Civilizing Ritual Duncan Summary

Museums as rituals Scott Cunningham, a writer, once said, “Rituals developed as a means of contacting and utilizing the energy within humans as well as in the nature world” (Ascension Gateway). This thought provoking quote could be used to spark the thinking of how rituals are practiced in our daily secular lives. Carol Duncan does a great job with showing how rituals are practiced in our secular lives; she uses museums to emphasize this point. Carol Duncan’s Civilizing Rituals: Inside Public Art Museums, shows that a museum can be consider a ritual and a scared place. Duncan argues two main points: “visitors, removed from the concerns of their daily, practical lives, open themselves to a different quality of experience; and second,
The Wadsworth Atheneum definitely follows the model Duncan talks about, the expected behavior can be seen through some the rules that the Wadsworth has set in place. Some of the rules include, “never touch a work of art; maintain about 3 feet distance from all artworks, photography requires a pass from Security, and don’t lean on walls…” (Preparing). The artworks in the museum hold the same scared sentiment that Mana does in the religious world. Emile Durkheim explains how in the religious world, the objects in the rituals need to be manipulated by religious specialist for objects with a lot of Mana. Mana is a powerful scared force, which needs to be separated from the common people because they cannot handle the responsibility that comes with holding the power. Mana is separated from being in the common man’s possession, and would be seen as a taboo to touch the Mana. “Rites are the rules of conduct which prescribe how a man should comport himself in the presence of these sacred objects” (Durkheim 29). The same theory that Durkheim uses for religion can be seen in museums. The artwork is seen as scared and cannot be place in the hands of a regular human; this is why the Wadsworth Atheneum has the rule of not touching the art. They separate the scared artwork from the common person, and if a person went and touched the artwork it would be seen as taboo. Only qualified and specialized workers would be able to
The art and the setup of the artwork in museums are perfect reasoning for museums being considered ritualized places. The artwork are set up on walls, are divided into “chambers”, just like those of religious temples. These are chambers are divided into specific themes that allow the viewer to concentrate on the artwork, and its themes. The chambers are usually dim, and the light shines on the artwork. This helps the viewer to fulfill the ritual under his or her own understanding, and become his or her own priest. In a certain sense, the painting, which is the Mana, is being manipulating by the viewer to draw a conclusion or obtain a certain understanding. In each chamber the painting serves as a temporary axis mundi, or center of the world. For a brief moment, the painting is the main focus of the viewer. The viewer can reflect, and obtain a lot of insight from the painting. The paintings can help a person connect with past, as a lot of the paintings are from the past. They help a person understand and conceptualize past society. The paintings serve as myths for the viewer, and the painter is the myth teller. The painting is telling a story, that holds secular principals, and the viewer can learn a lesson, or become exposed to new insights. If a person needs assistance, curator (priest of the museum) can help the viewer gain a new understanding for the artwork. The curator is very comparable to a religious priest.