Whitney Swaim - Native Americans (Outside Reading 2)

In Catherine Albanese's book America: Religions and Religion, Native American religion is discussed heavily. She articulates the concept of Indian religion quite well: "Indian nations typically had no word for religion because they did not separate the ordinary details of living from their sacred ceremonies. They saw their beliefs and activities as part of the same whole" (p. 20).
I would guess that Native Americans had words for terms like "spirituality" or "sacred," but it is interesting that the idea of religion has evolved mainly for the use of literate societies. Through texts we have been able to put our ideas on paper. Instead of expressing them to others in a collective fashion, we have begun expressing them in solitude on paper. This brings our spiritual ideas outside of our minds and into our world of products. The other day in class we discussed the cosmos structure as having the creator and then the "created" (people, animals, plants, nature, etc.). Paper, writing utensils, books, etc. are all human creations. They are part of this alternate reality that we have created. With writing, we are able to pull the sacred from the world of the "created" to the artificial world of our creations.

Whitney Swaim - Noland Trail 2 (Outside Topic 5)

On the same day as the drum circle, I noticed something else interesting at the Noland Trail. After having my shoes off for a while and then putting them back on, I started thinking about what it would be like to live day-to-day without shoes. As far as primal societies go, I know that some of them have shoes. However, some do not, and many primal groups from long ago did not wear shoes either. Either way, it does help people connect to the earth when they are not wearing shoes. I did not realize how much of a barrier between nature and myself that shoes really are. With this said, I thought about walking through the park without shoes to form a closer relationship with nature. On the walk back to the car, however, I saw that many of the paths in the Noland Trail park are filled with shells and rocks. This is attractive to the eye, yet it is ironic that some of the paths in one of the most "natural" areas of Newport News are actually not fit for barefoot people who are trying to have a fully natural experience.

Whitney Swaim - Myth/Ritual (Outside Topic 4)

When looking back on class notes, I was intrigued by a lecture we had on the sacred qualities of myths and rituals. Prior to this class, I had viewed myths more plainly as significant religious stories. I discovered that myths are instead sacred, rather than merely significant. Myths are perhaps the closest link that primal peoples have to their spirits and creator. Since these myths had to be crafted and then carried down delicately through the ages, they are more than just stories. Myths are like cherished pieces of artwork from long ago. The tribes whom these myths belong to are responsible for taking care of them and making sure they stay accurate. Ritual is a form of preservation of these art forms. Since the myths are so meaningful, then there must be some appropriate way which they can be handled, experienced, and interpreted. Like literate societies cherish precious old documents, such as the Declaration of Independence, oral cultures cherish their myths and must take care of them respectfully.

Whitney Swaim - Noland Trail (Outside Topic 3)

On the day our class participated in the drum circle at the Lion's Bridge, I realized some new things. Our instructor asked us to remove our shoes to become closer to the earth. I thought this was a nice addition to the afternoon's activity. Although it was chilly, the grass felt nice under my feet. The feeling brought back memories of running around the yard as a child, when my imagination was boundless. I realized that when I was little I had a much stronger connection with nature. My sister and I would often run around barefoot in the yard and make forts inside the large bushes in front of our home. While the bushes look small and plain now, they were so much more than that to us as kids. When I think of playing outside, I realize that I was similar to oral peoples in my youth. It is not to say that oral peoples are underdeveloped or unintelligent, but quite the contrary. As a child, like primal people, I was not heavily involved with the internet and television (at least not nearly as much as I am now). Instead of finding fun inside, I sought entertainment through nature. Experiencing the outdoor elements was such a sensory experience, and it brought my imagination and curiosity alive much more than sitting inside ever did.

Whitney Swaim - Ong (Class Reading 5)

Far into Orality and Literacy, Ong discusses how preliterate societies differ in their mnemonic structures in comparison to those of literate societies. Ong shares how oral peoples use narrative to remember stories, traditions, myths, etc. Earlier in the semester we discussed how written narratives are drastically different than oral narratives. For instance, in oral narratives it is acceptable to use repetition, as well as unique sounds and word emphasis. In writing, the tone of the speaker (or author in this case) is much more difficult to pick up on. In fact, no two readers would have the same impression from the same piece of writing. Also, the use of repetition is discouraged in formal writing. Since readers have the ability to refer back to an earlier part of a work, then repetition is silly. Interestingly, though, the memories of oral societies are much more elaborate and functional than literate ones. Then comes the question--is either a well-developed memory or the ability to access and understand vast amounts of data more useful than the other? Is there any way to effectively fuse the abilities of non-literate and literate societies?

Whitney Swaim - Turner (Class Reading 4)

In The Ritual Process, Turner describes his early experiences with Ndembu rituals in Africa. While he was able to decipher his own meaning from the female puberty rite rituals, Turner realized that he had much to learn. In order to gain any genuine understanding of these events, then he would have to see what the rituals mean to these people personally. Aside from dealing with an obvious language barrier, I, myself, would have quite a difficult time interpreting these ceremonies. With the outstanding number of oral tribes there might be in a relatively small area of Africa, one might expect that these groups have much in common. However, many tribes that live near one another are completely separate and distinct. Although they may share certain agricultural practices and lifestyle characteristics, each group has a unique creation story and worldview. This means that their rituals grew in drastically different ways. I am humbled by any outsider who is able to even grasp a relatively legitimate understanding of how oral societies view their rituals.

Whitney Swaim - Turner (Class Reading 3)

Early in The Ritual Process, Turner discusses how most scholars take a theological approach to explaining and understanding religion. He seeks to move from this and study what he believes to be just as important: the "maintenance and radical transformation of human social and physical structures" (p. 4). Human social and physical structures are revealed through rituals of preliterate societies, and the rest of the book explores this topic. Although rituals may be commonly seen as extremely vital to religion, it is important to note that rituals step outside of scripture in a personal, emotional way. For oral societies, there is not even a scripture to work from, but instead the traditions that have been carried down through generations. Non-literate social structures are intertwined with ritual and religion in a much different way than scripture-oriented ones. Oral peoples are forced to consistently share rituals and religious experiences with one another so that they do not disappear. In contrast, literate societies form their social structures in a much more distant way. Their religion is able to stay "alive" even when they neglect to practice it with one another.