Introduction
I. THE PRACTICE OF RITUAL THEORY
1. Constructing Ritual
2. Constructing Meaning
3. Constructing Discourse
II. THE SENSE OF RITUAL
4. Action and Practice
5. The Ritual Body
6. Ritual Traditions and Systems
III. RITUAL AND POWER
7. Ritual Control
8. Ritual, Belief, and Ideology
9. The Power of Ritualization
Bibliography
Index
Late Professor Emerita of Religious Studies, Santa Clara University
"Throws down the gauntlet to cultural interpretations of
ritual....Bell's erudition and command of the literature,
especially in the field of anthropology, is most impressive. Her
appeal for the centrality of dynamic individuals, strategies, and
power relationships is powerful and will no doubt strike a chord
among those similarly disaffected with prevailing trends in
understanding ritual."--American Journal of Sociology
"Fills a gap....Bell has supplied a thorough study of the field
that brings together some valuable insights difficult to find
elsewhere under one cover."--Sociology
"Catherine Bell's book will surely set the standard for work in the
burgeoning field of "ritual studies" for some
time....excellent."--The Journal of Religion
"This book would serve as a valuable resource for understanding
theories and developing research ideas on ritual--especially with
Bell's incisive, comprehensive treatment of previous theories....I
strongly recommend this book to any social scientist who is
critical and curious enough to swim against the mainstream in
exploration of our complex, dynamic relationships with culture, our
creation(s), and our creator(s)."--The International Journal of
the
Psychology of Religion
"Bell provides an illuminating examination of the
linkages...between the analytics of ritual and broader
conceptualizations of social process....her presentation of "the
framework of ritualization" strikes me as one of the most exciting
and original contributions to ritual theory I have read in recent
years."--History of Religion
"Throws down the gauntlet to cultural interpretations of
ritual....Bell's erudition and command of the literature,
especially in the field of anthropology, is most impressive. Her
appeal for the centrality of dynamic individuals, strategies, and
power relationships is powerful and will no doubt strike a chord
among those similarly disaffected with prevailing trends in
understanding ritual."--American Journal of Sociology
"Fills a gap....Bell has supplied a thorough study of the field
that brings together some valuable insights difficult to find
elsewhere under one cover."--Sociology
"Catherine Bell's book will surely set the standard for work in the
burgeoning field of "ritual studies" for some
time....excellent."--The Journal of Religion
"This book would serve as a valuable resource for understanding
theories and developing research ideas on ritual--especially with
Bell's incisive, comprehensive treatment of previous theories....I
strongly recommend this book to any social scientist who is
critical and curious enough to swim against the mainstream in
exploration of our complex, dynamic relationships with culture, our
creation(s), and our creator(s)."--The International Journal of
the
Psychology of Religion
"Bell provides an illuminating examination of the
linkages...between the analytics of ritual and broader
conceptualizations of social process....her presentation of "the
framework of ritualization" strikes me as one of the most exciting
and original contributions to ritual theory I have read in recent
years."--History of Religion
"Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice is a thoughtful and provocative
book. It invites us to raise questions of all the theoretical
lenses which have been used to study and interpret ritual. In fact,
the single greatest virtue of the book, no doubt, is in
demonstrating and critiquing the wide array of interpretive options
which have become part of the repertoire in the study of ritual.
Theoretical possibilities are carefully summarized and probing
questions
raised of each."--Journal of Ritual Studies
"A useful guide to ritual....In addition to critically examining
theories of ritual and offering a range of constructive insights,
it also uses the problems posed by ritual to provide valuable
commentary on recent theoretical discussions of such notions as
power, ideology, practice, and meaning....Ritual Theory/Ritual
Practice helps one with the most difficult of endeavors: bringing
to light implicit assumptions and defamiliarizing accrued levels
of
what seem like solid, established insights."--Japanese Journal of
Religious Studies
"...scholarly and insightful....a comprehensive critique of an
entire field of scholarship..."--Method & Theory in the Study of
Religion
"Catherine Bell has provided us with a tour de force in her
critical appraisal of the history of ritual theory and, indirectly,
with some questions that might fruitfully direct further
inquires."--Religious Studies Review
"Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice by Catherine Bell is a book that is
long overdue...[she] has a remarkable command of the theoretical
issues in ritual as an object, method, and style of
scholarship....not only is [this book] a compelling and provoking
work, it is one of the most significant contributions to
perspectives in ritual studies."--Reviews in Anthropology
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