Suchergebnisse

"For the first time in over 30 years, a new ethnographic study emerges on the Bugkalot tribe, more widely known as the Ilongot of the northern Philippines. Exploring the notion of masculinity among the Bugkalot, Cutting Cosmos is not only an experimental, anthropological study of the paradoxes around which Bugkalot society revolves, but also a reflection on anthropological theory and writing. Focusing on the transgressive acts through which masculinity is performed, this book explores the idea of the cosmic cut, the ritual act that enables the Bugkalot man to momentarily hold still the chaotic flows of his world"--

This article challenges the tendency, both academic and popular, to assign 'monsters' the status of the radical Other: of that which we are not. This widespread inclination to understand monsters as agencies breaking into the ordinary ignores what I propose to call the 'radical sameness' of monsters: that is, the multiple ways in which monsters appear to embody the features of what people or society could, potentially, become. To develop this argument the article takes its point of departure in ethnographic research carried out among the Bugkalot of Northern Luzon. Exploring the quasi-mythical character known as the mansasadile, I argue that this figure exposes the potential dangers of individuality and current social change; with the growth of paid labour in the farming industry, the possibility is emerging that the young men will detach themselves from their families. The mansasadile shows the situation whereby the monstrous, rather than being the 'radical other' that intrudes into the everyday, is the monstrous that erupts out 'out of the ordinary'.

-

This article appropriates the concept of energy in order to analyze the interaction between the Danish welfare state and the category of citizens referred to among social workers and health professionals as "passive citizens." While passivity might commonly be seen as mere inactivity—a certain non-action beyond the unfolding of social life—this article argues that in the Danish welfare society, the opposite is the case. In fact, in this context various forms of passivity have become the object of concerted political and media attention and the general schism between energy and passivity has become part of a public discourse on elderly health care and aging. By examining the way health care professionals talk about passive senior citizens in terms of a lack of energy, this article shows how, in a wider sense, passivity is framed as a particular problem that can be overcome through the right health care intervention. I argue that energy and passivity have become of key interest to the Danish welfare state in managing its aging population and that the attempt to activate the passive citizen in fact energizes the welfare state.

Denne artikel er baseret på et etnografisk studie blandt ældre borgere og sundhedspersonale på Møn og Sydsjælland. I de seneste år er social isolation og ensomhed blandt ældre blevet et kerneområde inden for diskussionen af folkesundhed i Danmark. Med udgangspunkt i denne observation, undersøger jeg, hvorfor netop ensomhed er blevet et centralt fokusområde for de danske sundhedsmyndigheder. Spørgsmålet er, hvordan ensomhed bliver opfattet i en tid, hvor ældres sundhed er genstand for stadig større opmærksomhed. Jeg knytter indsatserne over for ensomhed til en mere generel 'potentialets politik', dvs. en fremherskende fortælling om sundhed i Danmark, som siger, at vi alle har potentialet for—samt en forpligtigelse til—ikke blot at opretholde vores sundhed, men også at engagere os socialt livet igennem.

Denne artikel er baseret på et etnografisk studie blandt ældre borgere og sundhedspersonale på Møn og Sydsjælland. I de seneste år er social isolation og ensomhed blandt ældre blevet et kerneområde inden for diskussionen af folkesundhed i Danmark. Med udgangspunkt i denne observation, undersøger jeg, hvorfor netop ensomhed er blevet et centralt fokusområde for de danske sundhedsmyndigheder. Spørgsmålet er, hvordan ensomhed bliver opfattet i en tid, hvor ældres sundhed er genstand for stadig større opmærksomhed. Jeg knytter indsatserne over for ensomhed til en mere generel 'potentialets politik', dvs. en fremherskende fortælling om sundhed i Danmark, som siger, at vi alle har potentialet for—samt en forpligtigelse til—ikke blot at opretholde vores sundhed, men også at engagere os socialt livet igennem.

This article appropriates the concept of energy in order to analyze the interaction between the Danish welfare state and the category of citizens referred to among social workers and health professionals as "passive citizens." While passivity might commonly be seen as mere inactivity—a certain non-action beyond the unfolding of social life—this article argues that in the Danish welfare society, the opposite is the case. In fact, in this context various forms of passivity have become the object of concerted political and media attention and the general schism between energy and passivity has become part of a public discourse on elderly health care and aging. By examining the way health care professionals talk about passive senior citizens in terms of a lack of energy, this article shows how, in a wider sense, passivity is framed as a particular problem that can be overcome through the right health care intervention. I argue that energy and passivity have become of key interest to the Danish welfare state in managing its aging population and that the attempt to activate the passive citizen in fact energizes the welfare state.

Book Review of 'Masculinities under Neoliberalism',Cornwall, Andrea, Karioris, Frank G. and Lindisfarne, Nancy (Eds.) 2016. Masculinities under Neoliberalism. London: Zed Books.

This article discusses how anthropological explorations of empathy can be enriched through a focus on transgression. Empathy is commonly understood as a human capacity that allows a person to share the feelings of others through some form of mental engagement. Thereby, it is believed, empathy establishes compassionate relationships between people and prevents violence from breaking out. In this article, I suggest that the opposite may be the case: that, in fact, empathy may be the very foundation for acts of radical violence and killings. The ethnographic basis of my inquiry is research conducted among the Bugkalot (Ilongot) of northern Philippines on the practice of headhunting. I propose that empathy is what allows violence to achieve its transformative capacity. Furthermore, I seek to show how understanding headhunting as "murder" may disclose how this particular act is tied to masculine ideals of autonomy. Headhunting, I argue, targets not the head but the "face", that is, it strikes at the very fulcrum of the ethical relation and the foundation of empathy.

There is a saying, 'do not paint the devil on the wall', which is commonly taken to mean that one should, for all intents and purposes, avoid portraying something in an overly negative or exaggerated way. The German origin of the proverb is even more interesting. It says: 'One should not paint the devil on the wall, since he will enter the room anyway'[1]. Rather than referring to a moral virtue (don't be overly pessimistic, don't exaggerate), the original proverb is, in itself, a pessimistic view on the world. In short, you don't need to evoke the devil, since he is already here. Or, perhaps, you don't need to exaggerate, since the world is already exaggerated. This special issue started out as an attempt to pursue this idea: If the world is exaggerated, wouldn't this require us to use exaggerated examples to describe it? ...

[1] Man braucht den Teufel nicht an die Wand zu malen, er kommt auch ohne das herein

Book Reviews:
Ragnhild Lund, Philipe Doneys & Bernadette P. Resurrección: "Gendered Entaglements: Revisisting Gender in Rapidly Changing Asia." (reviewed by Henrik Hvenegaard Mikkelsen)
Cecilia Bergstedt: "Cultivating Gender: Meanings of Place and Work in Rural Vietnam." (reviewed by Maria Tonini)
Jonathan Leer & Karen Klitgaard Povlsen:"Food and Media: Practices, Distinctions and Heterotopias."(reviewed by Katherine O´Doherty Jensen)
Ph.D. notices:
Line Henriksen: "In the Company of Ghosts - Hauntology, Ethics, Digital Monsters"
Verena Lenneis: "The work, life and recreational physical activity of female cleaners"

"Gendered Entanglements: Revisiting Gender in Rapidly Changing Asia" by Ragnhild Lund, Philippe Doneys and Bernadette P. Ressurección (eds.). Reviwed by Henrik Hvenegaard Mikkelsen."Cultivating Gender: Meanings of Place and Work in Rural Vietnam" by Cecilia Bergstedt. Reviewed by Mari Holen and Sine Lehn-Christiansen."Food and Media: Practices, Distinctions and Heterotopias" by Jonatan Leer and Karen Klitgaard Povlsen (eds.). Reviewed by Katherine O'Doherty Jensen.