Human Action Signs in Cultural Context : The Visible and the Invisible in Movement and Dance

Leading scholars in the anthropology of dance and human movement come together to provide a rich sample of their work. Contains ethnographies and in-depth commentary together with a critical examination of several fundamental philosophical and theoretical issues.

Despite the tremendous multi-disciplinary upsurge of interest in "the body" of late, little or no attention has been given to the moving body or rather, the moving person, a situation that is remedied by this book. For the first time, leading scholars in the anthropology of dance and human movement come together to provide a rich sample of their current work, introducing theories and methods that move well beyond the more familiar "proxemic" and "kinesic" approaches to body movement and space. Part 1 consists of ethnographic studies as diverse as Hawaiian dance and poetry, Tai Chi Chuan, Ballet and the Roman Catholic Mass, Australian Aboriginal sign language, Plains Indians sign language, and African-American movement performance. Part 2 complements this ethnographic richness by providing an in-depth commentary, together with a critical examination of several fundamental philosophical and theoretical issues that have been raised.