stereotype of shamans as enigmatic and wise, showing them to be pragmatic curers confronting the health effects of everyday aggressions and betrayals.
Full Product Details
Author: Donald Joralemon ,
Douglas Sharon ,
Douglas Sharon ,
Donald Joralemon
Publisher: University of Utah Press,U.S.
Imprint: University of Utah Press,U.S.
Dimensions:
Width: 15.20cm
, Height: 1.50cm
, Length: 22.90cm
Weight: 0.432kg
ISBN: 9780874806403
ISBN 10: 0874806402
Pages: 316
Publication Date: 30 November 1999
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
Remarkable ethnography. Collaborative research at its best. The text builds on multiple shifts in perspective, moving between shamans and their patients, cosmology and political economy, shamanism as belief system and shamanism as business. The result is one of the most comprehensive, richly nuanced studies in ethnomedical literature. This is an excellent text for teaching shamanism in medical anthropology courses. The clarity of writing and the authors skill in presenting sophisticated ideas in an engaging manner make it useful at both undergraduate and graduate levels. It offers a wealth of information for specialists interested in ethnomedicine, cosmology, and ritual. Medical Anthropology Quarterly
Remarkable ethnography. Collaborative research at its best. The text builds on multiple shifts in perspective, moving between shamans and their patients, cosmology and political economy, shamanism as belief system and shamanism as business. The result is one of the most comprehensive, richly nuanced studies in ethnomedical literature. This is an excellent text for teaching shamanism in medical anthropology courses. The clarity of writing and the authors' skill in presenting sophisticated ideas in an engaging manner make it useful at both undergraduate and graduate levels. It offers a wealth of information for specialists interested in ethnomedicine, cosmology, and ritual. -- Medical Anthropology Quarterly
Author Information
Donald Joralemon is professor of anthropology at Smith College. Douglas Sharon is director of the San Diego Museum of Man.
