| |
| author |
Benjamin Paley
| | title |
Aliens, Alienation, and Alterity: On Demons and the People They Possess
| | abstract |
Aliens, Alienation, and Alterity attempts to synthesize existing theories about
personal identity construction and the role of the demoniac, drawing from the works of
Janice Boddy, Mary Douglas, Michel Foucault, Jacques Lacan, and Michael Taussig, to
name a few. Demons and demonic possession are salient representations of the concept
of Otherness, because for thousands of years in a variety of religions, they have been
used as rhetorical devices for depicting inversion and profanity of the status quo.
Foreign nations, other religions, and nonconforming women all fall under this umbrella.
Demons always exist in liminal positions, highlighting the difference between the Inside
and Outside, and threatening what is dogmatic and paradigmatic. Today, possession
cults exist around the world, and recontextualize the "demon" to our rapidly
globalizing and colonial epoch.
Starting with Chapter One, In the Shadow of Everything, this archaic demon is fully
fleshed out, concluding with a discourse on the Problem of Evil in monotheistic
theology. Chapter Two, Reconciling the Other, focuses primarily on zayran possession
and develops a theory of personal identity centered around the discomfort that South
Sudanese women experience within a metonymically patriarchal society. Lastly,
Chapter Three, The Camera People and Their Quest for the White Indian, focuses on the
impact of colonization through the lens of Les Maîtres Fous, a documentary created in
1955 by Jean Rouch. Here, the possessing spirit is the British colonial regime itself, and
reveals the long-lasting implications of displacement and assimilation.
| | school |
The College of Liberal Arts, Drew University
| | degree |
B.A. (2025)
|
| advisor |
Allan Charles Dawson
|
| full text | BPaley.pdf |
| |
