The imagined, the imaginary and the symbolic

The Imagined, the Imaginary and the Symbolic Mauri G d Ii r

C~tENTRE NATIONAL DU LIVRE This work was published with the help of the French Ministry of Culture - Centre national du livre Ouvrage publie avec le concours du Ministere fran~ais charge de la Culture-Centre national du livre This English-language edition published by Verso 2020 Originally published in French as I:Irnagine, l'irnaginaire & le syrnbolique © CNRS Editions 2015 Translation © Nora Scott 2020 All rights reserved The moral rights of the author have been asserted 13579108642 Verso UK: 6 Meard Street, London W1F oEG US: 20 Jay Street, Suite 1010, Brooklyn, NY 11201 versobooks.com Verso is the imprint of New Left Books ISBN-13: 978-1-78663-770-3 ISBN-13: 978-1-78663-768-o (LIBRARY) ISBN-13: 978-1-78663-772-7 (UK EBK) ISBN-13: 978-1-78663-771-o (US EBK) British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress Typeset in Minion Pro by Hewer Text UK Ltd, Edinburgh Printed and bound by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon CRo 4YY

Contents Foreword ix Some Points ofReference xiii PART I: FROM THE REAL TO THE UNREAL 3 9 1. Concerning a Few Invariants 13 2. Consciousness and the Mind 21 3. Language and the Mind 31 4. The Symbolic Function 41 5. What Is Imagining? 6. What Is Play? 49 7. Art, or From the Imagined Imaginary to the Materialised Imaginary PART II: FROM THE UNREAL TO THE SURREAL 8. Concerning the Religious Imaginary 61 The imaginary, the symbolic and the real in myth and ritual 63 Communicating with spirits and gods 76 9. The Imaginary of Political-Religious Systems 95 The conditions in which the first forms of state appeared 114 Conclusion: And so - What Is the Real? 125 Bibliography 131 Indexes 143 Terms and Concepts Authors 151 Names Societies and Places 153 155

'With characteristic limpidity of thought and expression, Godelier explores what makes us distinctive social beings -our capacity to imagine and inhabit other worlds - throwing light on the most pressing issues of our time' Philippe Descola, author of Beyond Nature and Culture 'Godelier's gripping essay verges on a jeremiad, drawing from predecessors near and far for a synthesis in the grand style. The Imagined, the Imaginary and the Symbolic sets the conditions for new questions for the next generation struggling with those of the past and to create societies for the future. The grand synthesizer, Godelier has given us another gift for the ages' Frederick H. Damon, University of Virginia Maurice Godelier presents a case that we should reconsider our definitions of the real, the symbolic and the imaginary. For a portion of humanity, rituals , sacred objects and consecrated ground attest to the reality and, therefore, the truth that God, gods, or spirits exist. The symbolic gives shape to thought, imbuing the body with meaning and pervading temples, palaces, tools, foods, mountains, the sea, the sky and the earth. It is real. Godelier's book goes to the strategic heart of the social sciences, for to examine the nature and role of the imaginary and the symbolic is to attempt to account for the basic components of all societies and ultimately of human existence. Maurice Godelier is a world-renowned anthropologist. Among the many honours he has received are the CNRS Gold Medal and the Alexander von Humboldt prize. His major works include The Making of Great Men ; Metamor- phoses of Kinship ; The Enigma of the Gift; In and Out of the West; and, more recently, Levi-Strauss: A Critical Study of His Thought. Anthropology C~~ ][JJ[ENTRE £19.99 / $29.95 / $39.95CAN NATIONAL versobooks.com DULIVRE Design by Zak Jensen