Neil Tennant
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199655755
- eISBN:
- 9780191742125
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199655755.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Logic/Philosophy of Mathematics, Metaphysics/Epistemology
This account of rational belief revision explains how a rational agent ought to proceed when adopting a new belief — a difficult matter if the new belief contradicts the agent’s old beliefs. Belief ...
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This account of rational belief revision explains how a rational agent ought to proceed when adopting a new belief — a difficult matter if the new belief contradicts the agent’s old beliefs. Belief systems are modeled as finite dependency networks. So one can attend not only to what the agent believes, but also to the variety of reasons the agent has for so believing. The computational complexity of the revision problem is characterized. Algorithms for belief revision are formulated, and implemented in Prolog. The implementation tests well on a range of simple belief‐revision problems that pose a variety of challenges for any account of belief‐revision. The notion of ‘minimal mutilation’ of a belief system is explicated precisely. The proposed revision methods are invariant across different global justificatory structures (foundationalist, coherentist, etc.). They respect the intuition that, when revising one's beliefs, one should not hold on to any belief that has lost all its former justifications. The limitation to finite dependency networks is shown not to compromise theoretical generality. This account affords a novel way to argue that there is an inviolable core of logical principles. These principles, which form the system of Core Logic, cannot be given up, on pain of not being able to carry out the reasoning involved in rationally revising beliefs. The book ends by comparing and contrasting the new account with some major representatives of earlier alternative approaches, from the fields of formal epistemology, artificial intelligence and mathematical logic.Less
This account of rational belief revision explains how a rational agent ought to proceed when adopting a new belief — a difficult matter if the new belief contradicts the agent’s old beliefs. Belief systems are modeled as finite dependency networks. So one can attend not only to what the agent believes, but also to the variety of reasons the agent has for so believing. The computational complexity of the revision problem is characterized. Algorithms for belief revision are formulated, and implemented in Prolog. The implementation tests well on a range of simple belief‐revision problems that pose a variety of challenges for any account of belief‐revision. The notion of ‘minimal mutilation’ of a belief system is explicated precisely. The proposed revision methods are invariant across different global justificatory structures (foundationalist, coherentist, etc.). They respect the intuition that, when revising one's beliefs, one should not hold on to any belief that has lost all its former justifications. The limitation to finite dependency networks is shown not to compromise theoretical generality. This account affords a novel way to argue that there is an inviolable core of logical principles. These principles, which form the system of Core Logic, cannot be given up, on pain of not being able to carry out the reasoning involved in rationally revising beliefs. The book ends by comparing and contrasting the new account with some major representatives of earlier alternative approaches, from the fields of formal epistemology, artificial intelligence and mathematical logic.
Nicholas P. Cushner
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195307566
- eISBN:
- 9780199784936
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195307569.003.0011
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
What was the appeal to Christianity if Native Americans received spiritual security and emotional satisfaction from their own belief systems? In the light of varying degrees of success throughout the ...
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What was the appeal to Christianity if Native Americans received spiritual security and emotional satisfaction from their own belief systems? In the light of varying degrees of success throughout the Americas, did the Native American hear the same thing when Europeans spoke of God, creation, heaven or hell? The methods used to attract the Native American, coercion, the Devil, and the conflicts between Agricultural vs. Hunter-Gatherer societies, are part of the explanation of why Native America for the most part accepted the new religion.Less
What was the appeal to Christianity if Native Americans received spiritual security and emotional satisfaction from their own belief systems? In the light of varying degrees of success throughout the Americas, did the Native American hear the same thing when Europeans spoke of God, creation, heaven or hell? The methods used to attract the Native American, coercion, the Devil, and the conflicts between Agricultural vs. Hunter-Gatherer societies, are part of the explanation of why Native America for the most part accepted the new religion.
S. E. Finer
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198207900
- eISBN:
- 9780191677854
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198207900.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, World Medieval History
No one has hitherto had the breadth of imagination and intellectual boldness to describe and analyse government throughout recorded history and throughout the world. Ranging over 5,000 years, from ...
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No one has hitherto had the breadth of imagination and intellectual boldness to describe and analyse government throughout recorded history and throughout the world. Ranging over 5,000 years, from the Sumerian city state to the modern European nation state, five themes emerge in this book: state-building, military formats, belief systems, social stratification, and timespan. The three volumes examine both representative and exceptional polities, and focus on political elites of different types. This text is the second volume and it analyses the ‘church’ politics of the Byzantine Empire and the Caliphate; the evolution of the T'ang and Ming Empires in China; the characteristics of feudal Europe, the ‘republican alternatives’ of Florence and Venice, and finally the growth of representative assemblies across Europe.Less
No one has hitherto had the breadth of imagination and intellectual boldness to describe and analyse government throughout recorded history and throughout the world. Ranging over 5,000 years, from the Sumerian city state to the modern European nation state, five themes emerge in this book: state-building, military formats, belief systems, social stratification, and timespan. The three volumes examine both representative and exceptional polities, and focus on political elites of different types. This text is the second volume and it analyses the ‘church’ politics of the Byzantine Empire and the Caliphate; the evolution of the T'ang and Ming Empires in China; the characteristics of feudal Europe, the ‘republican alternatives’ of Florence and Venice, and finally the growth of representative assemblies across Europe.
Benjamin I. Page and Tao Xie
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691151106
- eISBN:
- 9781400840304
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691151106.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization
This chapter proposes a theory of “purposive belief systems,” postulating an instrumental logic that tends to form an important foundation for citizens' policy preferences. This theory is based on ...
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This chapter proposes a theory of “purposive belief systems,” postulating an instrumental logic that tends to form an important foundation for citizens' policy preferences. This theory is based on the proposition that ordinary citizens are capable of—and tend to engage in—“rational,” instrumental, purposive reasoning about politics. Empirically, substantial evidence for the existence of such belief systems has already been found in the realm of foreign policy. This chapter illustrates and extends those findings, using recent data on the specific case of U.S.–China relations. It also explores the workings of policy preference heuristics that involve feelings toward foreign countries and investigates the ways in which such heuristics do or do not relate to purposive belief systems.Less
This chapter proposes a theory of “purposive belief systems,” postulating an instrumental logic that tends to form an important foundation for citizens' policy preferences. This theory is based on the proposition that ordinary citizens are capable of—and tend to engage in—“rational,” instrumental, purposive reasoning about politics. Empirically, substantial evidence for the existence of such belief systems has already been found in the realm of foreign policy. This chapter illustrates and extends those findings, using recent data on the specific case of U.S.–China relations. It also explores the workings of policy preference heuristics that involve feelings toward foreign countries and investigates the ways in which such heuristics do or do not relate to purposive belief systems.
Martin Kitchener
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195388299
- eISBN:
- 9780199866519
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195388299.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
This chapter extends institutional theory to analyze processes by which resource‐poor actors initiate new structures within fields of healthcare organizations. Using insights from studies of ...
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This chapter extends institutional theory to analyze processes by which resource‐poor actors initiate new structures within fields of healthcare organizations. Using insights from studies of counter‐movements, political opportunity structures, and social processes, a series of propositions are derived and illustrated using three case studies of institutional change driven by health reform movements: abortion rights, AIDS, and long‐term care. The framework assumes that multiple belief systems (logics) within healthcare fields ensure that institutional arrangements will be challenged, sometimes by reform movements. Five aspects of political opportunity structures support such efforts: organizational fields that are centralized and immature, an open policy context, a decentralized state, neighboring fields of reform activity, and journalistic standards of balanced reporting. Health reform movements are enabled by networked forms of leadership, the development of equivalent capacities to counter‐movements, and leaders framing an array of arguments. Successful reform processes are likely to be slow, highly contested, and result in the new structure being accommodated alongside aspects of the traditional arrangements.Less
This chapter extends institutional theory to analyze processes by which resource‐poor actors initiate new structures within fields of healthcare organizations. Using insights from studies of counter‐movements, political opportunity structures, and social processes, a series of propositions are derived and illustrated using three case studies of institutional change driven by health reform movements: abortion rights, AIDS, and long‐term care. The framework assumes that multiple belief systems (logics) within healthcare fields ensure that institutional arrangements will be challenged, sometimes by reform movements. Five aspects of political opportunity structures support such efforts: organizational fields that are centralized and immature, an open policy context, a decentralized state, neighboring fields of reform activity, and journalistic standards of balanced reporting. Health reform movements are enabled by networked forms of leadership, the development of equivalent capacities to counter‐movements, and leaders framing an array of arguments. Successful reform processes are likely to be slow, highly contested, and result in the new structure being accommodated alongside aspects of the traditional arrangements.
Bruce N. Waller
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262028165
- eISBN:
- 9780262327404
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262028165.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
Belief in moral responsibility is held in place by a larger belief system in which moral responsibility is deeply embedded. When operating within the deep assumptions of that system moral ...
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Belief in moral responsibility is held in place by a larger belief system in which moral responsibility is deeply embedded. When operating within the deep assumptions of that system moral responsibility seems secure and obvious, and challenges to that system often appear ridiculous. Advocates of the moral responsibility system regard the basic principles of that system as fixed and certain and assume that even critics of the moral responsibility system must adhere to its basic operating principles. The attempt to deal with the challenges of nonconscious choices shows the powerful grip of the moral responsibility belief system.Less
Belief in moral responsibility is held in place by a larger belief system in which moral responsibility is deeply embedded. When operating within the deep assumptions of that system moral responsibility seems secure and obvious, and challenges to that system often appear ridiculous. Advocates of the moral responsibility system regard the basic principles of that system as fixed and certain and assume that even critics of the moral responsibility system must adhere to its basic operating principles. The attempt to deal with the challenges of nonconscious choices shows the powerful grip of the moral responsibility belief system.
John Baylis
- Published in print:
- 1995
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198280125
- eISBN:
- 9780191684357
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198280125.003.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
This introductory chapter describes the years 1945–1964 as a period that does not only denote availability of references but also signifies the turning points that shaped the current British nuclear ...
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This introductory chapter describes the years 1945–1964 as a period that does not only denote availability of references but also signifies the turning points that shaped the current British nuclear methodologies. Two main approaches are laid down: the political aspects of nuclear weapons and the strategic dimensions of nuclear procedures in Britain. To examine the tactics of Britain, five main topics are presented: (1) David Rosenberg's examination of how the government and its constituents dealt with deterrence before in connection to the implementation of the legal frameworks associated with it; (2) the development of programs based on the consolidation of the rational actors, independent political control, and bureaucratic atmospheres; (3) the encapsulation of an organizational structure to strategic planning; (4) the notions of the ‘belief systems’; (5) and the perspectives concerning ‘strategic culture’.Less
This introductory chapter describes the years 1945–1964 as a period that does not only denote availability of references but also signifies the turning points that shaped the current British nuclear methodologies. Two main approaches are laid down: the political aspects of nuclear weapons and the strategic dimensions of nuclear procedures in Britain. To examine the tactics of Britain, five main topics are presented: (1) David Rosenberg's examination of how the government and its constituents dealt with deterrence before in connection to the implementation of the legal frameworks associated with it; (2) the development of programs based on the consolidation of the rational actors, independent political control, and bureaucratic atmospheres; (3) the encapsulation of an organizational structure to strategic planning; (4) the notions of the ‘belief systems’; (5) and the perspectives concerning ‘strategic culture’.
NEVILLE WYLIE
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780198206903
- eISBN:
- 9780191717338
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198206903.003.0011
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History, European Modern History
This concluding chapter evaluates the relative success of British policy towards Switzerland between 1939 and 1945. It explains how British policy-makers justified their benevolent attitude towards ...
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This concluding chapter evaluates the relative success of British policy towards Switzerland between 1939 and 1945. It explains how British policy-makers justified their benevolent attitude towards Switzerland, despite the substantial financial, economic and strategic advantages gained by Britain's enemies in Switzerland over the course of the war. It considers the particular psychological challenges confronting statesmen in managing relations with ostensibly friendly states in periods of acute tension and explores how norm compliant behaviour — in this case, sympathy for Switzerland — was promoted through the development of belief systems, institutional culture and decision-making processes. Finally, it discusses the importance of Switzerland's international image and reputation in shaping British attitudes and expectations over the war.Less
This concluding chapter evaluates the relative success of British policy towards Switzerland between 1939 and 1945. It explains how British policy-makers justified their benevolent attitude towards Switzerland, despite the substantial financial, economic and strategic advantages gained by Britain's enemies in Switzerland over the course of the war. It considers the particular psychological challenges confronting statesmen in managing relations with ostensibly friendly states in periods of acute tension and explores how norm compliant behaviour — in this case, sympathy for Switzerland — was promoted through the development of belief systems, institutional culture and decision-making processes. Finally, it discusses the importance of Switzerland's international image and reputation in shaping British attitudes and expectations over the war.
Miriam Erez
- Published in print:
- 1993
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195075809
- eISBN:
- 9780199854912
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195075809.003.0005
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Finance, Accounting, and Banking
Organisational motivations grounded on a cross-cultural approach are essential in the analysis of the factors that affect employees' (though different) persistence, volunteerism, and goal-directed ...
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Organisational motivations grounded on a cross-cultural approach are essential in the analysis of the factors that affect employees' (though different) persistence, volunteerism, and goal-directed actions. Even if there are explanations about drives according to the hierarchy-of-needs approach, the goal-setting theory, and the expectancy paradigm, these are insufficient in establishing the correspondence of several motivational strategies and behavioural patterns with cultural features. Such relationship is made possible by the self-regulatory processes, which come in the form of monitoring, assessing, and responding; and later on, builds the total belief system. Self-observation lets individuals look upon their own experiences, undertakings, and outputs. Self-appraisal involves feedback from significant others, selected social references, and personal reactions. These indicators of an integrative total belief system improve an individuals' self-concept, which affects that person's competence and performance, specifically in an organisational context.Less
Organisational motivations grounded on a cross-cultural approach are essential in the analysis of the factors that affect employees' (though different) persistence, volunteerism, and goal-directed actions. Even if there are explanations about drives according to the hierarchy-of-needs approach, the goal-setting theory, and the expectancy paradigm, these are insufficient in establishing the correspondence of several motivational strategies and behavioural patterns with cultural features. Such relationship is made possible by the self-regulatory processes, which come in the form of monitoring, assessing, and responding; and later on, builds the total belief system. Self-observation lets individuals look upon their own experiences, undertakings, and outputs. Self-appraisal involves feedback from significant others, selected social references, and personal reactions. These indicators of an integrative total belief system improve an individuals' self-concept, which affects that person's competence and performance, specifically in an organisational context.
Richard Foley
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691154725
- eISBN:
- 9781400842308
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691154725.003.0017
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
This chapter illustrates fixedness of belief and how it can or cannot be considered knowledge. Ordinarily, when one has a true belief and also enough information to know, one's belief is neither ...
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This chapter illustrates fixedness of belief and how it can or cannot be considered knowledge. Ordinarily, when one has a true belief and also enough information to know, one's belief is neither impervious to change nor isolated from one's other beliefs about the situation. Fixedness as the chapter demonstrates can become something more akin to an obsession or a compulsion. Such a thing is not subject to the processes of regulation, revision, and influence that governs one's other opinions and thus looks more like a rigidified state external to one's belief system than something inside it, subject to the give and take of neighboring opinions.Less
This chapter illustrates fixedness of belief and how it can or cannot be considered knowledge. Ordinarily, when one has a true belief and also enough information to know, one's belief is neither impervious to change nor isolated from one's other beliefs about the situation. Fixedness as the chapter demonstrates can become something more akin to an obsession or a compulsion. Such a thing is not subject to the processes of regulation, revision, and influence that governs one's other opinions and thus looks more like a rigidified state external to one's belief system than something inside it, subject to the give and take of neighboring opinions.
Jonathan Karam Skaff
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199734139
- eISBN:
- 9780199950195
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199734139.003.0004
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, World History: BCE to 500CE, Asian and Middle Eastern History: BCE to 500CE
This chapter takes a look at the Eastern Eurasian conceptions of imperial space and rulership that directed monarchs as they tried to exert and justify sovereignty. It describes the Sui-Tang ...
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This chapter takes a look at the Eastern Eurasian conceptions of imperial space and rulership that directed monarchs as they tried to exert and justify sovereignty. It describes the Sui-Tang Confucian and Turkic belief systems, as well as the Sui, Tang, Eurasia, and Turkic elite conceptions of imperial states. It then studies the Sui-Tang Confucian and Turkic ideologies of sacral kingship, before it shows that the rulers of the Sui-Tang and Turks from the sixth to the eighth centuries shared a willingness to take on ideological syncretism and innovation that can be traced to internal and external competition for power.Less
This chapter takes a look at the Eastern Eurasian conceptions of imperial space and rulership that directed monarchs as they tried to exert and justify sovereignty. It describes the Sui-Tang Confucian and Turkic belief systems, as well as the Sui, Tang, Eurasia, and Turkic elite conceptions of imperial states. It then studies the Sui-Tang Confucian and Turkic ideologies of sacral kingship, before it shows that the rulers of the Sui-Tang and Turks from the sixth to the eighth centuries shared a willingness to take on ideological syncretism and innovation that can be traced to internal and external competition for power.
Robbi E. Davis-Floyd
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520229327
- eISBN:
- 9780520927216
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520229327.003.0006
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Medical Anthropology
This chapter presents the result of an in depth investigation into the responses of individual women to their socialization through birth rituals. The findings indicate that the single factor that ...
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This chapter presents the result of an in depth investigation into the responses of individual women to their socialization through birth rituals. The findings indicate that the single factor that most influences how a woman responds to her socialization process is the degree of correspondence between the technocratic model dominant in the hospital and the belief system she holds when she enters the hospital. This chapter explains that when the belief system is upheld the birth experience will be perceived as positive and joyful but when it is overthrown the experience will be perceived as negative and traumatic.Less
This chapter presents the result of an in depth investigation into the responses of individual women to their socialization through birth rituals. The findings indicate that the single factor that most influences how a woman responds to her socialization process is the degree of correspondence between the technocratic model dominant in the hospital and the belief system she holds when she enters the hospital. This chapter explains that when the belief system is upheld the birth experience will be perceived as positive and joyful but when it is overthrown the experience will be perceived as negative and traumatic.
Patrick H. Hase
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9789622098992
- eISBN:
- 9789882207592
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Hong Kong University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5790/hongkong/9789622098992.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
The year 1899 was the pinnacle of Imperialism as a belief-system in Britain. Britain's continual Imperial expansion, throughout the second half of the nineteenth century, had led the British to ...
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The year 1899 was the pinnacle of Imperialism as a belief-system in Britain. Britain's continual Imperial expansion, throughout the second half of the nineteenth century, had led the British to believe in themselves and their Imperial role with unshakeable self-confidence and pride. It was also marked off by a series of small colonial military campaigns, in which the British armed forces were almost uniformly victorious. The detailed history of the six-day campaign is given, but it is desirable to preface it with a brief account of the British Imperialist belief-system which underpinned it. The British Imperialism in the late nineteenth century is first introduced. The chapter then describes Hong Kong in the age of Imperialism.Less
The year 1899 was the pinnacle of Imperialism as a belief-system in Britain. Britain's continual Imperial expansion, throughout the second half of the nineteenth century, had led the British to believe in themselves and their Imperial role with unshakeable self-confidence and pride. It was also marked off by a series of small colonial military campaigns, in which the British armed forces were almost uniformly victorious. The detailed history of the six-day campaign is given, but it is desirable to preface it with a brief account of the British Imperialist belief-system which underpinned it. The British Imperialism in the late nineteenth century is first introduced. The chapter then describes Hong Kong in the age of Imperialism.
Susan Starr Sered
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195104677
- eISBN:
- 9780199853267
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195104677.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, World Religions
There are several women's religions that could essentially be described as constellations of rituals: these religions lack a standardized belief system, formal membership procedures, rules and ...
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There are several women's religions that could essentially be described as constellations of rituals: these religions lack a standardized belief system, formal membership procedures, rules and regulations, and recognized leaders. The clearest example of this model is Spiritualism in the United States. An emphasis on ritual, however, does not mean that women's religions are simplistic. If we abandon a dichotomy between ritual (magical, superstitious, ignorant) and theology (philosophical, abstract, unselfish, moral), we begin to see that rituals may express very complex belief systems. Spiritualist seances, for example, explicate and reinforce the notion that material reality is not the only reality; that all living creatures are eternally connected with one another; that what one person does affects everyone and everything forever; that people are not specks of dust, disappearing into nothingness when they die; that love has meaning; that human relationships are sacred. This chapter examines rituals and interpersonal relationships in women's religions in the contexts of initiation, mourning, and food rituals.Less
There are several women's religions that could essentially be described as constellations of rituals: these religions lack a standardized belief system, formal membership procedures, rules and regulations, and recognized leaders. The clearest example of this model is Spiritualism in the United States. An emphasis on ritual, however, does not mean that women's religions are simplistic. If we abandon a dichotomy between ritual (magical, superstitious, ignorant) and theology (philosophical, abstract, unselfish, moral), we begin to see that rituals may express very complex belief systems. Spiritualist seances, for example, explicate and reinforce the notion that material reality is not the only reality; that all living creatures are eternally connected with one another; that what one person does affects everyone and everything forever; that people are not specks of dust, disappearing into nothingness when they die; that love has meaning; that human relationships are sacred. This chapter examines rituals and interpersonal relationships in women's religions in the contexts of initiation, mourning, and food rituals.
Tim Fulford
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199273379
- eISBN:
- 9780191706332
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199273379.003.0009
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century Literature and Romanticism
This chapter provides a close reading of Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, in the context of Coleridge's arguments about superstition and belief in indigenous communities, and in the context ...
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This chapter provides a close reading of Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, in the context of Coleridge's arguments about superstition and belief in indigenous communities, and in the context of the times, politics, and Romanticism.Less
This chapter provides a close reading of Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, in the context of Coleridge's arguments about superstition and belief in indigenous communities, and in the context of the times, politics, and Romanticism.
Manfred B. Steger
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199286942
- eISBN:
- 9780191700408
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199286942.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Neoliberalism. Neoconservatism. Postmarxism. Postmodernism. Is there really something genuinely new about today's isms? Have we moved past our traditional ideological landscape? This book traces ...
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Neoliberalism. Neoconservatism. Postmarxism. Postmodernism. Is there really something genuinely new about today's isms? Have we moved past our traditional ideological landscape? This book traces ideology's remarkable journey from Count Destutt de Tracy's Enlightenment ‘science of ideas’ to President George W. Bush's ‘imperial globalism’. Rejecting futile attempts to ‘update’ modern political belief systems by adorning them with prefixes, the book offers instead an explanation for their novelty: their increasing ability to articulate deep-seated understandings of community in global rather than national terms. This growing awareness of globality fuels the visions of social elites who reside in the privileged spaces of our global cities. It erupts in the hopes and demands of migrants who traverse national boundaries in search of their piece of the global promise. Stoked by cross-cultural encounters, technological change, and scientific innovation, the rising global imaginary has destabilised the grand political ideologies codified during the national age. The national is slowly losing its grip on people's minds, but the global has not yet ascended to the commanding heights once occupied by its predecessor. Still, the first rays of the rising global imaginary have provided enough light to capture the contours of a profoundly altered ideological landscape. Pointing in this direction, the book ends with an interpretation of the apparent convergence of ideology and religion in the dawning global age — a broad phenomenon that extends beyond the obvious cases of Christian fundamentalism and Islamic jihadism.Less
Neoliberalism. Neoconservatism. Postmarxism. Postmodernism. Is there really something genuinely new about today's isms? Have we moved past our traditional ideological landscape? This book traces ideology's remarkable journey from Count Destutt de Tracy's Enlightenment ‘science of ideas’ to President George W. Bush's ‘imperial globalism’. Rejecting futile attempts to ‘update’ modern political belief systems by adorning them with prefixes, the book offers instead an explanation for their novelty: their increasing ability to articulate deep-seated understandings of community in global rather than national terms. This growing awareness of globality fuels the visions of social elites who reside in the privileged spaces of our global cities. It erupts in the hopes and demands of migrants who traverse national boundaries in search of their piece of the global promise. Stoked by cross-cultural encounters, technological change, and scientific innovation, the rising global imaginary has destabilised the grand political ideologies codified during the national age. The national is slowly losing its grip on people's minds, but the global has not yet ascended to the commanding heights once occupied by its predecessor. Still, the first rays of the rising global imaginary have provided enough light to capture the contours of a profoundly altered ideological landscape. Pointing in this direction, the book ends with an interpretation of the apparent convergence of ideology and religion in the dawning global age — a broad phenomenon that extends beyond the obvious cases of Christian fundamentalism and Islamic jihadism.
Michael Attyah Flower
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520252295
- eISBN:
- 9780520934009
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520252295.003.0004
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
The rites of divination were not only ubiquitous in Greek society; they were also uniquely authoritative. This was true not only for the uneducated masses, but also for the elite, and not just in the ...
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The rites of divination were not only ubiquitous in Greek society; they were also uniquely authoritative. This was true not only for the uneducated masses, but also for the elite, and not just in the archaic period but even during the classical and Hellenistic periods. The various rites of divination constituted a rational and coherent, as well as a socially useful, system of knowledge and belief for the Greeks. This system was socially useful in that it aided decision making, circumvented indecision, and arbitrated disputes. It was logical in that it was predicated on an implicit set of beliefs which made sense for the Greeks: that the gods were concerned for the welfare of humankind, that they knew more than humans, and that they were willing to share some of that knowledge by way of advice.Less
The rites of divination were not only ubiquitous in Greek society; they were also uniquely authoritative. This was true not only for the uneducated masses, but also for the elite, and not just in the archaic period but even during the classical and Hellenistic periods. The various rites of divination constituted a rational and coherent, as well as a socially useful, system of knowledge and belief for the Greeks. This system was socially useful in that it aided decision making, circumvented indecision, and arbitrated disputes. It was logical in that it was predicated on an implicit set of beliefs which made sense for the Greeks: that the gods were concerned for the welfare of humankind, that they knew more than humans, and that they were willing to share some of that knowledge by way of advice.
Ross McKibbin
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198206729
- eISBN:
- 9780191677298
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198206729.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Modern History, Social History
This book investigates the ways in which ‘class culture’ characterised English society, and intruded into every aspect of life, during the period from 1918 to the mid-1950s. It demonstrates the ...
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This book investigates the ways in which ‘class culture’ characterised English society, and intruded into every aspect of life, during the period from 1918 to the mid-1950s. It demonstrates the influence of social class within the mini ‘cultures’ which together constitute society: families and family life, friends and neighbours, the workplace, schools and colleges, religion, sexuality, sport, music, film, and radio. The book considers the ways in which language was used (both spoken and written) to define one's social grouping, and how far changes occurred to language and culture more generally as a result of increasing American influence. It assesses the role of status and authority in English society, the social significance of the monarchy and the upper classes, the opportunities for social mobility, and the social and ideological foundations of English politics. The book exposes the fundamental structures and belief systems which underpinned English society in the first half of the 20th century.Less
This book investigates the ways in which ‘class culture’ characterised English society, and intruded into every aspect of life, during the period from 1918 to the mid-1950s. It demonstrates the influence of social class within the mini ‘cultures’ which together constitute society: families and family life, friends and neighbours, the workplace, schools and colleges, religion, sexuality, sport, music, film, and radio. The book considers the ways in which language was used (both spoken and written) to define one's social grouping, and how far changes occurred to language and culture more generally as a result of increasing American influence. It assesses the role of status and authority in English society, the social significance of the monarchy and the upper classes, the opportunities for social mobility, and the social and ideological foundations of English politics. The book exposes the fundamental structures and belief systems which underpinned English society in the first half of the 20th century.
Robbi E. Davis-Floyd
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520229327
- eISBN:
- 9780520927216
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520229327.003.0008
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Medical Anthropology
This chapter examines obstetric training in the U.S. as an initiatory rite of passage. It considers the process by which medical practitioners are socialized both into the core belief and value ...
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This chapter examines obstetric training in the U.S. as an initiatory rite of passage. It considers the process by which medical practitioners are socialized both into the core belief and value system of our society and into their roles as the maintainers and perpetuators of that system. It describes the process of psychological transformation through which fledgling medical students become full-fledged obstetricians and discusses cognitive transformation in medical training.Less
This chapter examines obstetric training in the U.S. as an initiatory rite of passage. It considers the process by which medical practitioners are socialized both into the core belief and value system of our society and into their roles as the maintainers and perpetuators of that system. It describes the process of psychological transformation through which fledgling medical students become full-fledged obstetricians and discusses cognitive transformation in medical training.
Janja A. Lalich
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520231948
- eISBN:
- 9780520937512
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520231948.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
The complex systems of influence in the cult group Heaven's Gate were intrusive, and very quickly became all-inclusive, serving to envelop any aspect of a member's life that was not already covered ...
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The complex systems of influence in the cult group Heaven's Gate were intrusive, and very quickly became all-inclusive, serving to envelop any aspect of a member's life that was not already covered by the charismatic relationship, the precepts of the transcendent belief system, and the overt systems of control. This chapter shows how the evolution of Heaven's Gate continued on its way to a choice that ultimately led to self-destruction. Much of the group's evolution into a cult occurred while the group was underground and remained generally separate from the larger society. Examples from different periods highlight general processes that existed in the group for most of its duration. The analysis of the systems of attitudinal influences revealed the strengthening of other structural dimensions of the organizational system, creating an enmeshment for participants that brought them rather willingly to a state of psychological restriction and bounded choice. Beyond the direct charismatic authority, the transcendent belief system, and the systems of control during this period, the cult continued its powerful march toward bounded choice through internal pressures, group norms, peer influence and modeling, and overall commitment.Less
The complex systems of influence in the cult group Heaven's Gate were intrusive, and very quickly became all-inclusive, serving to envelop any aspect of a member's life that was not already covered by the charismatic relationship, the precepts of the transcendent belief system, and the overt systems of control. This chapter shows how the evolution of Heaven's Gate continued on its way to a choice that ultimately led to self-destruction. Much of the group's evolution into a cult occurred while the group was underground and remained generally separate from the larger society. Examples from different periods highlight general processes that existed in the group for most of its duration. The analysis of the systems of attitudinal influences revealed the strengthening of other structural dimensions of the organizational system, creating an enmeshment for participants that brought them rather willingly to a state of psychological restriction and bounded choice. Beyond the direct charismatic authority, the transcendent belief system, and the systems of control during this period, the cult continued its powerful march toward bounded choice through internal pressures, group norms, peer influence and modeling, and overall commitment.
