Culture and self: An anthropological treatise on the constitution and transformation of identities

This text investigates how identities are constituted and shaped by examining symbolic systems of boundaries and classifications. First, the close relationship between language and systems of identity is explored. Next, I outline some ways concepts of culture are defined. This is followed by a discussion on social science's neglect of selfhood. Afterward I outline differing ways of conceptualizing the self. The focus then shifts to the cultural shaping of identity with an inquiry into the relationship between language and transformation. I examine the importance of the ritual process as a force of social change and how ritual allows individuals to momentarily transcend social-structural distinctions during transitional states. I focus on a quality inherent in these transitional states, a kind of in-betweenness called anti-structure or liminality which results from the blurring of the social categories sustained by language. Liminalily is a vehicle for comprehending ultimate values and themes which enables human beings to participate in a reality transcending time and space. Rituals and liminal periods can allow a time and place for reflection on how identities are constituted.