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Pathways of Comparison Between Indonesia and Melanesia
The Python's Back
Pathways of Comparison Between Indonesia and Melanesia
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Description
Building on an incipient tendency to make comparisons between Indonesian and Melanesian cultural themes, this study makes a fresh comparison of themes that interrelate ethnographies of eastern Indonesia (for example, Sumba, Flores), Irian Jaya (the Bird's Head), and the Highlands of Papua New Guinea (Melpa, Duna). The themes chosen include slavery and personhood, kinship and commoditization, cassowary myths, sky beings, witchcraft, female spirits, and historical changes.
Such a comparative sweep of themes has not been attempted before for this part of the world, and the thematic approach adopted also makes it possible to examine topics both in the abstract and in terms of historical time. The comparisons made illuminate both differences between the cases chosen and particularities of each case, bringing together Indonesian and Melanesian ethnographies in a new way that transcends the conventional boundaries of regional analysis.
Table of Contents
Comparisons
Slavery and Personhood
Kinship and Commoditization
Cassowaries
Sky Beings and Earth
Female Spirits
Witchcraft
Themes
Envoi: Histories
Index
Product details
| Published | May 30 2000 |
|---|---|
| Format | Hardback |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 208 |
| ISBN | 9780897897075 |
| Imprint | Praeger |
| Dimensions | 9 x 6 inches |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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