Immaculate Conception School of Malolos

Malolos City, Bulacan

Senior High School

First Semester
2017-2018

Understanding Culture, Society, and Politics

Performance Task
(Research Paper – Symbolic Anthropology)
30 October, 2017

Ferdinand Caballero
Instructor

John Marion Rafael C. Baltazar

Grade 12 St. John Paul II
Symbolic Anthropology-Baltazar |2

Introduction to Symbolic Anthropology

Beginning in the 1960s, anthropologists began to place much more focus on the symbols used in

a culture. They aimed to interpret the meaning of these symbols from within that society rather

than just looking at them from their own society's point of view. This often caused them to

question whether any ''grand theory'' can be applied to all cultures universally. This

reconsideration of the field became known as symbolic anthropology, also described as

interpretive anthropology.

Symbolic anthropology or, more broadly, symbolic and interpretive anthropology, is the

study of cultural symbols and how those symbols can be used to better understanding a particular

society. Symbolic Anthropology is how symbols can be used to understand society as opposed to

cultural materialism where the culture is influenced by materials in the form of technology, etc.

It is about symbols and also rituals or ceremonies in which people put meanings into. It also

tackles Giving meaning to symbols and rituals is man’s way of making others know understand

about their own culture and beliefs.

Symbolic anthropology studies how people create meaning out of their experiences or

construct their own concept of reality through the use of shared cultural symbols, such as myths

or body language. A culture's unique combination of cultural symbols — and their meanings —

creates meaning for the individual, which in turn prompts that individual to react in culturally

specific ways to symbolic behavior and communication. Symbols, such as a raised eyebrow, may

be shared by different cultures but have different meanings or elicit distinct responses within

each culture. Symbolic culture emphasizes direct observation and interpretation of cultures
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within their own framework, putting it at odds with both the all-encompassing theoretical

aspirations of structuralism and the external interpretive approach of Marxism.

One of the main reasons as to why I, the researcher, have chosen this particular topic is

that because symbolic anthropology gives importance to details that exist in a particular culture

or society rather than creating huge and grand theories. Symbolic anthropology focuses from the

perspective of someone who has already went and observed a certain culture or tradition to fully

understand the meaning of objects.

In symbolic anthropology, I have also noticed and took into account the different possible

meanings that objects may have. Sometimes, objects tend to have double meanings and some

actions may mean another to other people. The meaning of objects may sometimes vary from

one person to another. Their interpretation on an action or an object may not be the same as what

we think it is.

To add more, in symbolic anthropology it is a study of the culture from the perspective of

an actor/person within that culture. Symbolic anthropology forces us to delve deep within a

culture and understand hidden meanings. It makes us understand hidden messages through their

language, objects, actions and even art.

Further, symbolic anthropology is a means to represent and analyze cultural traditions

without reducing them to material conditions. Symbolic anthropology doesn’t reduce actions and

materials to their physical beings per se. Instead, it goes so far as to give it meanings that some

other culture will not have. Symbolic anthropology gives uniqueness and originality from one

culture to another. Even if there exists a cross-cultural relationship between two cultures, there

will never be an exact copy of one culture, there will always be alterations done by the people

following that culture so that they will benefit from it.

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Figure 1

Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics as the methodology of interpretation is concerned with problems that arise when

dealing with meaningful human actions and the products of such actions, most importantly texts.

As a methodological discipline, it offers a toolbox for efficiently treating problems of the

interpretation of human actions, texts and other meaningful material. Hermeneutics looks back at

a long tradition as the set of problems it addresses have been prevalent in human life, and have

repeatedly and consistently called for consideration: interpretation is a ubiquitous activity,

unfolding whenever humans aspire to grasp whatever interpretanda they deem significant. Due

to its long history, it is only natural that both its problems, and the tools designed to help solve

them, have shifted considerably over time, along with the discipline of hermeneutics itself. The

article focuses on the main problem areas and presents some proposals that have been put

forward for tackling them effectively.

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In one of Clifford Geertz’s work entitled ''Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight'',

he describes how the Balinese use the fighting between two roosters to play out some significant

tensions from their society related to hierarchy. More than just individuals pitting one animal

against another, there is symbolic meaning to actions of the participants.

By investigating cockfighting in this depth, Geertz was engaging in hermeneutics, the

study of meaning. While it would be one thing for an outsider to go to Bali and make notations

about what they were seeing with their own eyes, Geertz aimed to also grasp how the Balinese

viewed cockfighting and what it represented to their society.

To add more, Hermeneutics as the methodology of interpretation can provide guidance

for solving problems of interpretation of human actions, texts and other meaningful material by

offering a toolbox based on solid empirical evidence. Throughout its historical development

hermeneutics has dealt with specific problems of interpretation, arising within specific

disciplines like jurisprudence, theology and literature. The aim was indeed to show what kind of

general problems of interpretation are treated by the discipline of hermeneutics and to identify

some important procedures leading to their efficacious solution—always keeping in mind that

these procedures, like all epistemological procedures, are bound to remain fallible.

In simple terms, hermeneutics is a method in philosophy which tackles about the study of

meaning. It was mainly used by Clifford Geertz in one of his articles, but in reality, we are all

subconsciously and continuously putting meanings into objects and is also trying to decipher and

know the proper meanings to actions done for us. In the end, the study between the meanings of

symbols can only be interpreted of people who really wish to understand what it wants to say.

An anthropologist will never be able to become a successful symbolic anthropologist

unless he chooses to understand a culture down to its smallest grain.

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Putting Meaning Into Objects

Placing meaning into objects, much like what I have argued in the earlier headings, can

sometimes be subjective and may vary from one person to another. Symbolic Anthropology

tackles about placing meaning into objects, actions, language, and other things that a culture has.

For example, a ‘pig’ that exists in the Kawelkan context has a very high value compared to a

‘pig’ that exists in the Balinese culture. However, a cock in the Balinese culture will have a huge

worth over the cock in the Kawelkan context.

Throughout the semester, we were taught to think critically and learn to read between the

lines and hidden meanings that texts gives us. We were taught to understand the different

meanings that may be placed on a single object or action so that it can mean many different

things in the culture. However, there are some instances where the placement of meaning may be

problematic since people will not have the same meaning for a single object. Sometimes, what

seems positive from this individual, maybe offensive and negative to another individual. It needs

to be stressed out that ‘meanings’, much like ‘opinions’, vary from one person to another. One

individual can never be forced to understand the meaning of something.

On a personal note, putting meanings into objects and understanding that meaning can be

beneficial in understanding a particular culture and tradition in the modern era. In a divided

world where tensions are at an all time high, symbolic anthropology closes that gap between

cultures by making us understand the differences in culture and learning to accept it. Symbolic

anthropology helps us to understand that we all have our different way of thinking and that it

must be respected no matter what.

“I must respect the opinion of others even if I disagree with them.”

- Maya Angelou
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Symbols and Meanings in Language (Paralanguage)

As the age of modernity increasingly brings together different cultures, through travel,

immigration, and globalisation, there is more than ever a demand for further examination and

understanding of the differences between cultures at discourse level.  For successful

communication with another culture, it is not enough to know only the language at a lexical and

grammatical level, because when a speaker gives an utterance, it is not only the words which the

hearer interprets to find meaning. In order to successfully deduce the meaning of any single

utterance, the hearer must pay attention not only to words and their syntax, but also to the use of

paralanguage, such as a speaker's use of silence, intonation, stress, and body language.  The

acceptable employment of these different cues and their meanings varies from culture to culture,

and it is due to these differences at discourse level that miscommunication and

misunderstandings frequently occur in intercultural discourse. 

Paralanguage is the area of non-verbal communication that emphasizes body language

and voice nuances as means of expressing thoughts and feelings. People normally use

paralanguage multiple times per day and are sometimes not even aware they are doing so. The

ability to interpret this kind of human communication correctly is considered an important

competency in both personal and professional settings. Body language often conveys just as

much meaning as spoken words. Good communicators also have the ability to gauge how their

own paralanguage affects others and to alter it so as to gain others' trust and to project

confidence.

Various aspects of paralanguage include posture, eye contact, hand gestures, and tone of

voice. Vocal qualities such as volume and tempo are also part of non-verbal communication. If a

speaker changes even one of these aspects, the resulting meaning can be quite different to
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listeners. People who are able to adjust their non-verbal language to the needs of various

situations are generally better at diffusing troublesome interactions such as arguments. This type

of communication skill is known as meta communicative competence.

What makes understanding these rules and routines so difficult is that participants are

required to have a shared cultural background in order to be able to follow them. Often certain

expressions are metaphoric and make little sense if interpreted literally. They have been

ingrained into the way we function and so we accept them unquestioningly and consider them

logical. However, for another culture, such rules are not so obvious. For native English speakers

it is quite normal when greeting someone to ask how they are, without expecting a true response.

In this concept, kinesics and proxemics play a huge role in understanding the non-verbal

actions done by another person. These two concepts are both hidden in the naked eye but a

deeper understanding between a discourse of two different individuals will clearly show the

relationship between those individuals. For example, two close friends tend to be much closer to

one another compared to strangers who just met by chance and decided to talk with one another.

In regards with this concept, I propose a social construct in the study of paralanguage

called ‘Beyond the Line Concept’. I have noticed between two strangers, they subconsciously try

to create an invisible demarcation line that limits the actions that they are doing. In simple terms,

it is like setting your ‘guard’ up incase something bad happens. People subconsciously create

walls to defend themselves from external influences that another person may bring. ‘Beyond the

Line’ in the sense that once the demarcation line has been broken and removed, the two

individuals will now share a much closer relationship with one another and will now try to get

much closer and intimate with one another.

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To add more, I’ve also noticed that people will try to choose their words very carefully

when faced with a stranger. I’ve always seen people become very nervous when talking with

someone they are not familiar with but is able to fluently speak inside class discussions where

only his classmates could hear him. It’s as if people are trying to preserve their reputation when

talking with another person or a stranger.

Further, this concept could also be applicable and can be correlated to one construct that I

have proposed in another paper entitled ‘von Gennep- Geertz Catalyst’. Gennep’s ROP and

Durkheim’s Solidarity that will mainly state that an individual, mainly in the study of culture and

tradition, needs a certain “catalyst” or “trigger” to fully be accepted by the community that

they are trying to incorporate themselves into. Geertz’s and his wife’s incorporation to the

Balinese society can be used as an example to this social construct. (Baltazar, 2017)

By contextualizing the concepts of the von Gennep-Geertz Catalyst and the Beyond the

Line Concept, we can say that there needs to be a ‘spark’ or catalyst that will enable two

individuals to erase the demarcation line that we subconsciously put to protect ourselves from

external influences. Sometimes, an unlikely action such as giving a ‘candy’ or some kind of

small gift can act as the catalyst for such a thing to happen.

All in all, symbols can be derived from the non-verbal actions that a person has when

communicating with another individual. Since people tend to become protective and try to

become less vulnerable when talking with strangers, they ‘subconsciously’ place a demarcation

line and some sort of limit line that can never be passed through unless a certain catalyst or spark

help in doing so. Proxemics and Kinesics also play a vital role in making us understand the

relationship between people. The closer their distance is, the closer they are. If their language is

‘intimate’, the closer they are.

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Symbols and Meanings In Actions (Rituals)

Placing meanings in actions or rituals is another concept in symbolic anthropology which can

helps in the understanding of the culture and its traditions. Each and every culture places

meanings in their rituals and most of the times they consider it as sacred and pure. They will

traditionally pass it on with each generation so that the ritual rites will never be forgotten.

However, symbols may not only be found in rituals, it may also be found in ‘actions’ such as the

cockfight in Geertz’s article where he symbolized cockfight as a battle between two different

heroes.

However, the placement of meaning in rituals is harder than the normal way of

incorporating and contextualizing meanings because most cultures consider their rituals as sacred

and must never be tampered with.

This particular concept can very well be seen in the ‘moka’ in the Kawelkan culture. The

moka, which seems just as a normal redistribution of goods in our perspective, holds a much

deeper meaning to the Kawelkan people doing the action. They consider it as one of the most

important events that a big man may participate in because that is one way on how they are able

to gather honor and respect throughout the community. The simple ritual of ‘moka’ gives them

power and fame and honor for a long time if held successful. However, if the moka were to fail,

they would be disgraced and embarrassed for as long as they live.

Further, the moka ritual was also used to symbolize other things in the Kawelkan society.

It was used to symbolize the concepts of reciprocity and gift-giving and even the modern term of

‘investment’. If we were to see that kind of ritual in the city, we would think of it as nothing but

some sort of Santa Claus that gives gift to other people; the only difference is that instead of

children, this Santa Claus is giving gifts and investments to old men. However this ritual means a
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lot in the Kawelkan society. They attached deep meanings of culture and tradition in the moka

ritual. The headdresses, the pigs, the big men; all these things were intensified at the moka. That

thing we consider as ‘gift-giving’ is a ritual that the Kawelkans hold dear and it is something

they treasure. They value their moka because it symbolizes their rich culture and tradition. To

add more, their moka is dynamic which means that it evolves through time. For instance, the

Kawelkan people are now also using Australian dollars as a form of currency.

The concept of Symbols in Actions can very well be seen in the Balinese Cockfight that

Geertz studied and analyzed. In that article, the cockfight, this is only seen as a way for men to

gamble, can be interpreted in a way that it symbolizes men’s feuds and social disputes. Even if

the men are not directly fighting with one another, it can still be interpreted that that the

cockfight can be used to resolve those minor/ major disputes.

“Moreover, the cockfight was also used to alleviate social status, even if momentarily.

The winners of the cockfight are able to receive fame and fortune, thus increasing their status in

the community. Cockfighting, in the Balinese tradition, is held in high regard because it can be

used to gain honor and pride in the community. To refer this to another culture, the Kawelkan

moka can be said to be similar to some extent. Much like the Kawelkan moka, the Balinese

cockfight is similar in the sense that it is used to alleviate one’s social standing and status. The

only difference that I can see between the two concepts is that the Kawelkan moka is a type of

redistribution within the society while the cockfight is a form of illegal gambling in the Balinese

culture and tradition.” (Baltazar, 2017)

These are only two of the most prominent examples that can be seen this semester. The

concept of meanings in rituals can very well help us in understanding how and why cultures put

meanings into their rituals.

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Symbols and Meanings In Objects

Symbols in Objects is one of the closest headings in this research paper that can be called

‘synonymous’ to symbolic anthropology, hence this part of the paper almost encompasses the

whole research paper that I have done.

Much like the given meaning and definition to symbolic anthropology, meanings are

placed into simple objects that will wholly change the value and worth of that single object. To

the human mind, symbols are cultural representations of reality. Every culture has its own set of

symbols associated with different experiences and perceptions. Thus, as a representation, a

symbol's meaning is neither instinctive nor automatic. The culture's members must interpret and

over time reinterpret the symbol.

The meaning placed on an object is dynamic, which means that is has the possibility to

change over time. The meanings placed upon an object are not permanent and is always subject

to difference as time passes by. There will always come a time where the whole meaning will be

changed from its original meaning. For example, if in this year, I gave a friend of mine a simple

token of appreciation and he/she decided to cherish it, that object will have a deeper meaning or

a sentimental value so to say for that friend of mine. If in 10 to 20 years he/she still holds unto

that little gift, its value for that person skyrockets and most of the times it becomes valuable and

irreplaceable.

To add more, I would like to reiterate that the placement of meaning upon objects is

always subjective and is subject to personal opinions. People will always have different

interpretations on an object given to them or action done for/by/against them. They will believe

in what they want to believe and disregard other people’s opinions.

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Furthermore, this concept can also be related to the objects that we give so much

important in life. For example, us Catholics gives importance and praise to statues of saints and

of the Lord. However, it is not the statue that we are praising but the meaning behind it. We are

praising the saint that the statue was personifying and not the statue itself. This is just one

instance where meaning is placed on a lifeless object.

Moreover, this concept is also visible and can be related to the concept of psychological

functionalism coined by Malinowski. For example, the chair, which is just a lump of wood glued

together to form some sort of quadrilateral contraption and object gained meaning through its use

– for human comfort. Malinowski’s functionalism also argues that objects and concepts are

created because of the needs of human being. Thus, we can say that Malinowski’s functionalism

and Symbols and Meanings in Objects coexist with one another in assuring that that they will

both exist. The lump of wood gained ‘meaning’ because we humans chose to give it meaning

and it gained its ‘purpose’ when we decided what we should use that lump of wood for.

The concept of meaning in objects can very well be also seen in the Moka exchange. The

‘pigs’ there that were considered as of high value and is considered as very valuable is just a

source of food for us in our tradition. The difference in tradition also changed the value of just a

single object. Based on this context, we can see that even a worthless object in our society can be

considered of high value in another culture. Even if we are not able to accept this at first, the

difference in culture will always be there and will continue to exist.

In this context, the value of the uniform worn by the big man of the Kawelkan tribe could

also be used as an example. It can mainly be seen in the headdress that Ongka wore and his

clothing that can be seen in the past documentary. Throughout the film, Ongka was shown as

wearing a suit and a captain’s hat while other Kawelkans were only wearing native clothing. This
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could mean that his clothing symbolizes a connotation of power in the society. This suggests that

only big men of the society are allowed to wear that type of clothing. It symbolizes power that

only a big man could have. Moreover, the headdress also functions in the same sense.

We could correlate Ongka’s headdress to the Spartan helmet (headdress). If a Spartan

were to have more intricate designs in his helmet or if he/she would have more plume in his

helmet, then this means that he has power in their society. Warriors of high rank wore the

plumed style of helmets, with the plumes serving to distinguish battle leaders from the rank and

file. (Baltazar, 2017)

On the other hand, the concept of placement of meanings is also very evident in the

article written by Clifford Geertz himself. In the Balinese Cockfight, the cocks were held in very

high regard because they were considered as heroes, warriors, and even soldiers who are willing

to die for the honor and freedom of their owners.

To add more, these cocks can very well symbolize the pride of men in that society. They

believe that the cocks are an extension of their body and that it must be taken care of at all times.

As opposed to the Kawelkan culture where pigs were given high value and were held in high

regard, the cocks were given praise and respect in the Balinese cockfight. Though very much

different in first glance, both cultures are similar in one thing – giving meanings to inhuman

‘objects’ and animals. They even went on to place ‘value’ upon these objects.

To end it all, the concept of meaning in objects can greatly help us in understanding the

culture and tradition of a society or community. The objects that they give importance show the

values and beliefs that these people have. And even if they seem to have very different cultures

and traditions at first glance, there will always be a relation between those cultures. Symbols, in

fact, show us what that society gives importance to.

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