Magical Body: Power,Fame and Meaning in a Melanesian Society FROM THE PUBLISHER
The Magical Body is an ethnographically rich and theoretically bold exploration of the body and magic among a Melanesian people, the Lelet of central New Ireland, Papua New Guinea. The author captures the fluidity and complexity of the relationship between magic, power, and the body for the Lelet and the way that these are refashioned with the encounter with modernity. The Magical Body grapples in an imaginative way with the role of body in the constitution of the Lelet lived world and its significance to issues of identity and difference. The Magical Body will be of great value not only to Melanesianists and Pacific Island specialists for its fine ethnography, but to those interested in theoretical issues, such as the anthropology of the body and personhood, phenomenology and comparative religion.
FROM THE CRITICS
Michael Goddard
This book is a valuable addition to a growing body of literature offering perspectives on Melanesian phenomenology, particularly with respect to the indigenous engagement with Christianity and the paraphernalia of colonialism. The creative adaptation of the Lelet and their cultural vitality in a fast-changing world are nicely captured here, in a clear and easily readable text.
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