Island Possessed

Just as surely as Haiti is "possessed" by the gods and spirits of vaudun (voodoo), the island "possessed" Katherine Dunham when she first went there in 1936 to study dance and ritual. In this book, Dunham reveals how her anthropological research, her work in dance, and her fascination for the people and cults of Haiti worked their spell, catapulting her into experiences that she was often lucky to survive. Here Dunham tells how the island came to be possessed by the demons of voodoo and other cults imported from various parts of Africa, as well as by the deep class divisions, particularly between blacks and mulattos, and the political hatred still very much in evidence today. Full of the flare and suspense of immersion in a strange and enchanting culture, Island Possessed is also a pioneering work in the anthropology of dance and a fascinating document on Haitian politics and voodoo.

ISBN:	9780226171135
Publisher:	University of Chicago Press
Imprint:	The University of Chicago Press
Published date:	25 Jun 1994
DEWEY:	972.94
DEWEY edition:	23
Language:	English
Number of pages:	viii, 280
Weight:	310g
Height:	131mm
Width:	202mm
Spine width:	36mm

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