Against Shamanism
Chongho Kim
January 18, 2018 DOI: 10.4324/9781315198156-6 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Population | Ordinary Korean women (as a focus of analysis) |
| Topics | Shamanism |
| Key points | Argues that prejudice against Korean shamanism is grounded in a cultural contradiction, and that understanding it requires attention to ordinary Korean women's opinions rather than only the Confucianism–shamanism cultural politics that anthropologists have emphasized since the fifteenth century. |
Abstract
The literature on Korean shamanism has consistently reported the negative connotations associated with shamans and their practice. Shamanic practice was referred to as a ‘matter of malignance in traditional Korea. It is hard to deny the fact that Korean Christianity has also suffered from shamanism. Seeing everything in terms of fiscal matters, shamanism would take no responsibility for society and history. The chapter is concerned with the origins of the prejudice against shamanism found in Korean society. It focuses on ordinary Korean women and their opinions of shamanism. The chapter demonstrates the logic behind the prejudice against shamanism, which is grounded in the cultural contradiction. Many anthropologists have commented on negative opinions toward shamanism in Korea. Their explanations have, however, mostly focused on the cultural politics between Confucianism and shamanism from the fifteenth century onwards.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on shamanism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond | 2014 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Shamanism as the Original Neurotheology | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Cognitive Neuroscience, Shamanism and the Rock Art of Native California | 1998 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From Culture to Experience: Shamanism in the Pages of the Soviet Anti-Religious Press | 2020 | Historical analysis | |
| Anthropology, Shamanism, and Alternate Ways of Knowing–Being in the World: One Anthropologist's Journey of Discovery and Transformation | 2010 | Reflective essay or personal narrative |