Introducing Possession
The Mind Possessed October 1, 2007 DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195323351.003.0001
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractThis book explores possession through a detailed account of a healing ceremony and the daily life of an Afro-Brazilian cult house (terreiro) in Belém, northern Brazil. It introduces key questions about why possession occurs and how it is understood, briefly reviews dominant academic theories, and outlines the author's own explanatory framework. The text provides a chapter-by-chapter summary of the book's contents.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Ethnography Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Members of an Afro-Brazilian cult house (terreiro) in Belém, northern Brazil |
| Key finding | The book examines possession through ethnographic description of a healing ceremony and the terreiro, offering an explanatory approach to the phenomenon. |
Abstract
AbstractThe reader is introduced to possession, and many of the key “why” questions that the book addresses, through the description of a possession healing ceremony and to the principal ethnographic focus of the book—a terreiro, or Afro‐Brazilian cult house in the city of Belém, northern Brazil. Brief introductions to dominant approaches to possession within academic scholarship and to the explanatory approach adopted by the author are given. This is followed by a chapter‐by‐chapter summary of the book.