Landscapes of the Sacred Pt. 2

The Approaches to the Sacred Place

11/11/19

Lane talks about the different types of definitions of what a sacred place. The first approach is the ontological, began with the field research among people, where they asked about how place and time were understood in the earliest mythic tales of tribal wisdom (Lane 43). the sacred place is a separate entity from everything else in the world that is considered profane. It was an ordinary place that was invaded by supernatural forces (Lane 43). This approach seemed to be a very spiritual approach, inspired by the Native Americans, as some Native Americans tribes believe in specific religious spiritual experiences. This approach seemed to focus on the more "magical" side of the wilderness, rather than the evidence and facts. The next approach is the cultural approach, which had to do with the social analysis of racial tensions and disputes over public monuments (Lane 43). They claim that the wilderness takes the power it has within or beyond themselves. I interpreted this approach as some sort of social construct that society gave the wilderness. The last approach was the phenomenological approach recognizes the human values that claim the site and defending the site. Using its topography and material character as suggesting affordances or offerings. This was the most far fetched argument in my opinion because it blend multiple viewpoints into one, it could make sense but I think there were too many angles to the argument that it was very broad.