Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight was an essay published in The Interpretation of Cultures which was written by Clifford Gertz in 1973. The topic of the paper addresses cock fighting within the Balinese culture within Indonesia from a cultural anthropological standpoint. Among the points discussed are the symbolism of cocks and the impact this activity has on the people who take part in it.
To me, one of the most interesting points of the article was the way Gertz was able to attain the trust of the Balinese people. Going from being completely alienated to accept by a foreign group of people is a major challenge. However, bonding over escaping a police raid is without a doubt one of way of showing that you are on the same side. His instinct and anthropological expertise surely assisted him here. He states:
"On the established anthropological principle, When in Rome, my wife and I decided, only slightly less instantaneously than everyone else, that the thing to do was run too."
Some questions that kept popping into my head the further I read into the article were centered around how different this same string of events would be in Western society. In both locations, animal fighting is typically frowned upon, but does occur. How different are the same actions in different cultures? How much of a disparity is there in regards to the influence this event has on social hierarchy within the circles that participate and the effect on the cultural standing of being a "man"? Cock, or any animal, fighting does not have same cultural history in the West, but still occurs. Does the lack of cultural history make it more immoral or simply just another activity that occurs with lack of meaning?
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