Description
Book SynopsisRural Womenâs Sexuality, Reproductive Health, and Illiteracy examines the intimate lives of women in the developing world, their sexuality, and views on family planning and gender inequality. Providing insights on cultural traditions and understanding of modern medicine, it is essential for public health and anthropology scholars and practitioners.
Trade ReviewAnthropologist Maynard-Tucker has over 25 years of experience as a consultant in health and women’s welfare development projects, both large and small, in many countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Her descriptions of donor and government incompetence, corruption, smugness, obliviousness to local conditions, and poor project design are vivid and compelling. Her portrayal of the nightmarish 1991 conditions in Haiti caused by the attitudes of the military dictatorship as well as the cynicism and callousness of USAID officials is particularly shocking and well explained. . . .Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, faculty, professionals. * CHOICE *
The book is no less an anthropological study of the lives of women in rural communities than it is of the practices of development institutions. . . .In her quality of care work, [Maynard-Tucker] documents the systemic mistreatment of women in health systems because they are non-literate and come from rural areas. * International Feminist Journal of Politics *
This is a readable account of a fascinating career in international health and family planning. Part memoir and part analysis, Women’s Sexuality gives us the big picture of women’s situation in poor and marginalized communities. The author takes a positive attitude in the face of difficulties that might overwhelm others, provoking the reader to ask, ‘What would I do in such situations?’ The author challenges the complacent and the corrupt to do something about female illiteracy and the ‘health illiteracy’ resulting from it. The specter of HIV/AIDS looms large, as the reader gets a close-up view of women’s struggles for survival and coping strategies that include ‘survival sex.’ -- Suzanne Hanchett, Planning Alternatives for Change, LLC
This book offers a superb illustration of how anthropology and qualitative analysis may significantly enhance population and reproductive health policies. -- John May, Population Reference Bureau
At last, in one volume, Maynard-Tucker brings together her vast and valuable insights as one of the—perhaps the—most distinguished career applied anthropologists. She documents firsthand the common and persistent barriers to achieving rural women’s health throughout the world, as well as their survival strategies in the face of globalization—many of which entail unfortunate health compromises. A superb ethnographer, Maynard-Tucker practices what she preaches in the most challenging of environments and tells the authentic tales, to the benefit of us all. -- Kathy Oths, University of Alabama
Table of ContentsChapter 1: International Development and Rural Health Chapter 2: Peru: First Experience in the Field Chapter 3: Haiti: The Challenge Chapter 4: Africa: Women’s Conditions Chapter 5: Indonesia and Morocco: Birthing Huts and Self-Medication Chapter 6: Madagascar, Senegal, and India: Sex Work Chapter 7: Nepal and Madagascar: Broadening the Reach of Health Conclusion: Lessons Learned?
