The FIRST letter from the field? Cambridge Anthropology 3(1) 1976
"The Editors decided that it would be interesting to include some reflections on fieldwork from people actually in the field at the moment. We print below the first of these and hope that others will follow." cambridge letter small
Poco a poco: Writing from the Road in Lima, Peru
For as long as I have been conducting research in Lima, I have heard that the transit system is an analogy for the city’s character. I first came here in May 2009, and at the time Lima was populated by a tangled, unmapped network of privately-owned vehicles called combis that sped maniacally around the city […]
Reflections from Papua New Guinea: Making ‘friends’ and the desire for ‘white men’
Not long ago, I received a text message from a young woman, a minor acquaintance I'd only met a couple of times: Hi Barb its something personal bt I think u sud help me out plis… if posible plis I really want 2 make frend wit one of whom u knw who is interested with […]
Death in a Family
I am living with a large extended family, an experience that has been both comforting (people are always everywhere) and lonely (what a social misfit I am living so far from my own strong kinship ties!). Seven siblings (now ages 50–35) inherited the house I live in when their parents died. When one of the […]
A Good Christian Daughter
Syriac Woman: So, Sarah, where do your parents live? Sarah: Well, my mother lives in the U.S., and my father lives here in the Netherlands. Syriac Woman: Oh. So…they’re…divorced? Sarah: Yes…it happened a few years ago. Syriac Woman: So when you’re at home you live with your mother… but why don’t you live with your […]
The End of Summer, Part 2
So, what have I learned about medical anthropology in Bolivia? A lot, although I’ve only begun scratching the surface of all these topics. For a med-anth dork like myself, this is a great situation- it seems like every day, some new potential research topic reveals itself to me. The excitement of discovering interesting local issues […]
Courting La Paz, Part 1
When one arrives at a new fieldsite, the only things one can know with any certainty are the changes in one’s own experience. Lacunas of knowledge burst into one’s consciouness like the appearance of crystal-clear lakes dotting the ground when viewed from an airplane. The sprawling complexity of a landscape simplifies to valleys of ignorance […]
Part III: Eating Watermelon, Parsing Chaos
Research takes perseverance and grit, but there is no denying that it comes with certain pleasures, too. In Palestinian society, research feeds both mind and body. Once, I was interviewing two young men who were in a hurry to go on an afternoon excursion. Still, they presented me with soda and then coffee on a […]
Part II: So Many Interviewees, How Shall I Choose?
What happens when Palestinians are given the chance to comment on Palestine related US news? Join anthropologist Amahl Bishara in a three part series as she goes to the field in Palestine to find out!
Part I: Re-Starting A Conversation
What happens when Palestinians are given the chance to comment on Palestine related US news? Join anthropologist Amahl Bishara this summer as she goes to the field in Palestine to find out!