The Vulnerable Observer: Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart
by Ruth Behar
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Description
In classical anthropology, subjects of study are seen as vulnerable while their observers are instructed to remain detached and objective. Yet with the emergence during the last decade of a group of anthropologists with recognizable connections to the cultures in which they work, the lines between participant and observer, insider and outsider are no longer so easily drawn. In The Vulnerable Observer, the award-winning anthropologist Ruth Behar offers a new theory and practice for this show more humanistic anthropology. No longer looking over others' shoulders, she becomes one of the subjects of study as she reflects upon the observer as well as the observed. Eloquently interweaving ethnography and memoir, Ruth Behar reflects on fieldwork in Spain, Cuba, and the United States through her personal stories of loss as a young Cuban Jewish immigrant. Beginning with a poignant essay exploring the refuge she found in her fieldwork as her grandfather died, she proposes an anthropology that is lived and written in a personal voice in the hope that it will lead us toward greater depth of understanding and feeling for those about whom we write. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
I only got a chance to read a couple of the essays in this book before I had to return it to the library, but I loved the overall premise. Behar's first-person anthropological essays are perfect for the postmodern generation of intellectuals. Why pretend that we're unbiased, dispassionate observers when clearly we're human beings who are deeply affected when we witness war and poverty and other tragedies? Why has the Academy considered this distance to be preferable? I'm not an anthropologist myself, but I guess you could say I'm a writer/journalist and I think these principles can apply to this field as well.
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Author Information
18+ Works 1,534 Members
Ruth Behar -- ethnographer, essayist, poet, and filmmaker -- is professor of anthropology at the University of Michigan. The recipient of a MacArthur Fellows Award and a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, Behar is the author of several books
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1996
- Epigraph
- Viajero: Yo soy como el viajero/que llega a un puerto y no lo espera nadie;/ Soy el viajero tímido que pasa/ entre abrazos ajenos y sonrisas/ que no son para él.../ Como el viajero solo/ que se alza el cuello del abrigo/ en... (show all) el gran muelle frío...
Traveler: I am like the traveler/ who reaches the port and no one awaits him;/ I am the timid traveler who walks/ among strangers embracing and smiles/ not meant for him.../ Like the lone traveler/ who raises his overcoat collar/ on the great, cold wharf... -Dulce María Loynaz - Dedication
- for Deb Chasman my vulnerable editor
Classifications
- Genres
- Anthropology, Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir, General Nonfiction, Science & Nature
- DDC/MDS
- 301.0723 — Society, Government, and Culture Social sciences, sociology & anthropology Sociology and anthropology standard subdivisions of sociology and/or anthropology Education, research, related topics
- LCC
- GN346.4 .B44 — Geography, Anthropology and Recreation Anthropology Anthropology Ethnology. Social and cultural anthropology
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 163
- Popularity
- 200,273
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.22)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 4
