ANTA02H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: A Prophet, Native American Religion, Erzulie
Document Summary
People believe in the existence of ancestor spirits, or witches, or devils, or the power of magic to call forth spirits of the dead. Although there is no material proof of these things people still believe in them. How to deal with the question of belief has long been a concern of anthropologists. Edward tylor wrote in primitive culture (1870) : religion and a belief in the supernatural developed through people"s efforts to explain basic phenomena, such as death and dreaming. Totemism- the use of a symbol, generally an animal or a plant, as a physical representation for a group, generally a clan. Totem was worshipped, considered holy and sacred by members of a group. Ritual- a dramatic rendering or social portrayal of meanings shared by a specific body of people in a way that makes them seem correct and proper. Early anthropologists approached god, and religion with the assumption that these beliefs were in error.