Der religiöse Gehalt der Mythen

Preuss, Konrad Theodor

Anthropos, 70.1975

Bibliographische Daten

Monographie

Strukturtyp:: Monographie

Werks-URN (URL):: https://digi.evifa.de/viewer/resolver?urn=urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-712036

URN:: urn:nbn:de:kobv:11-712036

Persistenter Identifier:: BV044893639

Titel:: Der religiöse Gehalt der Mythen

Autor:: Preuss, Konrad Theodor

Erscheinungsort:: Tübingen

Verlag:: J. C. B.Mohr (Paul Siebeck)

Erscheinungsjahr:: 1933

Signatur:: Theol. 3020:F8

Sammlung:: Allgemeiner Bestand

Wissensgebiet:: Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie > Religionsethnologie

Vorderer Einband

Strukturtyp:: Vorderer Einband

Sammlung:: Allgemeiner Bestand

Poro Communications 89 symbols used (Darnell 1971: 40). The net sum of the information flowing through the system is that information derived at the destination from a recon struction of the signal and the interpretation of the reconstruction by the addressee. In order to maximize the net sum it is necessary to maximize the coding-decoding efficiency and either eliminate the disruptive influence of noise °r reduce the effect of the noise by introducing redundancy as a compensatory mechanism. In the Poro communication system the problems of uncertainty, coding efficiency, and redundancy are self-corrective. During the socialization process the tribal children are taught the meanings of the signs and symbols used hy the Poro society in the communicative process. To be sure, large amounts °f esoteric information remain within the society, but even the uninitiated ar e taught the meanings of the signs and symbols used in communicating the Prohibitions, threats, and punishments of Poro law. As a result of the unques tioned understanding of the Poro code, there is a high degree of code effi ciency and a minimization of the element of uncertainty. The high level °t code efficiency and the resulting channel efficiency plus the low level of uncertainty found in the Poro system provide for a communicative atmo sphere that Shannon and Weaver would have found quite enviable. Given this situation it is very difficult to explain the great amount of redundancy in the Poro system in terms of the Shannon-Weaver theory. The most likely explanation would seem to be a great deal of disruptive noise. In one case noise can be discounted on the basis of the rule that only Poro drums can be used when a poro is in session (Little 1948: 7). In other cases the presence of spirits is so awe inspiring that when a spirit enters the village a h attention is directed towards or away from it, depending on the qualities associated with that particular spirit. Noise as a disruptive factor does not enter into this case. The most viable explanation for the high level of redun dancy in the Poro communications system is that this system relies upon Person-to-spirit, person-to-person, or person-to-sign contact. Due to the limi ted distance that the communicative signals are able to travel, redundancy is necessary to ensure the widest possible dissemination of the information. Efficiency is sacrificed to prevent violations of the code of secrecy and preserve the sanctity of the society. A corollary to this is that redundancy impresses u Pon the addressee the significance and urgency of the message. Because Shannon and Weaver were principally dealing with the tech nical problems of telecommunications, their concepts of coding, efficiency, a nd uncertainty were conceived of in terms of mass communication over fTeat distances. Since the communications system used by the Poro society is based upon familiarization through socialization and person-to-person c °ntact, a base quite different from that used by Shannon and Weaver, there is a certain difficulty in applying their model to the Poro system without doing it great violence 3 . 3 Mortensen (1970) has concluded that only a small fraction of interpersonal c °rnrnunication takes place in a teletype style of action. In addition the Shannon-

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Volltext: Anthropos, 70.1975

Monographie

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