UCLA French Department Generative Anthropology: Origin and Representation Symposium Cathryn Brimhall Editor, Paroles Gelees group of pre-hiinians (perhaps following a hunting expedition) sur- round an object that strongly excites their appetite (perhaps a large edible animal that has just succumbed to their blows). Everyone is pre- paring to move toward the object. But each, noticing the appropria- tive niovemetit of the others, and intimidated by the scene's potential for violent conflict, aborts his gesture. This aborted gesture, directed toward the central object, and consequently reinforcing the attention that all already it. A bestow on it, functions as an ostensive designation of that, for a certain For as soon as everyone notices time at least, no one will seek to appropriate the object, each understands the others' gesture as meaning the object. The scene will remain in their as centered memory on an object that so excites their appetite that it paradoxi- cally becomes for that very reason untouchable. The aborted gesture of the mdividuals on the periphery, which is prolonged in the kinetic unagination of each toward the object, becomes the sign of the object. The reproduction of it this sign not only evokes the object but designates is to the other participants of the scene. This gesture its thus the first act of representation, and collective performafice constitutes the origi- its nary group as a huirian coniniunity bound together by servation of the ethical constraint realized gesture/sign for the act of appropriation. in the cotnmon ob- substitution of the — Originary Introduction, Hypothesis. Unpublished summary from Eric Cans' The Promise of Generative Anthropology.
Read full abstract