Search results
22 hours ago · For example, political philosophy, ethics, and aesthetics are sometimes linked under the general heading of value theory as they investigate normative or evaluative aspects. Furthermore, philosophical inquiry sometimes overlaps with other disciplines in the natural and social sciences, religion, and mathematics. Epistemology
22 hours ago · Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (/ ˌ tʃ ɪ m ə ˈ m ɑː n d ə ə ŋ ˈ ɡ oʊ z i ə ˈ d iː tʃ i. eɪ / ⓘ; born 15 September 1977) is a Nigerian writer, novelist, poet, essayist, and playwright of postcolonial feminist literature and public speaker.
22 hours ago · Some social institutions are seen as based on certain emotion, such as love in the case of contemporary institution of marriage. In advertising, such as health campaigns and political messages, emotional appeals are commonly found. Recent examples include no-smoking health campaigns and political campaigns emphasizing the fear of terrorism.
- Etymology
- "Old Animism" Definitions
- "New Animism" Non-Archaic Definitions
- Religion
- Animist Life
- Other Usage
- References
- Further Reading
- External Links
English anthropologist Sir Edward Tylor initially wanted to describe the phenomenon as spiritualism, but he realized that it would cause confusion with the modern religion of spiritualism, which was then prevalent across Western nations. He adopted the term animism from the writings of German scientist Georg Ernst Stahl, who had developed the term ...
Earlier anthropological perspectives, which have since been termed the old animism, were concerned with knowledge on what is alive and what factors make something alive. The old animism assumed that animists were individuals who were unable to understand the difference between persons and things.Critics of the old animism have accused it of preserv...
Many anthropologists ceased using the term animism, deeming it to be too close to early anthropological theory and religious polemic. However, the term had also been claimed by religious groups—namely, Indigenous communities and nature worshippers—who felt that it aptly described their own beliefs, and who in some cases actively identified as "anim...
There is ongoing disagreement (and no general consensus) as to whether animism is merely a singular, broadly encompassing religious belief or a worldview in and of itself, comprising many diverse mythologies found worldwide in many diverse cultures. This also raises a controversy regarding the ethical claims animism may or may not make: whether ani...
Non-human animals
Animism entails the belief that all living things have a soul, and thus, a central concern of animist thought surrounds how animals can be eaten, or otherwise used for humans' subsistence needs. The actions of non-human animals are viewed as "intentional, planned and purposive",and they are understood to be persons, as they are both alive, and communicate with others. In animist worldviews, non-human animals are understood to participate in kinship systems and ceremonies with humans, as well...
Flora
Some animists also view plant and fungi life as persons and interact with them accordingly. The most common encounter between humans and these plant and fungi persons is with the former's collection of the latter for food, and for animists, this interaction typically has to be carried out respectfully. Harvey cited the example of Māori communities in New Zealand, who often offer karakia invocations to sweet potatoes as they dig up the latter. While doing so, there is an awareness of a kinship...
The elements
Various animistic cultures also comprehend stones as persons. Discussing ethnographic work conducted among the Ojibwe, Harvey noted that their society generally conceived of stones as being inanimate, but with two notable exceptions: the stones of the Bell Rocks and those stones which are situated beneath trees struck by lightning, which were understood to have become Thunderers themselves. The Ojibwe conceived of weather as being capable of having personhood, with storms being conceived of a...
Science
In the early 20th century, William McDougall defended a form of animism in his book Body and Mind: A History and Defence of Animism(1911). Physicist Nick Herberthas argued for "quantum animism" in which the mind permeates the world at every level: Werner Krieglstein wrote regarding his quantum Animism: In Error and Loss: A Licence to Enchantment, Ashley Curtis (2018) has argued that the Cartesian idea of an experiencing subject facing off with an inert physical world is incoherent at its very...
Socio-political impact
Harvey opined that animism's views on personhood represented a radical challenge to the dominant perspectives of modernity, because it accords "intelligence, rationality, consciousness, volition, agency, intentionality, language, and desire" to non-humans. Similarly, it challenges the view of human uniqueness that is prevalent in both Abrahamic religions and Western rationalism.
Art and literature
Animist beliefs can also be expressed through artwork. For instance, among the Māori communities of New Zealand, there is an acknowledgement that creating art through carving wood or stone entails violence against the wood or stone person and that the persons who are damaged therefore have to be placated and respected during the process; any excess or waste from the creation of the artwork is returned to the land, while the artwork itself is treated with particular respect.Harvey, therefore,...
Sources
1. Abram, David (1996). The Spell of the Sensuous: Perception and Language in a More-than-Human World. New York: Pantheon Books. ISBN 978-0-679-43819-9. 2. Abram, David (2010). Becoming Animal: An Earthly Cosmology. New York: Pantheon Books. ISBN 978-0-375-42171-6. 3. Bird-David, Nurit (1999). ""Animism" Revisited: Personhood, Environment, and Relational Epistemology". Current Anthropology. 41 (S1): 67–91. doi:10.1086/200061. 4. Curtis, Ashley (2018). Error and Loss: A Licence to Enchantment....
Adler, Margot (2006) [1979]. Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers and Other Pagans in America (Revised ed.). London: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-303819-1.Armstrong, Karen (1994). A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Ballantine Books.Dean, Bartholomew (2009). Urarina Society, Cosmology, and History in Peruvian Amazonia. Gainesville: University Press of Florida. ISBN 978-0-8130-3378-5.Forbes, Andrew; Henley, David (2012). "Lamphun's Little-Known Animal Shrines (Animist traditions in Thailand)". Ancient Chiang Mai. Vol. 1. Chiang Mai: Cognoscenti Books.The dictionary definition of animismat WiktionaryMedia related to Animismat Wikimedia Commons22 hours ago · For example, an all-male troop may be organised to hunt for meat, while a group consisting of lactating females serves to act as a "nursery group" for the young. At the core of social structures are males, which patrol the territory, protect group members, and search for food.
22 hours ago · He collected in his palace a library that included works in Greek, Persian, and Latin. Mehmed invited Muslim scientists and astronomers such as Ali Qushji and artists to his court in Constantinople, started a university, and built mosques (for example, the Fatih Mosque), waterways, and Istanbul's Topkapı Palace and the Tiled Kiosk.
