Exam 12: Religion and Aesthetics

Cognitive anthropologists have found that there is a specialized area of the brain involved in the evolution of religion.

Religion appears to be a cultural universal, although specific practices and beliefs vary significantly from culture to culture.

The decline in the influence of religion in society is called __________.

State-organized rituals that reinforced divine authority of the ruler are known as __________.

Katchina dolls are specially crafted playthings that teach Zuni children about their future contribution to subsistence.

Franz Boas emphasized that art produced outside of the European tradition should be considered primitive.

According to Pierre Bourdieu, cultural capital is based on __________.

The schism between Sunni and Shia Ali Muslims originates from a disagreement over __________.

Pick one rite of passage that you have experienced and describe it in terms of Arnold Van Gennep's stages of separation, marginality, and incorporation (aggregation).

A major goal of most anthropological studies of religion is to determine the "truth" or "falsity" of particular religious beliefs so that the truth about the supernatural can be discovered.

Chiefs often maintained political legitimacy through rituals and religious beliefs.

In all industrial states, the increase in secularization has caused religion to disappear and be replaced by humanism.

What is the term shaman used to designate?

Dreamtime for the Australian Aborigines is a fundamental, complex concept that includes the past, present, and future where spirits come to the earth and act as intermediaries between the world and the everyday lives of the people.

Among many tribal societies, what does sorcery provide a way of explaining?

In Polynesian societies, an individual's moral actions affect how much mana they have.

Repetitive religious behaviors that communicate sacred symbols to members of society are __________.

Compare and contrast your religious beliefs and those of foragers outlined in the text. Are there any similarities, or are the beliefs too disparate?

Foragers do not have any music or art since their days are mainly taken up in subsistence activities, politics, and religion.

Cognitive anthropologist Stewart Guthrie argues that many universal features of religion are based on __________.