Dirt Is Matter Out of Place

I admire this explanation of cultural relativity, by the anthropologist Mary Douglas, for its clean lines and tidiness. I like its beautiful simplicity, the way it illuminates dark corners of misreading, how it limelights the counter-conventional. Poking about in the dirt is exciting, and irreverent. It is about talking what is out of bounds and making it relevant. Douglas's explanation of 'dirt' makes us question the very boundaries we are pushing.