Examining the Theoretical Discourse on Ritual

A review essay on a book by Catherine Bell, Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice (New York & Oxford: Oxford U Press, 1992 [see listing in IRPS No. 72]). Bell examines the theoretical discourse on ritual in anthropology from three vantage points: (1) development & nature of ritual discourse; (2) theory of practice as a basis for study of ritual; & (3) ritual as a strategic device in power relations. Ritual is generally viewed as an essential mechanism of social integration. The traditional view makes the distinction between thought & action & defines ritual as action. This dichotomy can be overcome by the fusion of thought & action & emphasis on ritualization vs ritual. Emphasis on the act of ritual allows ritual to be viewed in terms of four features of practice: situation; strategy; embedding in strong misrecognition of what it is in fact doing; & reproduction or reconfiguration of a vision of power called redemptive hegemony. Practice is in turn related to the social body & the ritual body, & ritual systems are organized by binary oppositions including: superior-inferior, here-there or us-them, & central-local. Rituals thus are social systems & strategic in power relations. 4 References. D. Generoli