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Associate Editor's Overview

Associate Editor's Overview 1 Associate Editor's Overview Arnold Arluke Although perhaps not obvious at first glance, the articles in this issue of Society and Animals do have similar substantive themes and methodological approaches. All employ qualitative methods to understand why certain animals come to be seen and treated as deviants. From a sociological perspective, deviance refers to behaviors that depart from a norm or rule. While the term's conventional referent includes both criminal and noncriminal human behavior, the phenomenon is more complex; it is a process of constructing and attributing moral meaning. When approached in this manner, any actor, whether human or animal, can be labeled as a discreditable character and declared to be an "outsider." In turn, assigning such moral meanings in the human and animal worlds creates a social order where "badness" and "goodness" reign as "objective" realities. Clearly, how these realities are defined tells us about who we are and what constitutes the dangers of our times and cultures. Present Contents From the vantage of a folklorist, Boria Sax looks at how and why snakes have become demonized in the modern mind. He argues that the modem symbolism of snakes has its origin in the basilisk, an ancient and http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Society and Animals Brill

Associate Editor's Overview

Society and Animals , Volume 2 (1): 2 – Jan 1, 1994

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Publisher
Brill
Copyright
Copyright © Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
ISSN
1063-1119
eISSN
1568-5306
DOI
10.1163/156853094x00018
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

1 Associate Editor's Overview Arnold Arluke Although perhaps not obvious at first glance, the articles in this issue of Society and Animals do have similar substantive themes and methodological approaches. All employ qualitative methods to understand why certain animals come to be seen and treated as deviants. From a sociological perspective, deviance refers to behaviors that depart from a norm or rule. While the term's conventional referent includes both criminal and noncriminal human behavior, the phenomenon is more complex; it is a process of constructing and attributing moral meaning. When approached in this manner, any actor, whether human or animal, can be labeled as a discreditable character and declared to be an "outsider." In turn, assigning such moral meanings in the human and animal worlds creates a social order where "badness" and "goodness" reign as "objective" realities. Clearly, how these realities are defined tells us about who we are and what constitutes the dangers of our times and cultures. Present Contents From the vantage of a folklorist, Boria Sax looks at how and why snakes have become demonized in the modern mind. He argues that the modem symbolism of snakes has its origin in the basilisk, an ancient and

Journal

Society and AnimalsBrill

Published: Jan 1, 1994

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