Syllabus: Paper I > 5. Religion > Anthropological approaches to the study of religion
Totemism — 2016 Paper I
Question · 2016 · Paper I · 10 Marks
Totemism
Model Answer
VAID ICSApproach
- Demand: Present as a symbolic-social relationship; trace evolution from 'stage' theory to structuralism.
- Structure: Define -> Evolutionist critique -> Sociological (Durkheim) -> Structural (Lévi-Strauss).
- Key points: Clan totem; sacred society; 'Good to think with'; classification.
Introduction Totemism refers to a symbolic relationship between a social group and a natural species, object, or phenomenon (the totem), which serves as an emblem or sacred referent. It historically involved naming, taboos, and myths of common origin.
Body
- Evolutionary View: Early scholars like Frazer viewed totemism as a primitive religious stage.
- Anthropological View:
- Durkheim: In The Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912), he argued the totem symbolizes the society itself; collective rituals renew social solidarity.
- Radcliffe-Brown: Argued that totemic species are socially selected because they organize human relations with the natural world.
- Lévi-Strauss: In Totemism (1962), he rejected it as a distinct religious institution. Instead, he argued animals are “good to think with”—the differences in nature provide a logical code for humans to categorize social differences.
Conclusion Totemism is no longer viewed as a universal evolutionary stage. Modern anthropology interprets it as a versatile symbolic system—a logical tool through which human groups classify themselves, manage social relations, and create boundaries between the natural and social world.
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