Victor Turner's Theory of Symbols: The Symbolism of a Religious Site and Object in a Rural Environment in Eastern Slovakia
This article is dedicated to the symbolism of a religious site (the church) and a religious object (the cross) in Christianity in a concrete locality and community. The study was based on Victor Turner's theory of rituals and symbols. I used Turner's definitions and classifications of symb...
| Published in: | Religion and society in Central and Eastern Europe |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
WVU
2020
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| In: |
Religion and society in Central and Eastern Europe
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Turner, Victor 1920-1983
/ Symbol
/ Theory
/ Slovakia
/ Rural area
/ Church building
/ Cross
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| RelBib Classification: | AG Religious life; material religion CB Christian life; spirituality CD Christianity and Culture KBK Europe (East) |
| Further subjects: | B
Ethnography
B Church B Cross B Symbol B Ritual |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | This article is dedicated to the symbolism of a religious site (the church) and a religious object (the cross) in Christianity in a concrete locality and community. The study was based on Victor Turner's theory of rituals and symbols. I used Turner's definitions and classifications of symbols as well as his theses related to rituals. My aim was to demonstrate that the church and the cross can be categorised as dominant symbols in Christianity, even though they bear distinct characteristics of dominant symbols. The data analysed in the present text were collected by the ethnographic interview and participant observation methods during ethnographic field research. The research was conducted in eastern Slovakia, in a village in which the majority of residents are affiliated with the Greek Catholic faith. Building on the analysis of ethnographic data, I will demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of Turner's theory of symbols. During the analysis, I will suggest possible answers, stemming mainly from cognitive anthropology, for certain questions left unanswered by Turner. |
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| ISSN: | 1553-9962 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Religion and society in Central and Eastern Europe
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.20413/rascee.2020.13.1.21-41 |