In this Book

summary
Amazonian indigenous peoples have preserved many aspects of their culture and cosmology while also developing complex relationships with dominant non-indigenous society. Until now, anthropological writing on Amazonian peoples has been divided between “traditional” topics like kinship, cosmology, ritual, and myth, on the one hand, and the analysis of their struggles with the nation-state on the other. What has been lacking is work that bridges these two approaches and takes into consideration the meaning of relationships with the state from an indigenous perspective.

That long-standing dichotomy is challenged in this new ethnography by anthropologist José Kelly. Kelly places the study of culture and cosmology squarely within the context of the modern nation-state and its institutions. He explores Indian-white relations as seen through the operation of a state-run health system among the indigenous Yanomami of southern Venezuela.

With theoretical foundations in the fields of medical and Amazonian anthropology, Kelly sheds light on how Amerindian cosmology shapes concepts of the state at the community level. The result is a symmetrical anthropology that treats white and Amerindian perceptions of each other within a single theoretical framework, thus expanding our understanding of each group and its influences on the other. This book will be valuable to those studying Amazonian peoples, medical anthropology, development studies, and Latin America. Its new takes on theory and methodology make it ideal for classroom use.

Table of Contents

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  1. Cover
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  1. Front Matter
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  1. Contents
  2. pp. vii-viii
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  1. List of Figures
  2. pp. ix-x
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  1. List of Tables
  2. pp. xi-xii
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  1. Acknowledgments
  2. pp. xiii-xvi
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  1. List of Abbreviations
  2. pp. xvii-xx
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  1. Introduction
  2. pp. 1-13
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  1. 1. The Upper Orinoco Yanomami and Their Context
  2. pp. 14-33
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  1. 2. Particularizing the Upper Orinoco Health System
  2. pp. 34-51
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  1. 3. Epidemic Diseases, Criollos, and the Morality of Being Human
  2. pp. 52-73
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  1. 4. Becoming Napë and the Napë Transformational Axis
  2. pp. 74-92
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  1. 5. Making Kin, Making Society, and Napë Potential Affinity
  2. pp. 93-110
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  1. 6. Being and Performing Napë and Yanomami
  2. pp. 111-139
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  1. 7. Doctors and Shamans
  2. pp. 140-163
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  1. 8. Two Meetings and a Protest
  2. pp. 164-199
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  1. 9. Changing Tides and Mixed Feelings
  2. pp. 220-216
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  1. Conclusion
  2. pp. 217-232
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  1. Notes
  2. pp. 233-238
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  1. Bibliography
  2. pp. 239-248
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  1. Index
  2. pp. 249-256
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  1. About the Author
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