By definition, anthropology is the study of humanity and of human culture. The aim of anthropology is the focus on all aspects of human physical, social, and cultural life and is illustrated in Clifford Geertz's essay "Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight". In his essay, Geertz is giving the reader an insider's view of an integral aspect of the Balinese society and attempts to describe this dynamic to a foreigner as completely as possible. Geertz is specifically concerned with the meaning and interpretation of the cockfight. Through each section of the essay, Geertz depicts how anthropologists work.

Considered one of the most important aspects to the work of anthropologists is how the people in the target accept them. Geertz and his wife must live among the Balinese people and engage in everyday activities of the natives. Geertz discusses the initial difficulty of entering the Balinese village. "...they acted as if we simply did not exist, which, in fact, ...we did not, or anyway not yet" (306). Geertz's first encounter with a cockfight happened ten days after his arrival, which started his initiation into the close-knit community. Because he had fled the illeg

In this final section of the essay Geertz ties up his research and discussion of Balinese cockfights. He also restates the purpose of his anthropological visit to Bali. One method Geertz uses in this section is comparing the Balinese culture to a text. "The culture of a people is an ensemble of texts, themselves ensembles, which the anthropologist strains to read over the shoulders of those to whom they properly belong" (332). In his own words, Geertz purposes that the Balinese people individually are their own tapestry, and when taken all together, the collective blankets mesh into a larger landscape of color.

At this point in the examination of cockfights, Geertz begins to draw his own conclusions about this Balinese tradition. By presenting the cockfight as an artform used to express the Balinese culture, Geertz is defending the experience. "...the cockfight is a means of expression; its function is neither to assuage social passions nor to heighten them, but, in a medium of feathers, blood, crowds, and money to display them" (327). The cockfight is a ritualized form of aggression that is very structured in its format. In this way, the cockfight reflects the make-up of the Balinese culture: absolute rules of conduct, social levels restricting status and regulation of the whole body involved in the process.

In this section, Geertz presents the notion that betting on cockfights reflects a social indicator rather than solely a monetary enterprise. The Balinese people are not concerned with the money as much as they are concerned with the social honor, prestige

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Approximate Word count = 1068
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)