Description
Book SynopsisOffers an alternative view of a world in which cultural mixing, not isolation, is the norm. This book contemplates how ethnic identity can be mobilized in the service of various kinds of goals - violent or nonviolent, laudable or despicable - and the unintended affects such mobilization invariably produces.
Trade Review"An unqualified homerun . . . clear, comprehensive, convincing . . . Seeing Culture Everywhere makes their argument very well, and it should be on anyone's list of potential texts for use in class or cultural research."
-- Michael A. Lange * Journal of Folklore Research *
"The authors of this well-written book . . . for a general audience . . . succeeded without sacrificing analytical rigor. . . . The authors make many intelligent commentaries and their organization of the material is admirable."
-- Keith Hart * Museum Anthropology Review *
"The overview they offer of the difficulties that the postmodern 'cultural turn' triggers are particularly relevant. Equally convincing is their argument in favor of a context-sensitive approach . . . A precious handbook for all those who take an interest in cultural studies."
* American Ethnologist *
"Seeing Culture Everywhere is an important corrective to celebratory accounts of multiculturalism and to the anthropologically uninformed discussions so common in political philosophy and elsewhere. . . . We need real understanding and invoking culture as a black box, as a deterministic abstraction only undermines it. On this point, Breidenbach and Nyiri are convincing and helpful."
* The Journal of the Review of Politics *
"…independent anthropologist Breidenbach and historian Nyiri share a solid grounding in history and anthropology that clearly shows how mixing has long been more the norm than isolation, and that the values of diverse populations often have been and can be constructively reconciled in the interest of the broader well-being of humankind. Now that so many people (finally) agree that culture works, it is good to have a popularly written explication of how it works. Highly recommended."
* Choice *
Table of ContentsPreface and Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Clashing Civilizations
2. Culture: Victim of or Obstacle to Development?
3. Culturalizing Violence
4. The Challenge of Multiculturalism
5. Protecting "Indigenous Culture"
6. The Age of "Cultural Competence"
Conclusion: The Ethnographic Approach
Notes
Bibliography
