El giro sacrificial. Reflexiones sobre el eje tupi-mexica
This paper compares two well-known rituals described among the Aztec and the Tupinambá, during which captive warriors were put to death. Usually, the first is interpreted as a form of “sacrifice” taking place in a complex State organized around priestly structures; the second is associated with “can...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Société des américanistes
2020-06-01
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| Series: | Journal de la Société des Américanistes |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/jsa/17868 |
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| Summary: | This paper compares two well-known rituals described among the Aztec and the Tupinambá, during which captive warriors were put to death. Usually, the first is interpreted as a form of “sacrifice” taking place in a complex State organized around priestly structures; the second is associated with “cannibalism” and a fluid society, in constant becoming. However, the close resemblance between the two scripts allows to focus the comparison on more specific contrasts: between the key points of view (that of the predator in one case, that of the victim in the other); between a debt and an exchange economy; between heterosubstitution and homosubstitution; between a priest who monopolizes the role of the sacrificer and a shaman who never even manages to endorse it. “Sacrifice” and “cannibalism” are not superimposed heterogeneous practices, but immediate variations of the same procedure. |
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| ISSN: | 0037-9174 1957-7842 |