Functionalists and zombis: Sorcery as spandrel and social rescue.
At one level, anthropologists remain functionalists in that they generally see acts and institutions as contributing to a greater social whole only through which they make sense. Thus, sorcery accusations have been traditionally interpreted in terms of maintaining social harmony and cohesion. In the case of Haitian zombification, the zombi seems a locally misidentified victim who is frequently mentally ill. As a hapless non-agent, the zombi cannot initiate the sorcery accusations, so how do we understand the recognition and rescue of the zombi, either in terms of social function or social action?
a Departments of Anthropology and Mental Health , University College London , UK.
Roland
R
Littlewood
Haiti; functionalism; sorcery; spandrel; zombie