 | The Witch-Hunt; or, The Triumph of Morality Subjects: Ethnology -- India -- Bisipara; Witchcraft -- India -- Bisipara; Caste -- India -- Bisipara; Bisipara (India) -- History; Bisipara (India) -- Social conditions; Bisipara (India) -- Religious life and customs; In the village of Bisipara in eastern India, an anthropologist is witness to a drama when a young girl takes a fever and quickly dies. The villagers find Susilla's death suspicious and fear that she was possessed. Holding an investigation to find someone to blame, they carry out a hurried inquiry because the stage must be cleared for the annual celebration of the birthday of the god Sri Ramchandro. However, they eventually agree on the identity of a culprit an extract from him a large fine. F.G. Bailey is Professor of Anthropology at the University of California, San Diego. His most recent books are The Kingdom of Individuals and The Prevalence of Deceit , also from Cornell. |
