Book contents
- Not-Knowing
- Not-Knowing
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Paradoxes, the Weird, and the Impossible
- Chapter 2 Not-Knowing, Not Speaking, Negating
- Chapter 3 Trauma, Forbidden Knowledge, and Silenced Voices
- Chapter 4 Not-Knowing through Ritual Theory and Art
- Chapter 5 Facing the Limits of the Extra-Cultural
- Chapter 6 Resisting Interpretation and the Negative in Three Ethnographies
- Chapter 7 Monsters, the Void, and the Movement from the Uncanny to the Weird
- Chapter 8 The Excess of Sense and the Engagement of Wonder
- Chapter 9 From Not-Knowing to Not-Doing
- Epilogue
- References
- Index
Chapter 9 - From Not-Knowing to Not-Doing
Published online by Cambridge University Press: aN Invalid Date NaN
Book contents
- Not-Knowing
- Not-Knowing
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Paradoxes, the Weird, and the Impossible
- Chapter 2 Not-Knowing, Not Speaking, Negating
- Chapter 3 Trauma, Forbidden Knowledge, and Silenced Voices
- Chapter 4 Not-Knowing through Ritual Theory and Art
- Chapter 5 Facing the Limits of the Extra-Cultural
- Chapter 6 Resisting Interpretation and the Negative in Three Ethnographies
- Chapter 7 Monsters, the Void, and the Movement from the Uncanny to the Weird
- Chapter 8 The Excess of Sense and the Engagement of Wonder
- Chapter 9 From Not-Knowing to Not-Doing
- Epilogue
- References
- Index
Summary
Chapter 9 moves the discussion from not-knowing to not-doing in the acts of everyday life. Here, the focus is on people’s willingness and purpose to stop knowing, to pause, or to put a stop to the meaning of the world by engaging in subversive acts of not-doing. This concept is derived from the work of the controversial anthropologist and ethnographic fiction writer, Carlos Castaneda. This chapter centers on various forms of deliberate immersion and transportation of subjects into the negative and enigmatic realm of not-knowing. Therefore, we perceive not-doing as purposely creative, devising practices with the intention of altering consciousness in order to introduce individuals to experiences commonly referred to as paranormal, esoteric, mystical, divine, artistic, and subjunctive.
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- Not-KnowingAn Anthropological Account, pp. 185 - 205Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
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