Alma Gottlieb & Thomas Buckley 
Blood Magic [EPUB ebook] 
The Anthropology of Menstruation

Examining cultures as diverse as long-house dwellers in North Borneo, African farmers, Welsh housewives, and postindustrial American workers, this volume dramatically redefines the anthropological study of menstrual customs. It challenges the widespread image of a universal ‘menstrual taboo’ as well as the common assumption of universal female subordination which underlies it. Contributing important new material and perspectives to our understanding of comparative gender politics and symbolism, it is of particular importance to those interested in anthropology, women’s studies, religion, and comparative health systems.



Examining cultures as diverse as long-house dwellers in North Borneo, African farmers, Welsh housewives, and postindustrial American workers, this volume dramatically redefines the anthropological study of menstrual customs. It challenges the widespread i

Table des matières

Acknowledgments

Editors’ Note


PART I

INTRODUCTION


1. A Critical Appraisal of Theories of

Menstrual Symbolism

Thomas Buckley and Alma Gottlieb


PART II

MENSTRUAL IMAGES, MEANINGS, AND

VALUES

2. Menstrual Cosmology among the Beng of

Ivory Coast

Alma Gottlieb

3. Mortal Flow: Menstruation in Turkish

Village Society

Carol Delaney

4. Menstruation among the Rungus of Borneo:

An Unmarked Category

Laura W. R. Appell


PART III

THE SOCIOLOGY OF MENSTRUAL

MEANINGS

5. Menstrual Politics: Women and Pigs in

Rural Portugal

Denise L. Lawrence

6. Menstrual Symbolism in South Wales 137

Vieda Skultans

7. Premenstrual Syndrome: Discipline, Work,

and Anger in Late Industrial Societies

Emily Martin


PART IV

EXPLORATORY DIRECTIONS: MENSES,

CULTURE, AND TIME

8. Menstruation and the Power of Yurok

Women

Thomas Buckley

9. Heavenly Bodies: Menses, Moon, and

Rituals of License among the Temne of

Sierra Leone

Frederick Lamp

10. Menstrual Synchrony and the Australian

Rainbow Snake

Chris Knight


Notes

References

Contributors

Index

A propos de l’auteur

Thomas Buckley is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Massachusetts at Boston. He Specializes in North American Indian ethnology and history, with particular interests in religion and language. Alma Gottlieb is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her area of interest is Africa, with emphasis on gender, religion, and family structure.