Cosmos and society in Oceania
By: edited by Daniel de Coppet and André Iteanu.
Contributors: Coppet, Daniel de.; Iteanu, André.
Series: Explorations in anthropology
Publisher: Berg
Published: 1995
Place of publication: Oxford, UK; Washington, D.C
Language: eng
Number of pages: 338
Subjects: Ethnology -- Oceania.; Cosmology, Pacific Island.; Rites and ceremonies -- Oceania.; Oceania -- Politics and government.; Oceania -- Religious life and customs.
Description: Current anthropology uses expressions such as 'society as a whole', 'socio-cosmic relations', 'spatiotemporal extension', 'global ideology', and 'cosmomorphy' to establish that the clear-cut Western dichotomy between society and cosmos is not always to be found in the communities it studies.

In fact, many elements that the West would at first undoubtedly classify as belonging either to the cosmos or to the society appear very often in Melanesia as belonging to neither one of these domains, but to a realm which combines the attributes of both. Focusing on different examples drawn from diverse Melanesian societies, this thought-provoking volume by eminent specialists re-examines the relation between society and cosmos and, in the process, opens new directions for research.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.