The Question and Answer section for Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.
Geertz conceptualizes the “entering the field” as a metaphor for the way in which we understand and interpret cultural practices. Geertz tells us that in “entering the field” we must immerse ourselves in the cultural and observe the practices and...
Based upon his time in Bali during the 1950s, Geertz writes about the cultural phenomenon of cockfighting. To the locals these fights represent an accumulation of status. Rival families, clans, and villages compete. They raise and care for their...
Two classes of cockfight exist in Bali. Deep fights run for high bets and usually occur between upper class individuals. They are dramatic affairs which involve elaborate processes of subterfuge. There are also shallow fights which are for low...
