Killing what you love: An Andean cattle branding ritual and the dilemmas of modernity

Abstract

I analyze a livestock branding ritual in a group of villages near Lima as a cultural phenomenon whereby Andean villagers grapple with key ideological dilemmas of Peruvian modernity. Some ideological internal contradictions at issue involve ancient cosmology. However, more to the fore are conflicts felt by Andean villagers drawn to life in modern Lima. I examine ritual lyrics for their discourses on modernity. Analysis of these songs and the emotional world of the singers gives access to folk views of troubled migration journeys and problematic attempts to integrate into the national society.