S/S/20. 'Where cultural difference was formerly underpinned by structural boundaries, these have now given way to boundaries, which inhere in the mind: symbolic boundaries' (Cohen). Use ethnographic examples to evaluate this assertion

This essay first explores the theoretical arguments relating to the symbolic/structural boundaries between communities, outlining the theories of Fortes and Cohen. It integrates ethnographic evidence in relation to gypsies in England, Hungary and Slovakia to illustrate such arguments. Using Abner Cohen's account of the Notting Hill Carnival the essay synthesises a number of perspectives to present a more sophisticated account of the relationship between symbolic and structural boundaries.