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ABSTRACTI show in this dissertation that a social institution, which influences in whole of
institutions of society, and it pointed to the core of cultural value, where located a
world-view and belief of society, could stable and resistance for interpreting the
changed environment.
The problems in this dissertation are activation of cooperation symbols, conflicts
symbols and competition symbols inside of a kind of kinship through the execution
the ritual of Bebeitei Uma, which is executed by Mcntawaian for gaining the high
social stratification as a one of effort the community's life prosperity. The activation
of the symbols of Bebeitei Uma ritual that executed by one of kinship group, could
function for spreading the effect from that kinship group for covering the Mentawaian
social life in Kabupaten Kepulauan Mentawai society as a common that actually
consisted in different ethnic-groups background.
As a specific, the goal of this dissertation is for producing a theory about dominance
culture iiom a society, through the Bebeftef Uma ritual that executed by Mentawaian
in their status as a Kabupaten Kepulauan Mcntawai society. How the community that
execute this ritual is connected with cultural arena in plural society.
Ritual as a one of social institution, which is based on the cultural value that consisted
of world-view and belief that hom, grow and spread in a community could sustain in
all of era as the only one of social institution among other social institutions in the
community in their area. The social cultural changing could not intluence the ritual
execution. Also with the ritual function that executed, would get a goal as a specific
that connected with the context of execution.
The frame of theory that I used pointed to the ritual, which as a cleaning process, as
interaction vehicle between macro-cosmos and micro-cosmos, as a vehicle for
bargaining between natural and supernatural world condition. Prosperity, secure
feeling that needed by human actually, are the equilibrium condition that connected
between natural and supernatural world.
I used ritual concept especially in it function in Mentawai society. In the process for
cleaning the social condition connected with natural condition through ritual, human
would regrouping and repair the condition that are considered as polluted. Ritual is a
vehicle for redefinition of the social condition, already regrouping the status and roles
from individual as the members of society.
The research methodology that I used is qualitative research stressing in participant
observation and in-depth interview. As a specific, the method that I used is
ethnography that study in deep and holistic view about ritual activities, which are
executed by Mentawaian.
Bebeitef Uma ritual actually is a social institution that penetrated in a whole of all
social institution because the society in Kabupaten Kepulauan Mentawai included
people from other ethnic-group, who are living in this area, always using this ritual for
gaining social position in this society, especially in government area."
