Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Dame Mary Douglas

A reader sent me information about a British anthropologist who recently passed away. Dame Mary Douglas was a Catholic anthropologist who supported the concepts of hierarchy and institutional boundaries as being important for the development of complex thinking and symbolism. According to The Times, "she argued that the changes in Vatican II, affecting the Mass, abstinence and the habits worn by some religious orders weakened the social rituals and thereby the social boundaries of Catholicism."

Here is another article about her as well. Share

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