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The Body As A Metaphor For Society

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In Andean society many societies and cultures generally believed that all things, such as mountains, rivers, and waterfalls had life (Benson 2001: 1). The Andean individuals believed that all inanimate objects were thus animated. This ideology not only influenced the way they thought about the world, but also the way they treated and viewed the body. The body is a very important and useful theme in archeology as the body acts as a metaphor for society, the way a society/culture treats the body provides vital important regarding their worldview. In addition, the body is a tool of lived experience which can indicate how individuals lived, what was sacred or important to them and also shedding light on who they were. In other words, by understanding how bodies were conceptualized in Andean societies archeologist can indicate the significance of certain ritual practices. It is important to deconstruct the body as it provides social truths regarding a specific culture within the Andean region. Furthermore, people do things to their bodies which may help archeologists understand their belief system, the practices/work they may have been doing. For example, if an individual spends their whole life grinding corn the body would reflect this activity and thus would be able provide information regarding that culture. This theme concerning ‘the body’ pushes us to consider distinct ontologies as different cultures and societies developed differently and thus has diverse beliefs,

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