Fantasy and Symbol: Studies in Anthropological Interpretation. Essays in honour of George Devereux

309 Pages·1979·25.78 MB·English

by  R. H. Hook

Fantasy and Symbol
STUDIES IN ~'JTHROPOLOOY
Under the Consulting Editorship of E. A. Hammel,
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY
Andrei Simié, THE PEASANT URBANITES: A Study of Rural-Urban Mobility
in Serbia
John U. Ogbu, THE NEXT GENERATION: An Ethnography of Education iD
an Urban Neighborhood
Bennett Dyke and lean R-'alters MacCiuer (Eds.), C0~1PUTER SIMULATION
IN HUM.t\N POP ULAT ION STUDIES
Robhins Burling, THE PASSAGE OF POWER: Studies in Political Succession
Piotr Szto1npka, SYSTEM ANO FUNCTION: Toward a Theory of Society
JVilliam G. Lock)i,•ood, EUROPEAN MOSLE~IS: Economy and Ethnicity in
Westem Bosnia
Günter Golde, CATHOLICS Al'D PROTESTANTS: Agricultura! Moderni
zation in Tv.'o German \'illages
Peggy Reeves Sanday (Ed.), ANTHROPOLOGY i\ND THE PUBLIC INTER
EST: Fieldwork and Theory
CarolA. Smith (Ed.), RE.GIONAL ANALYSIS, \'olumc 1: Economic Systems,
and Volume 11: Social Systems
Raymond D. Fogelson and Richard .~1• Adams (Eds.), THE ANTHROPOLOGY
OF POWER: Ethnographic Studies from Asia, Oceania, and tbe
New World
Frank Henderson Stetvart, FUNDA~fENTALS OF AGE-GROUP SYSTEMS
Larissa Adler Lo1nnitz, NETWORKS AND MARGINALITY: Life in a Mexi
can Shantytown
Benjamin S. Orlove, ALPACAS, SHEE.P, AND MEN: The Wool Export Econ
omy and Regional Society in Southern Peru
Harriet Ngubane, BODY Al'D MIND IN ZGLU MEDICINE: An Ethnog
raphy of Health and Disease in Nyus,-..·a-Zulu Thought and Practice
George M. Foster, Thayer Scudder, Elizabeth Colson, and Robert Van Kemper
(Eds.), LOKG-TER~l FIE.LD RESEARCH IN SOCIAL AN
THROPOLOGY
R. H. Hook (Ed.), FANTASY AND SYMBOL: Studies in Anthropological
Interpretation
Essays in honour of
George DeL•ereux
G o g Devereux
Fantasy and Syrnbol
Studies in Anthropological
Interpretation
edited b_y
R. H. HOOK
Department of Anthropolog_y
Rtsearch School of Studits
Pac~~-c
AuJtraiian ){ational L:'niversi(v
Canberra
AuJtralia
1979
ACADEMIC PRESS
LONDON NEWYORK SAN FRANCISCO
A Subsidiary of Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers
Academic Press Inc. (London) l..td
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London N\\'1
L'S edition published by
Academic Press lnc.
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Editorial matter cop}Tight e 1979 by
ICADE~1IC PRESS IN C. {LONDON) L TD.
Introduct ion.
Mtantasy and Symbol: A PsychoanaJytic Point ofView
copyright C 1979 by R. 11. Hook
George Devereux: A Portrait
copyright C 1979 by Ariane DeJu¿;
.Fantasy and Symbol as Dimensions of Reality
copyright C 1979 by George De\iercux
Pythagoras in Amerit:a
cop)Tight e 1979 by Claude Lévi-Strauss
The lnfluence of f\-1ethods of Observation on Theory, with Particular Reference to
the \\'ork of (;eorge [)cvereux and .tvlargaret Lowenfeld
copyright C 1979 by Esta te of I\largaret ~:lead
Species-specific Biology, ~lagic, and Religion
copyright C. 1979 by \Veston La Barre
Coping with Destiny, Among the Tallensi
copyrightC 1979 by ~-teyer Fortes
Prevented Successions: A (::Ommentary u pon a Kuranko Narrati\'e
copyright e 1( )79 by ~1ichael Jackson
Reflections on a Cut Fin.~er: Taboo in the Lmeda Conccption of the Self
copyright C 19 79 b)' Alfred Gell
Tambu: The Shell-~1oncy of the Tolai
copyright C 1979 by A. L. Epstein
Stone as a Symbol in Apache Folklore
copyright C 1979 by L. Bryce Boyer
Severed lleads that Germinate
copyright ·C 197 9 by l)erek .Freeman
Queen of ~ight, ~1other-Right, and Secret ~·tale Cults
copyright•C 1979 by L. R. Hiatt
A/l Rights Reser¿,·ed
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form,
by photostat, microfilm or any other means,
"'~thout V\'ritten permission from the publishers
Bntúh Library C.'ataloguing in Puhiu;alÚJn Data
Fantasy and Symbol.- (Studies in anthropology ).
l. Symbolism-.1\ddresses, essays, lectures
2. Symbolism ( Psychology)-~~ddresses, essays, lectures
l. Devereux, George 11. Hook, R H
III. Psychoanalysis and the lnterpretation of Symbolic Behavior (Ca~(trmcr.), t•anhrrra. 197.'j
1\'. Series
301.2'1 GN452.5 78-67899
ISBX 0-12-355480-2
Typeset in Great Britain by Kelmscott Press Ltd., London EC4
Printed in Great Britain by \'Vhitstable Litho Ltd., \l'lhitstable, Kent
Contributors
....
L. BR\''CE BO\:'ER is a practising psychoanalyst and ~~lemb-er of the
American Psychoanalytic Association. He is Associate l)irector~
Psychiatric Residency Training, Herrick ~tfemorial Hospital~
Berkeley, California, US1\.
ARIANE DELUZ is Chargé de Recherches, Centre Nationale de la
Recherche Scientifique, Laboratoire d '.~nthropologie Socia le~
Paris, France.
A. L. EPSTEII\ is Professor of Social i\nthropology, Lrniversity of
Sussex, and "'·as formerly Professor of i\nthropology in the
Research School of Pacific Studies, i\ustralian National LJniver
sity, Canberra, r\ustralia.
~1EYER FORprES is Emeritus Professor of Social 1\nthropology,
Kings College, L·niversity of Cambridge, England.
DEREK FREE~v1AI\ is Professor of Anthropology in the Rescarch
School of Pacific Studies" 1\ustralian I\ational Universitv, Can-
, 1
berra, Australia.
r\L:FRED GELL is Senior Lecturer, Departmcnt of Prehistory and
Anthropology, Faculty of Arts, Australian National Lfniver5ity~
Canberra, ..~ ustralia.
L. R. Hl.~ TI is Reader in thc Department of l\nthrupology, LJnivcr
sity of Sydney ~ Sydney, Australia.
R. H. HOOK is a practising psychoanalyst and ~~ssociate i\t1ember of
the l\ustralian Psychoanalytical Society. He is a \' isiting J•'ellow in
\'11
CONTRIBlJTORS
VIII
the Research School of Pacific Studies, l\ustralian _:\lational Cniver
sity, Canberra, .l\ustralia.
is Senior Lecturer in the Department of
~fiCH.~EL JACKSO~
Social and f\..1aori Studies, University,
~~nthropology ~fassey
Palmerston 1\orth, New Zealand.
\t\1ESTOI\ LA Bl\RRE is James B. Duke Professor of .~nthropology
Emiritus at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, CSt\.
CLi\LfDE LÉv'l-STRALfSS is Professor of ..~ nthropology at the
College de France, Paris, France.
~lARG~~RET ~lEAD \vas, until her death in l\ovember 1978,
Curator Emeritus of Ethnology, 1\merican ~~1 useum of I'iatural
History., Ne\'\' \"ork, LTSA.
Preface
This collection of papers in honour of George Devereux had its origin
in a symposium on .. 'Psychoanalysis and the lnterpretation of Sym
bolic Beha\·iour'~ of the i\nthropology Section at the 46th Congress of
the Australian and ~ew Zealand Association for the Advancement of
Science (ANZ"~AS) held in Canberra in 197 5. George Devereux~ then
\'isiting Fello~· in the Department of i\nthropology in the Research
School of Pacific Studies at the Australian National University, \·vas
the principal speaker at this symposium, his paper (lh·hich appears in
this volume) being entitled aFantasy and Symbol as Dimensions of
Reality".
It was subsequently proposed that the papers contributed to this
very stimulating symposium be published in a volume that would
commemorate the varied and distinguished career, as anthropologist
and psychoanalyst, of Professor George Devereux. Severa! of his col
leagues and students were also invited to contri bu te.
In the hands of these contributors the book has gro"'·n into its
present form. In one "'·ay or another, all contributors deal with sym
bolic behaviour and its i.nterpretation and, as the reader \ovill quickly
appreciate, many of the papers ha ve a psychoanalytic orientation, the
psychoanalytic interpretation of symbolic behaviour and the
complementarity of psychological and sociological accounts of cul
tural phenomena being topics of prime interest to George Devereux.
The preparation of this volume was carried out in the Department
lX
PREF.A.CE
X
of Anthropology in the Research School of Pacific Studies of the 1\us
tralian National LTniversity, in which the editor is a \.lisiting ~~~ello\v. lt
could never ha\·e been accomplished without the very ready assis
tance, advice and encouragement of Derek Freeman, Professor of
i\nthropology in this Department, ~vho also arranged for the inclu
sion of the symposium on Psychoanalysis and the lnterpretation of
H
Symbolic Behaviour ''in the ANZi\.AS programme of 1975. The Presi
dent of the Anthropology Section at the 46th AI\ZAAS Congress was
Professor ~1eyer Fortes and his support of the decision to publish the
papers presented and his continuing interest and assis_tance in the
work of preparation of the volume is gratefully ackno\\·ledged. 1 am
particularly indebted to Dr Ariane Deluz for her sketch of (;eorge
Devercux career and also for the very considerable assistance given
~s
in dealing \\'ith matters requiring attention in Paris. !v1iss Judith
vv·ilson, Research Assistant in the Department of 1\nthropology, has
rendered invaluable assistance in proof-readin,g the papers and in
preparing them for publication; her extensive experience enabled her
to give advice in such matters as classical and other references and on
detailed points of translation or interpretation.
¡\ special acknowledgement is necessary of Professor \Veston La
Barre 's kindness and generosity in making available the photograph
of c;eorge J)evereux ~·hich appears as a frontispiece, presenting him in
a passionately intellectual, inquiring mood. ~fany other people ha\le
offered very valuable assistance and advice and, although it ís not
possible to name them indívidually, they have my sincere apprecia
tion and thanks.
December 1978. R.ll. HOOK