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Encyclopedia of Latin American Religions pp 1–5Cite as

Gender and New Age

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Definition

The dimension of gender is central to an understanding of New Age movements and spiritualities and affects various aspects. The first is the influence of feminism, along with the values of the counterculture movements, on the values and moral configurations of the New Age. The second is the important presence (quantitative and qualitative) of women in the New Age spiritualities and on their various hierarchical scales. The third aspect is that of how values, discourses, and practices related to New Age spiritualities are based on gender perspectives that are distinct but not necessarily exclusive: a perspective that emphasizes sexual difference and a critical perspective on the dualisms of gender.

Introduction

More than being just one of the aspects of New Age spiritualities and movements, the feminist and gender dimensions are constitutive of these movements, in the ways that sexual difference is both represented and constructed at the interior of these movements.

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil

    Sônia Weidner Maluf

Authors
  1. Sônia Weidner Maluf
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Correspondence to Sônia Weidner Maluf .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Sociology/Anthropology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Henri P. P. Gooren

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© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Maluf, S.W. (2015). Gender and New Age. In: Gooren, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Latin American Religions. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08956-0_29-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08956-0_29-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-08956-0

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Religion and PhilosophyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Humanities

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