Clifford Geertz's Interpretative Anthropology of Religion: Religious Practices as Webs of Meaning

Abstract

Clifford Geertz, well known as the founder of «interpretative anthropology», is still not fully acknowledged within the field of Russian religious studies. His works, however, may be of interest not just for his fieldwork methodology but also for the essential role of religion in Geertz' social theorizing. His understanding of religion evolved, but in general he saw it as a net of meanings that allow people to transcend the everyday and to overcome existential finitude.