THE FOREST OF SYMBOLS: ASPECTS OF NDEMBU RITUAL.

Victor W. Turner, (Victor Witter),

ISBN 10: 0801491010 / ISBN 13: 9780801491016

Published by Cornell University Press, Ithaca N.Y., 1967

About this Item

Book Condition: Very Good with slight tropical speckling to Page Edges, otherwise, clean, clear text in tightly bound volume. No internal inscriptions, markings or stains. Includes index. Second Printing, Cornell paperbacks 1981. Includes bibliographical references. Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches. Weight: 1.1 pounds. "This is a collection of ten essays dealing with various aspects of symbolism and ritual among the Ndembu of Zambia in central Africa. . . . Using data of extraordinary richness, it presents some of the most provocative and suggestive theories recently advanced in the study of ritual behavior and symbolism. . . It provides one of the few postwar studies sure to rank as an ethnographic classic."¿Africa. Considered an ethnographic classic. Victor Turner, a professor at Cornell, was known for his work in both anthropology and the behavioral sciences. These essays go far beyond meticulous recording of Zambian ritual to examine the role of symbols in social processes. Topics include medicine, witchcraft, morality, social structure, rites of passage, color classification, and the role of symbols in so many aspects of tribal life. Photographs, charts, and lists. "A collection of ten of the most brilliant and important essays on ritual yet written. These papers by Victor Turner . . . are all seminal and distinguished."¿American Anthropologist.

Seller Inventory # 000556

Bibliographic Details

• Title: THE FOREST OF SYMBOLS: ASPECTS OF NDEMBU RITUAL.
• Publisher: Cornell University Press, Ithaca N.Y.
• Publication Date: 1967
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0801491010
• ISBN 13: 9780801491016
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition.
• Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

A collection of ten of the most brilliant and important essays on ritual yet written. These papers by Victor Turner... are all seminal and distinguished. ― American Anthropologist

A pioneering work of high quality, this collection of anthropological studies provides one of the most detailed records available for an African society—or indeed for any group—of the semantics of ritual symbolism. It combines unusually detailed ethnographic description, based upon field work among the Ndembu of Zambia, with remarkable theoretical sophistication. Professor Turner describes the ritual phenomena in terms both of practice and of their sociological and psychological implications within a preliterate society.

Case histories illustrate the function of ritual in creating community harmony. Data on circumcision rites and medical practices and an essay on color classification have wide implications for comparative analysis. Excellent photographs and useful diagrams complement the text.

About the Author

Victor Turner (1920–1983) was professor of religion and anthropology at the University of Chicago. He authored many books, including Dramas, Fields, and Metaphors: Symbolic Action in Human Society and Revelation and Divination in Ndembu Ritual, both published by Cornell.