Mary Douglas

"Purity and danger are not intrinsic qualities of things, but classifications depending on how we view the world."

"The abominations of Leviticus make sense once you understand the dietary laws are about maintaining categories."

"Pollution is a matter of perspective and social order."

"What is unclassified is dangerous because it threatens our understanding of the world."

"Rituals are not irrational; they are expressions of social solidarity and order."

"The body is always an image of society."

"Boundaries exist to protect the integrity of our classifications."

"We fear what we cannot classify."

"Dirt is matter out of place."

"Society depends on shared meanings and symbols."

"The sacred and profane are social constructions."

"Understanding culture requires understanding its classification systems."

"What seems taboo reveals what a society values most."

"Anomalies in our categories create anxiety and avoidance."

"Cleanliness is not about hygiene but about order."

"Every society draws lines between the acceptable and unacceptable."

"Rituals serve to reinforce social boundaries."

"The danger of ambiguity lies in its threat to order."

"We create meaning through classification and ritual."

"Nature itself is never pure; it is always interpreted through culture."

"What we consider natural is actually culturally constructed."

"The body is a model for all social processes."

"Fear of contagion reflects fear of social disorder."

"Cosmologies reveal how societies organize experience."

"Symbols are the language through which societies speak to themselves."

"Boundaries are created not to exclude but to define community."

"What is strange threatens our sense of order."

"Classification is a fundamental human need."

"Society is held together by shared understandings of what is right."

"Cleansing rituals express anxiety about boundaries."