Objects as Subjects : Agency and Performativity in Rituals
(2016) In The Study of Religion in a Global Context p.27-45- Abstract
- In ritual theory, ritual objects have mostly been discussed in terms of symbols and interpretations. But objects that are employed in rituals are not merely passive carriers of attached cultural meanings. In this article I discuss how objects not only become animated but also animate the ritual field. As ritual agents they have important performative functions in the field of transformations. The smoke of burning sage in a ritual setting is not ordinary but sacred smoke, and it does not only symbolize a purification process for the participants, but actually cleans them from bad spirits. It is thus more useful to discuss the phenomenology of animism as relational epistemology rather than an epistemological fallacy.
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https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/f99998fe-a0a1-426d-b61c-20eac4754f2f
- author
- Hornborg, Anne-Christine LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2016
- type
- Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Ritual objects, animism, agency, performativity, relaional epistemology
- host publication
- The Relational Dynamics of Enchantment and Sacralization : Changing the Terms of the Religion Versus Secularity Debate - Changing the Terms of the Religion Versus Secularity Debate
- series title
- The Study of Religion in a Global Context
- editor
- Ingman, Peik ; Hovi, Tuija ; Utriainen, Terhi and Broo, Måns
- pages
- 18 pages
- publisher
- Equinox Publishing
- ISBN
- 9781781794753
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- f99998fe-a0a1-426d-b61c-20eac4754f2f
- date added to LUP
- 2017-01-15 11:48:03
- date last changed
- 2021-03-29 22:06:13
@inbook{f99998fe-a0a1-426d-b61c-20eac4754f2f, abstract = {{In ritual theory, ritual objects have mostly been discussed in terms of symbols and interpretations. But objects that are employed in rituals are not merely passive carriers of attached cultural meanings. In this article I discuss how objects not only become animated but also animate the ritual field. As ritual agents they have important performative functions in the field of transformations. The smoke of burning sage in a ritual setting is not ordinary but sacred smoke, and it does not only symbolize a purification process for the participants, but actually cleans them from bad spirits. It is thus more useful to discuss the phenomenology of animism as relational epistemology rather than an epistemological fallacy.}}, author = {{Hornborg, Anne-Christine}}, booktitle = {{The Relational Dynamics of Enchantment and Sacralization : Changing the Terms of the Religion Versus Secularity Debate}}, editor = {{Ingman, Peik and Hovi, Tuija and Utriainen, Terhi and Broo, Måns}}, isbn = {{9781781794753}}, keywords = {{Ritual objects, animism, agency, performativity, relaional epistemology}}, language = {{eng}}, pages = {{27--45}}, publisher = {{Equinox Publishing}}, series = {{The Study of Religion in a Global Context}}, title = {{Objects as Subjects : Agency and Performativity in Rituals}}, year = {{2016}}, }