When answering the question “What is the “function” of the cockfight, if not to reproduce Balinese social structure?” The first thing that must be done is to first to understand what Geertz’s believed cockfight means in the Balinese culture. The next is how this does this go with “structural-functionalism”. Then lastly contrasting Geertz’s argument using the information that Evans-Pritchard gives us with his work “Nuer”. These will help with deconstructing and then answering the question.
It was already illegal in Indonesia to have cockfights in the 1950s. Geertz with his wife was there at this time to observed cockfights and the social meaning that they have. It was only after the first cockfight that he and his wife viewed was broken up by the police and from the police in the courtyard of a local couple did they finally was able to talk with the villagers.
Without the worry of not getting people to talk he was able to observe and analyze the information he achieved. He concluded that the symbolism in cockfights are that the cocks are men and that the rituals that are apart of the betting side of cockfights are that it them and the social relationships that are in the village and kin that has governed their lives traditionally. So the knowledge of “who I am” by watching the cockfight
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The structure on its own is “how a society is laid out” and function is “what a person does to keep the structure going”. Now that it has been divided when put together we can see that together it means “how a society is created to keep the structure going”. With the understanding of structural-functionalism it now time to answer the question “How does this have anything to do with Geertz and cockfighting?” What this has to do with it is that it’s thanks to this there that we are able to understand how exactly cockfight works with the Balinese society. A society like cockfighting is complex and
Structural Functionalism aims to understand society in an objective way. It views society as an entity that is “objectively real”. It emphasizes the unity of society, and how individuals perform roles and how these roles are vital in meeting the needs of the collective whole. For instance, because every society has stratification, stratification must have certain functions and these functions can contribute to the survival of the social system as a whole. Furthermore, structural
Structural Functionalism as defined by Functionolists such as Auguste Comte and Herbert Spencer, believe that society is a whole unit made up of many related parts, each having its own function. In order for society to maintain equilibrium or balance all parts must fulfill their function. If their function is not performed society is in an
Structural functionalism is a framework for building theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. Essentially, structural functionalism is how every part of society fits and works together to keep everyone involved, united and to support the process of moving our nation forward. The colony that Flik lives in and that encounters an issue is its own small part of the world that follows structural functionalism; however, when Flik ventures off into the bug world to find warrior bugs it is easy to see ways that structural functionalism works outside of the colony. In the ant colony, the audience can see structural functionalism because each ant has a job that they do to ensure the success of the colony. The ants collect food together and follow orders from people who are higher in position like Princess Atta or The Queen. Through following orders and working together, the colony is able to find a balance and accept what they must do to become successful in fulfilling the needs of not only themselves but also the demanding grass hoppers.
To begin with, structural functionalism looks at the society as a bundle of a complex system with different parts that work to support the whole. It stipulates that a society is a combination of interrelated components, which work independently, but seek to achieve a common goal, which supports the growth of the whole system. Some of the systems in the society include the government, schools, businesses, and families. In essence, all these different components are fundamental in the society as they serve different functions to develop the society. On the other hand, social conflict theory looks at the society as a system with equal components, but within the endeavors to grow to find themselves in conflicting paths. Thinking about the society, some of the trends lead to conflict among the people living together. For example, ageism,
Anthropology is defined as the study of human societies and cultures and their development through time. This is shown through Clifford Geertz essay “Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight”. In his essay, he attempts to give insights on the Balinese culture and mainly focusing on the significance of Balinese cockfights within the Balinese culture. Throughout this paper, first, I will briefly summarize Geertz’s essay, then, I will discuss his use of ethnographic fieldwork and ethnocentrism in Bali and how it led him to the discovery of the Balinese culture. Finally, I will discuss cockfights and their meaning and significance within the Balinese culture.
Structural functionalism is based on the thought that society operates with the expectation of everyone serves a purpose. In order to operate effectively, each individual has a function that provides a role that others are dependent on. The responsibility of society is shared by the involvement of all institutions. Poverty in society is view by functionalists as purposeful. It provides society with jobs as social service providers. The social service providers are dependent on various institutions to provide the necessary sufficiency to sustain their role in society. This revolving dependence is crucial to structural functionalism.
The Functionalist theory emphasizes the contributions (functions) that all parts of society (e.g., social institutions) make within society. This theory has contributed to sociology by providing a view “which emphasizes the way in which the parts of a society are structured to maintain stability.” (Schafer 2013, pg13)
Structural Functionalism states that everything in society serves a purpose, whether it is positive or negative. Structuralists look
Structural Functionalism is defined as, “a society which is a whole unit made up of interrelated parts that work together” and “ its society as a living organism/ machine that has multiple organs and parts and people to fulfill their individual functions; working together to make it happen ” (Henslin 2015, Smith 2017).
It may not seem like it, but there are quite a few similarities between the Baliness cock-fight and hockey in Canada. The cockfight is a major sporting event in the Baliness community and hockey is a major sport for Canadians. In both, the objective is to win. In the Baliness society a person can’t bet against a cock from the family, or village, but can bet against an enemy. One should not be betting against you own hometown team in hockey. 2 roosters have sharp metal spurs on their legs, are to fight until the death. Men surround them shouting for their favorites, placing wagers. Cock has a double meaning of rooster, and male penis. There are the same jokes in America. The baliness word for cock, has other meanings of hero, warrior, and champion. They are held in arenas, the winner gets to take the loser home to eat. A man will never bet against a family or friend. He will place bets against an enemy. Cocks usually fight against out of town. The owners of cocks are leaders in communities. There was rarely a profit made, it is about status. Cocks represent men and owners. The fate of the cock is the fate of the owner. Hockey and cock-fighting are both spectating sports, where we pick a side. There are similar
First of all, according to the functionalism, society is a complex system whose part interconnect to promote a stable society. The structural functionalism falls under the macro perspectives, it’s based on the works of Emile Durkheim, who wanted to prove that the social forces can affect people’s behavior. The parts of the society are composed of the social institutions, they are identified with a social purpose and permanence, each one of them has a different objective and role in the functioning of the society. All the institutions depend on each other and if one of them stops doing their job, all the society will be affected. The reason for the existing of social issues is the changes that happens in the society, changes in traditions, changes in norms and values. For example, the rates of suicide increased during the war and economic depression because people found it hard to lose everything during these two events, so they thought that the only solution for this problem is the suicide. Some people find it hard to adapt to these changes; this failure leads to social problems. For example, some people commit suicide because of other people bullying and or cyberbullying. Another reason that may cause one to take
Functionalism looks at society in aspects of how it contributes to the steadiness/cohesion of the whole society (Anderson, Taylor, & Logio, P. 18). There are many institutions that are looked at that include the economic system, government, education, religion, health care, and family. All of which have different roles and perform different functions to ensure that society operates in a well-ordered manner. An example of this would be how family reproduces, takes care of children, exposes children to culture and heritage, supports other family members, and shares life experiences. Shared values and social stability are keys to this perspective. When this system breaks down it is because people’s needs are not being covered and shared values are deteriorating. When this occurs, it affects all parts of functionalism and the society must achieve
The Nature of Gladiator Fights The Gladiatorial fights were noble in some ways, but in others seem to have the characteristics of the lowest form of entertainment. Gladiators were considered to fight with pride, they honoured their Gods with sacrifices and prayer for victory and they honoured their traditions and heritage, often being armed in weapons and armour, and having fighting styles originating from their country of origin. For example "the Gaul. " Glory and fame, were just two of the noble characteristics associated with gladiators, and they were dressed in the fashion of a noble soldier, often trained in the same way.
There are three main theories of sociology; functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism. This paper will focus on two of those theories, functionalism and conflict theory. The objective is to delineate the assumptions of two out of the three theoretical perspectives and apply these assumptions to an analysis of social stratification. How this will be accomplished will be by comparing and contrasting their assumptions and by analyzing the two theories affect on social stratification. Then I will state my opinion on which of the two better fits my personal sociological views. Functionalism is many people's way to view the world sociologically. It states clearly that the
In studying Bali it is easy for an anthropologist to overlook cockfighting and "aside from a few passing remarks, the cockfight has barely been noticed" (276). However through Geertz's observation he believes that the cockfighting has much more depth to it and it is not the cocks that are fighting, "actually, it is men" (276). In Bali animals are not portrayed as beautiful creatures but detested as representing demons. Much of Balinese life is adjusted to prevent any association with animals so they will "file the child's teeth" at a young age and eat "hurriedly and privately" because they believe it is beast-like (278). The Balinese are "aversive to animals," so why are they so involved with cockfights? Geertz believes the male Balinese identify with cocks as what they "most fear, hate, and are fascinated by The Powers of Darkness" (278). Rather than treating the cocks cruelly like any other animal, they treat them with a tremendous amount of care and respect, even beyond that of fellow humans. Geertz as an anthropologist is capable of recognizing this relationship between the Balinese men and their fascination with cocks and how it has an affect on their culture.