Voodooism in Haiti Essay -- Science Religion Religious Essays

Voodooism in HaitiIntroduction My Exposure to VoodooismVoodooism is a fascinating way of life. Ever since life sentence in Haiti in the early 1980s, the constant thumping of drums in the twilight has intrigued me. Their melody and rhythm seemed to consume the moist evening air like a pungent odor that will not dissipate. Life is very different in Haiti than it is in the United States, and however odd it seems to Western mentality, I could find the presence of spirits in and around almost every aspect of life in Haiti. Since living in Haiti as a child, this is the first epoch I have researched the impact of Voodooism on the lives of Haitians. As a scientist, I want to document how the religion of Haiti quantitatively affects the knowledge domainview and lives of the people. I want to bed if the science that I have learned and been taught would cause sense in the Haitian culture and as I have been trying to relate my creed to my scientific understanding, I wonder if Voodooism an d theoretical science can coexist? Are US American methods of science appropriate and applicable to the Haitian context? I am on a journey to discover what Voodooism is and means and then how that relates to science. Science as a WorldviewScience is a way of approaching the world, knowing why and how things around us argon occurring. The scientific method allows scientists to be precise and focused. Through that medium, they can determine which hypotheses are consistently supported such that they become theories and which need more modification or rejection. This type of knowing can be campaigned and quantified. Scientists strive to make their observations as objective as possible, to be devoid of human interest. Scientists try to control all the variables ... ...ax or a strange form of acting. Maybe my world view prevents me from embracing the religion of the people in Haiti and they have a fluid tradition that is willing to accept scientific proofs into its reality. I want to te st more circumstances and explore more variables before I will be able to conclude with a probable theory. BibliographyBellegarde-Smith. Haiti The Breached Citadel. 1990. Corbett, Bob. Introduction to Voodoo in Haiti. http//www.primenet.com/rafreid/voodoo.htmlFoster, Charles. Haiti-Today and Tomorrow. 1984.Franciscus, John. Haiti Voodoo Kingdom to Modern Rivera. 1980.Herskovits, Melville. Life in a Haitian Village. 1971. Lawless, Robert. Haiti A Research Handbook. 1990.The Vodun (Voodoo) Religion. http//web.canlink.com/ocrt/voodoo.html Weinstein, Brian. Haiti Political Failures, Cultural Successes. 1984.