My research focuses on the Maya (Masewal) peasants of Cayo, Belize in the villages of Bullet Tree Falls and Santa Familia. The principle aim of this thesis is to examine the livelihood strategies of the farmers within a context of social value. Values underlie social action and their expression in daily activities provides a means for the analysis of culture. Informed by this perspective, this ethnography examines issues of identity, time, land and economics in order to understand how different farmers construct a livelihood based on their internal constellation of values. This analysis incorporates both a symbolic and materialist perspective in order to provide a more holistic representation of culture. I argue that cultivation processes that Maya peasants employ in order to make a living are shaped by their cultural conception of the relationship between humans and nature. Understanding how this interaction occurs in daily life provides a glimpse of how Maya peasants enact their vision of the "good life." / A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Anthropology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts. / Fall Semester, 2005. / October 28, 2005. / Maya, Horticulture / Includes bibliographical references. / Michael Uzendoski, Professor Directing Thesis; Bruce Grindal, Committee Member; Daniel Klooster, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_176086 |
| Contributors | Stanley, Erik (authoraut), Uzendoski, Michael (professor directing thesis), Grindal, Bruce (committee member), Klooster, Daniel (committee member), Department of Anthropology (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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