Africa · 1976 · 45 citations · 1 references
HumanitiesAnthropologySexuality StudiesAnthropology Of GenderFeminist TheoryRitual StudiesPubertyRitual In PerformanceSexual EthicsAdolescence RitesAdolescent MenstruationGendered Ritual PracticePostcolonial Gender PerformanceSexual Ritual SymbolismWomen In Religious Rituals
Opening Paragraph In the north of Mafia Island, the rites surrounding the circumcision of boys and the first menstruation of girls are no longer, if indeed they ever were, universally performed. This article attempts to explain this situation, and in so doing, draws on some of Turner's work on symbolism. In particular, his distinction between different levels of meaning expressed by symbols—the exegetical , the operational and the positional (1962)—is followed in a discussion of the political implications of performance or rejection of the rites.
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Anthropological Approaches to the Study of Religion.
P. G. Riviere, Michael Banton · Man · 1966 · 635 citations