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NEITHER DOPES NOR DUPES: MAYA FARMERS AND IDEOLOGY

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 June 2016

Cynthia Robin
Cynthia Robin*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, 1810 Hinman Avenue, Evanston, Illinois 60208–1310
*
E-mail Correspondence to: c-robin@northwestern.edu
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Abstract

Drawing inspiration from the work and legacy of Elizabeth Brumfiel, I develop a case study about the lives and religious practices of Maya farmers at the Chan site in Belize, to demonstrate how farmers were neither the dopes, dupes, nor mystified masses of Maya state level ideologies. I use this case study to rethink anthropological theories that attempt to explain the role of state level ideologies in the production of inequality and power, particularly ideas about ideology and false consciousness that are often bundled together and referred to as the ‘dominant ideology thesis.’

Type
Special Section: Breaking and Entering The Ecosystem—Remembering Elizabeth M. Brumfiel
Information
Ancient Mesoamerica , Volume 27 , Issue 1 , Spring 2016 , pp. 221 - 230
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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References

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