Children of Cottonwood

Résumé du livre

This book investigates the role of puppets in Hopi religion and the many ceremonies in which they figure. The puppets dance and reenact sacred events and take part in stories and prayers. They are considered to be members of a family with their own histories and personalities and thus serve a mediating function between household concerns and religious functions. The ceremonies played out by Hopi puppet masters clarify such topics as marriage and gender, the human side of the clan system, rituals and the mechanics of ritualism, animism, mythology and dreams, and the ever-present jealousy between secret societies.