{"title":"Awkward History, Awkward Theory","authors":"Ian MacCormack","doi":"10.1163/15700682-bja10111","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Based on a contribution to a panel discussion on Dana Logan’s Awkward Rituals , this essay addresses the first chapter of the book, in which Logan discusses the rites of Freemasons in the early American republic. It considers the particular significance of Masonic ritual practice with respect to Logan’s arguments about patterns of change in pre- and post-Revolutionary America; and reflects on the general theoretical import of this notion of ritual awkwardness, embodied by the Freemasons, considered as a form of purposive activity. It raises questions about the broader applicability in comparative religious studies of Logan’s insights, both for studying history and for thinking about ritual.","PeriodicalId":44982,"journal":{"name":"Method & Theory in the Study of Religion","volume":"13 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5000,"publicationDate":"2023-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Method & Theory in the Study of Religion","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15700682-bja10111","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"RELIGION","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Abstract Based on a contribution to a panel discussion on Dana Logan’s Awkward Rituals , this essay addresses the first chapter of the book, in which Logan discusses the rites of Freemasons in the early American republic. It considers the particular significance of Masonic ritual practice with respect to Logan’s arguments about patterns of change in pre- and post-Revolutionary America; and reflects on the general theoretical import of this notion of ritual awkwardness, embodied by the Freemasons, considered as a form of purposive activity. It raises questions about the broader applicability in comparative religious studies of Logan’s insights, both for studying history and for thinking about ritual.
期刊介绍:
Method & Theory in the Study of Religion publishes articles, notes, book reviews and letters which explicitly address the problems of methodology and theory in the academic study of religion. This includes such traditional points of departure as history, philosophy, anthropology and sociology, but also the natural sciences, and such newer disciplinary approaches as feminist theory and studies. Method & Theory in the Study of Religion also concentrates on the critical analysis of theoretical problems prominent in the study of religion.