Synopses & Reviews
How do people learn and experience their culture? How do people make a living? What does it mean to be in a family? How do we make sense of peoples beliefs and ritual practices? In exploring questions such as these, this cultural anthropology reader focuses on contemporary global concerns and includes a significant number of articles by authors from outside the United States.
A dynamic development in the fourth edition is the inclusion of “Anthropology and Public Debate” sections, in which opposing anthropological arguments on current hot topics are featured. In addition, “Doing Fieldwork” essays consider the nature and dilemmas of fieldwork, the changing status of the field, the nature of anthropological learning in the field, and ethical issues and dilemmas.
About the Author
William A. Gordon is a full-time author and publisher. His previous books include The Ultimate Hollywood Tour Book, Shot on This Site: A Traveler's Guide to the Places and Locations Used to Film Famous Movies and Television Shows, and Four Dead in Ohio: Was There a Conspiracy at Kent State? He lives in Southern California.
Table of Contents
Preface
Part 1: Introductory: What Is Distinctive about Anthropology? *1. Laura Nader, Anthropology! Distinguished Lecture – 2000 2. Marion Benedict, Fact Versus Fiction: An Ethnographic Paradox Set in the Seychelles 3. William Klausner, Going Native? *4. Gregory Starrett, Culture Never Dies: Anthropology at Abu Ghraib Part 2: Basic Concepts: What Is the Meaning of Culture? *5. Mahmood Mamdani: Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: A Political Perspective on Culture and Terrorism 6. Lynn Morgan, When Does Life Begin? A Cross-Cultural Perspective on the Personhood of Fetuses and Young Children *7. Sally Engle Merry, Human Rights Law and the Demonization of Culture *8. Doing Fieldwork – Jane Mulcock, Ethnography in Awkward Spaces: An Anthropology of Cultural Borrowing Part 3: Communication: What Is the Relationship Between Language and Culture? 9. William M. OBarr and John M. Conley, When a Juror Watches a Lawyer 10. Salikoko Mufwene, Forms of Address: How Their Social Functions May Vary *11. Jane Hill, Language, Race, and White Public Space *12. Doing Fieldwork: Jacqueline Urla, Euskara: The ‘Terror of a European Minority Language Part 4: Socialization: How do People Learn and Experience Their Culture? 13. Amparo B. Ojeda, Growing Up American: Doing the Right Thing 14. Alma Gottlieb, The Anthropologist as Mother: Reflections on Childbirth Observed and Children Experienced 15. Emily Martin, Flexible Survivors Part 5: Ecology: How do People Relate to Nature? 16. Daniel Stiles, Nomads on Notice *17. Paul Sillitoe, Contested Knowledge, Contingent Classification: Animals in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea *18. Marcus Colchester, Conservation Policy and Indigenous Peoples Part 6: Economics: How do People Make a Living? 19. Sean Cush McNamara, Learning How to Bribe a Policeman 20. Philippe Bourgois, Crack in Spanish Harlem: Culture and Economy in the Inner City 21. Richard Sennett, Cities Without Care or Connection Part 7: Gender and Sexuality: How do Women and Men Relate to Each Other? 22. Roger Lancaster, The Place of Anthropology in a Public Culture Shaped by Bioreductivism *23. Dave Bennett, Hanky-Panky and Spanky-Wanky: Sex and the Single Boy *24. Anthropology and Public Debate: Gay Marriage, Peter Wood vs. Ellen Lewin *25. Doing Fieldwork: David Houston: Are we There Yet? Getting to the Field Part 8: Marriage and Kinship: What Does It Mean to Be in a Family? 26. Serena Nanda, Arranging a Marriage in India 27. Brett Williams, Why Migrant Women Feed Their Husbands Tamales: Foodways as a Basis for a Revisionist View of Tejano Family Life 28. Lu Yuan and Sam Mitchell, Land of the Walking Marriage 29. Timothy Egan, The Persistence of Polygamy 30. Doing Fieldwork: Thomas Maschio, The Refrigerator and American Ideas of ‘Home Part 9: Collective Identities: How do People Express Status and Group Membership? *31. Matthew Gutmann, For Whom the Taco Bells Toll: Popular Responses to NAFTA South of the Border *32. Brett Williams, Owning Places and Buying Time: Class, Culture, and Stalled Gentrification 33. Alex de Waal, The Genocidal State 34. Doing Fieldwork: Elizabeth Garland, An Anthropologist Learns the Value of Fear Part 10: Politics: How Do People Exercise Power Over Each Other? 35. Clifford D. Shearing and Philip C. Stenning, Say ‘Cheese! The Disney Order that is not so Mickey Mouse 36. Whitney Azoy, Waaseta (Personal Connections) *37. Pierre Van Den Berghe, The Modern State: Nation-Builder or Nation-Killer? 38. Neil L. Whitehead and R. Brian Ferguson, Deceptive Stereotypes about ‘Tribal Warfare 39. Doing Fieldwork: Andrew Cornish: Participant Observation on a Motorcycle Part 11: Religion: How Do We Make Sense of Peoples Beliefs and Ritual Practices? 40. Isak Niehaus, Witchcraft in Anthropological Perspective 41. Silvia Rodgers, Feminine Power at Sea 42. Sian Sullivan, On Dance and Difference: Bodies, Movement and Experience in Khoesan Trance-Dancing – Perceptions of ‘A Raver *43. Anthropology and Public Debate: Understanding 9/11, Lionel Tiger vs. William O. Beeman Part 12: Change: What Does it Mean to Modernize? *44. James Brain, The Ugly American Revisited 45. James Ferguson with Larry Lohmann, The Anti-Politics Machine: ‘Development and Bureaucratic Power in Lesotho 46. Frederique Appfel-Marglin, Counter-Development in the Andes 47. Doing Fieldwork: Alex de Waal: In the Disaster Zone – Anthropologists and the Ambiguity of Aid Part 13: Old Issues, New Contexts: What Does the Future Hold for Anthropology? 48. Steven Rubenstein, Shuar Migrants and Shrunken Heads Face to Face in a New York Museum *49. Faye Ginsburg, The Anthropology of Abortion Activism 50. Anthropology and Public Debate: Anthropology and the ‘War on Terror, David Price vs. Murray Wax and Felix Moos *51. Ellen Ullman, The Museum of Me
Appendix: Personal Pathways: Rob Welsch, The Pathways of an Anthropologist Personal Pathways: Glenn McRae, A Career in Waste Personal Pathways: Kenneth Marty Personal Pathways: Daniella Brancaforte
Glossary Index *Indicates a new reading.