Page 1 |
Save page Remove page | Previous | 1 of 464 | Next |
|
small (250x250 max)
medium (500x500 max)
large ( > 500x500)
Full Resolution
All (PDF)
|
This page
All
Subset |
BETEL NUT CHEWING CULTURE:
THE SOCIAL AND SYMBOLIC LIFE OF AN INDIGENOUS COMMODITY
IN TAIWAN AND HAINAN
by
Christian Alan Anderson
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(ANTHROPOLOGY)
May 2007
Copyright 2007 Christian Alan Anderson
Object Description
| Title | Betel nut chewing culture: the social and symbolic life of an indigenous commodity in Taiwan and Hainan |
| Author | Anderson, Christian Alan |
| Author email | christian.alan.anderson@gmail.com |
| Degree | Doctor of Philosophy |
| Document type | Dissertation |
| Degree program | Anthropology |
| School | College of Letters, Arts and Sciences |
| Date defended/completed | 2006-09-06 |
| Date submitted | 2007 |
| Restricted until | Unrestricted |
| Date published | 2007-04-19 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Hoskins, Janet |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Cooper, Eugene Goldstein, Joshua |
| Abstract | Betel nut chewing is a social practice that articulates boundaries. The history of betel nut chewing in Southern China indexes the ways in which non-Han minorities were sinicized, demonstrating how betel nut chewing culture was appropriated by Han nobles, and variously incorporated into Han cultural expressions in the southern region.; In Taiwan betel nut chewing marks boundaries between groups in terms of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender. The stigmatization of betel nut in Taiwan is explained by political, economic, and historical factors related to the Japanese colonial prohibition and KMT neglect of the betel nut industry. Ethnic, gender and socioeconomic status was articulated by a re-introduced commoditized practice of betel nut chewing. Marketing strategies involving "betel nut beauties" developed in the betel nut retailing business, since most betel nut chewers were men. The industry functioned as a "shadow economy." The symbolic nature of betel nut among the "Indigenous betel nut chewing cultures" of southeastern Taiwan articulates themes of cultural prosperity and wealth. Tourism development is based on cultivating Indigenous cultural capital.; In Hainan betel nut chewing marks boundaries between locals and outsiders. The Utsat, a Muslim Austronesian-language speaking people and Li language-speaking peoples in rural villages provide non-Han perspectives within Hainan. Interethnic relations among Han and non-Han are marked by salient cultural differences, though all share a betel nut chewing culture. The use of betel nut in weddings shows continued social and symbolic significance. Betel nut production and retailing remains integrated in the traditional economy. Modern tourism development restricts betel nut chewing, but local betel nut chewers respond by further embodying the habit.; A comparative analysis of betel nut chewing cultures in Taiwan and Hainan reveals internal boundaries marked in Taiwan, and outsider/insider status marked in Hainan. Analysis of the symbolic nature of betel nut and the process of chewing is found to relate to gendered complementary practice at its root, and extends to various expressions of betel nut in its social and ritual forms. The "choice" to chew or not arises from the socially constructed nature of chewing "appetites" and shows how modern habits and traditional rituals of betel nut chewing cultures coexist and interrelate with each other differently in Taiwan and Hainan. |
| Keyword | gender; ethnic identity; tourism; psychoactive substances; consumption habits; nationalism |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m410 |
| Rights | Anderson, Christian Alan |
| Repository name | Libraries, University of Southern California |
| Repository address | Los Angeles, California |
| Repository email | http://www.usc.edu/isd/libraries/services/ask_a_librarian/email/ |
| Filename | etd-Anderson-20070419 |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume14/etd-Anderson-20070419.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 1 |
| Full text | BETEL NUT CHEWING CULTURE: THE SOCIAL AND SYMBOLIC LIFE OF AN INDIGENOUS COMMODITY IN TAIWAN AND HAINAN by Christian Alan Anderson A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (ANTHROPOLOGY) May 2007 Copyright 2007 Christian Alan Anderson |
Comments
Post a Comment for Page 1
