Synopses & Reviews
Human security is a key element in the measure of well-being and is a hot topic in anthropology and development studies. A World of Insecurity outlines a new approach to the subject. The contributors expose a contradiction at the heart of conventional accounts of what constitutes human security namely that without taking non-material considerations such as religion, ethnicity and gender into account, discussions of human security, academically and in practical terms, are incomplete, inconclusive and deeply flawed. A variety of compelling case studies indicate that, in fact, material security alone cannot adequately explain or fully account for human activity in a range of different settings, and exposd to a variety of different threats. This forceful intervention will expand and deepen the entire concept of human security, in the process endowing it with political relevance. It is an essential book for students of development studies and anthropology.
Review
“Authoritative, challenging, accessible, up to date, this is a splendid introduction to modern social anthropology. I would press it on anyone who wants a better grasp of the diversity of human ways of living. And it is a must-read for students.”
Review
“This classic volume is quite simply the best introduction there is to social and cultural anthropology. Deeply grounded in the history of anthropological thought, it is also thoroughly up to date. More than that, it is unfailingly engaging, clear, and accurate. There is no better place to go to begin to learn why anthropology has been and remains a vital discipline in the contemporary world.”
Review
“Small Places, Large Issues shows us Thomas Hylland Eriksen in his admirable triple capacity as an anthropologist: the scholar, with depth and breadth of knowledge, and with a critical sense; the statesman, negotiating with fairness between anthropological camps; and the journalist, with a sense of what is new, zooming between close-up and big picture, and writing clearly about it all.”
Review
“This wonderfully lucid introduction to social and cultural anthropology readily captures students’ attention. By delineating the past and present development of the discipline, Eriksen underscores continuities and challenges that inform the practice of anthropology in today’s world. In presenting anthropology as a means for elucidating large issues through the analysis of small places, the book speaks eloquently to anthropology’s intellectual vibrance and practical value.”
Synopsis
A pioneering contribution to the emergent anthropology of human security that brings classic concerns of the field into the 21st century.
Synopsis
This concise introduction to social and cultural anthropology has become a modern classic, introducing countless students to the field and the tools it offers for exploring some of the most complicated questions of human life and interaction. This fourth edition is fully updated, incorporating recent debates and controversies in the field, ranging from globalization and migration research to problems of cultural translation and the challenges of interdisciplinarity. Effortlessly bridging the gap between classic and contemporary anthropology, Small Places, Large Issues remains an essential text for undergraduates embarking on the study of this field.
About the Author
Thomas Hylland Eriksen is Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Oslo. He is the author of numerous books, including Ethnicity and Nationalism, A History of Anthropology, Small Places, Large Issues, Tyranny of the Moment and Globalisation, all available from Pluto Press. Ellen Bal is a Lecturer in Anthropology at Free University of Amsterdam and the author of They Ask if we Eat Frogs: Garo Ethnicity in Bangladesh (2007).Oscar Salemink is Professor of Anthropology and Head of Department in the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology, Free University of Amsterdam, and is the author of The Ethnography of Vietnam's Central Highlanders: A Historical Contextualization, 1850-1990 (2003).
Table of Contents
1. Thomas Hylland Eriksen: Human security and social anthropology * Part 1: The political economy of human security * 2.Ton Salman: Taking Risks for Security's Sake: Bolivians Resisting their State and its Economic Policies * 3. Bernard Venema (with Ali Mguild): State formation, Imposition of a Land Market and Resilient Pathways among the Berbers of the Middle Atlas * 4. Marjo de Theije and Ellen Bal: Flexible migrants: Brazilian gold miners and their quest for human security in Surinam
Part 2: Security, identity and belonging * 5. Ellen Bal and Kathinka Sinha-Kerkhoff: 'Bharat-wasie or Surinamie': Hindustani notions of belonging in Surinam and the Netherlands * 6. Edien Bartels, Kim Knibbe, Martijn de Koning and Oscar Salemink: Cultural identity as a key dimension of human security: The Dutch case * 7.Lenie Brouwer: “Without Cybersouk, I would be Dead”: Local Experiences in a Dutch Digital Community Centre * 8. André Droogers: Religion, identity and security among Pomeranian Lutheran migrants in Espírito Santo, Brazil (1880 - 2005): A schema repertoire approach * Part 3: States of (in)security * 9. Marion den Uyl: Changing Notions of Belonging: Migrants and natives in an Amsterdam multicultural neighbourhood * 10. Sandra Evers: Tales from a Captive Audience: Dissident Narratives and the Official History of the Seychelles * 11. Dick Kooiman: Harnessing Ceremonial for Political Security: An Indian princely state on the verge of extinction * 12. Oscar Salemink: Ritual efficacy, spiritual security and human security: Spirit mediumship in contemporary Vietnam