Overview

This concise introductory textbook emphasizes the major concepts of both anthropology and the anthropology of religion.  It is aimed at students encountering anthropology for the first time.  Reviewers describe the text as vivid, rich, user-friendly, accessible, and well-organized.   The text examines religious expression from a cross-cultural perspective while incorporating key theoretical concepts.  In addition to providing a basic overview of anthropology, including definition of key terms and exposure to ethnographies, the text exposes students to the varying complexity of world religions.

Full Product Details

Author:   Rebecca Stein ,  Philip L Stein
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Inc
Imprint:   Routledge
Edition:   3rd edition
Dimensions:   Width: 17.20cm , Height: 1.30cm , Length: 22.10cm
Weight:   0.380kg
ISBN:  

9780205718115

ISBN 10:   0205718116
Pages:   288
Publication Date:   02 December 2010
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   No Longer Our Product
Availability:   Awaiting stock  
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Table of Contents

  1          The Anthropological Study of Religion    1 The Anthropological Perspective    1 The Holistic Approach    The Study of Human Societies    The Fore of New Guinea: An Ethnographic Example    Two Ways of Viewing Culture    Cultural Relativism    BOX 1.1 • Karen McCarthy Brown and Vodou    The Concept of Culture    The Study of Religion    Attempts at Defining Religion    The Domain of Religion    Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Religion    BOX 1.2 • Malinowski and the Trobriand Islands    BOX 1.3 • Evans-Pritchard and the Azande    The Biological Basis of Religious Behavior    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     2          Mythology    The Nature of Myths    Worldview    Stories of the Supernatural    The Nature of Oral Texts    BOX 2.1 • Genesis   BOX 2.2 • The Gender-Neutral Christian Bible    Understanding Myths    Approaches to Analysis of Myths    BOX 2.3 • The Gururumba Creation Story    Common Themes in Myths    BOX 2.4 • The Navaho Creation Story: Diné Bahanè    BOX 2.5 • The Raven Steals the Light     BOX 2.6 • Joseph Campbell    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     3          Religious Symbols    What Is a Symbol?    Religious Symbols    BOX 3.1 • Religious Toys and Games    Sacred Art    The Sarcophagus of Lord Pakal    The Meaning of Color    Sacred Space and Sacred Time    The Meaning of Time    BOX 3.2 • The End of Time    Sacred Time and Space in Australia    The Symbolism of Music and Dance    The Symbolism of Music    The Symbolism of Dance    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     4          Ritual    The Basics of Ritual Performance    Prescriptive and Situational Rituals    Periodic and Occasional Rituals    A Classification of Rituals   A Survey of Rituals    Technological Rituals    Social Rites of Intensification      Therapy Rituals and Healing    Salvation Rituals    Revitalization Rituals    Rites of Passage    The Structure of a Rite of Passage    Coming-of-Age Rituals    Alterations of the Human Body    Pilgrimages    BOX 4.1 • The Hajj    The Huichol Pilgrimage    Religious Obligations    Tabu    Jewish Food Laws    BOX 4.2 • Menstrual Tabus    Conclusion    1 BOX 4.2 • The Way of the Amish    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     5          Altered States of Consciousness    The Nature of Altered States of Consciousness    Entering an Altered State of Consciousness    The Biological Basis of Altered States of Consciousness    BOX 5.1 • Altered States in Upper Paleolithic Art    Drug-Induced Altered States    BOX 5.2 • The Native American Church    Ethnographic Examples of Altered States of Consciousness    The Holiness Churches    San Healing Rituals    The Sun Dance of the Cheyenne    Religious Use of Drugs in South America    Rastafarians    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     6          Religious Specialists    Shamans    Defining Shamanism    Siberian Shamanism    Shamanism among the Akimel O’odham    Korean Shamanism    Pentecostal Healers as Shamans    Neoshamanism    BOX 6.1 • Clown Doctors as Shamans    Priests    Aztec Priests    Zuni Priests    Okinawan Priestesses    Eastern Orthodox Priests     Other Specialists    Healers and Diviners    BOX 6.2 • African Healers Meet Western Medicine    Prophets    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     7          Magic and Divination    The World of Magic    Magic and Religion    Magic and Science     Rules of Magic    The Function of Magic    Why Magic Works    Magic in Society    Magic in the Trobriand Islands    BOX 7.1 • Trobriand Island Magic    Magic among the Azande    Sorcery among the Fore    Wiccan Magic    Divination    Forms of Divination    Divination Techniques    BOX 7.2 • I Ching: The Book of Changes    Fore Divination    Oracles of the Azande    Divination in Ancient Greece: The Oracle at Delphi    Astrology    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     8          Souls, Ghosts, and Death    Souls and Ancestors    Variation in the Concept of the Soul    Souls, Death, and the Afterlife    BOX 8.1 • How Do You Get to Heaven?    Examples of Concepts of the Soul    Ancestors    BOX 8.2 • Determining Death    Bodies and Souls    Ghosts    The Living Dead: Vampires and Zombies    Death Rituals    Funeral Rituals    Disposal of the Body    U.S Death Rituals in the Nineteenth Century    U.S Funeral Rituals Today    BOX 8.3 • Roadside Memorials    Days of Death    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     9          Gods and Spirits    Spirits    The Dani View of the Supernatural    Guardian Spirits and the Native American Vision Quest    Jinn    Christian Angels and Demons    Gods     BOX 9.1 • Christian Demonic Exorcism in the United States    Types of Gods    Gods and Society    BOX 9.2 • Games and Gods    The Gods of the Yoruba    The Gods of the Ifugao     Goddesses    Monotheism: Conceptions of God in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam    Atheism    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     10        Witchcraft    The Concept of Witchcraft in Small-Scale Societies    Witchcraft among the Azande    Witchcraft among the Navaho    Witchcraft Reflects Human Culture    Sorcery, Witchcraft and AIDS     Euro-American Witchcraft Beliefs    The Connection with Pagan Religions    The Witchcraze in Europe    The Witchcraze in England and the United States    BOX 10.1 • The Evil Eye    BOX 10.2 • Satanism    Modern Day Witch Hunts    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     11        The Search for New Meaning    Adaptation and Change    Mechanisms of Culture Change    Acculturation    Syncretism    Haitian Vodou    Santeria    Revitalization Movements    The Origins of Revitalization Movements    Types of Revitalization Movements    Cargo Cults    BOX 11.1 • The John Frum Cult    The Ghost Dance of 1890    The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormonism)    Neo-Paganism and Revival    The Wiccan Movement    New Religious Movements    The “Cult” Question    Characteristics of High Demand Religions    Examples of New Religious Movements    UFO Religions    Fundamentalism    Characteristics of Fundamentalist Groups    BOX 11.2 • Religious Violence and Terrorism    Conclusion    Summary    Suggested Readings    Suggested Websites    Study Questions    Endnotes     Glossary    Index     

Reviews

Author Information

Rebecca Stein has been teaching with the Los Angeles Community College District since 1995 at various colleges, as well as at Pasadena City College. She joined the Anthropology faculty at Los Angeles Valley College in 2000. Ms. Stein received a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Anthropology from the University of California at Los Angeles, where she received a National Merit Scholarship. Her work has been focused in cultural and psychological anthropology, specifically concerned with child-rearing, transmitting values to children, deviance, gender and religion. She also has an interest in human biological evolution, particularly in the fields of genetics and the new field of Darwinian Psychology.   Philip L. Stein is a Professor of Anthropology and Chair of the Department of Anthropological and Geographical Sciences at Los Angeles Pierce College. He has also taught at East Los Angeles College, Los Angeles City College, and California State University, Northridge. He received his BA in Zoology and MA in Anthropology from UCLA.   Professor Stein is a fellow of the American Anthropological Association and a past president of the Society for Anthropology in Community Colleges. He is also a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Association of Physical Anthropologists, National Center for Science Education, and the Southwestern Anthropological Association.

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