The Analysis of Geertz Reliance on Thick Description
Uploaded by CaseyP on Aug 24, 2017
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The Analysis of Geertz Reliance on Thick Description
In his essay, Geertz thoroughly offers an archetypal instance of interpretive approach. He comprehensively examines commonplace practices of gambling and gaming to create an account of prominence hierarchies and machismo in Bali (Geertz, 2008). However, he uses the analogy to explain how the humanity culture develops as an ensemble of texts that people find hard to read. In comprehending, how the essay relies on the thick description, it is imperative to highlight its meaning. The approach evaluates behavior that uses practices initially developed for examining literature (Selby, 2017). In this regard, the paper discusses the anthropological importance of Deep Play as occurring in The Balinese Cockfight as well as its parallelism to the thick description.
The interpretive approach involves the infinitesimal analysis of a precise framework in a highly participatory manner. By using specific examples of gambling, Geertz manages in offering explanations on the social change of gaming as well as how numerous casual elements interrelate. Thus, for people to interpret a culture, they should first detach its components, identify internal linkages, and illustrate the system in a universal manner according to signs around which it exists. In fact, his reliance on thick description arises when he posits that his evaluation is not experimental but interpretive (Selby, 2017).
The concept of “deep play” offers him a way of elucidating the representative dimensions of money and status as entrenched into the configurations of the Balinese cock fight. In this society, people risk honor, status, demonstration, and money for a game of cock fight (Geertz, 2008). However, considering the gains that one might attain, the stakes of the contest are high. Geertz’s reflections of the betting index the explanatory turn in anthropology, as they contain too much textualism. In fact, his use of details when he recounts the heart-throbbing pursuit, the cockfights, and the appearance of the police draws the reader into the community. The event of the cockfight helped Geertz transition from a stranger to a partaker and his comprehensive account makes the audiences feel as if they are active contributors in the performance. Moreover, it helps to establish a subjective authority, which means Geertz appears as knowledgeable in telling the story.
According to the analogy, Bali people form a most interesting society based on a culture that they seem to seek to uphold through tooth and nail. Notes on the Balinese Cockfight offers critical insights...