Us and Them | antropologi.info

Germans critical of Santa Claus’s spread – “symbol of American commercialism”

Published on December 9, 2004 by lorenz Posted in anthropology in the news, Europe, politics, religion cosmology, Us and Them

Christian Science Monitor

To many Germans, Santa’s spread is an unwelcome reminder of the encroachment of American commercialism into Europe. “People are starting to become critical of commercialism in every respect,” says Hermann Bausinger, a cultural anthropologist at the University of Tübingen.

“Christmas has switched from being only a celebration within the family and the church to being a public event starting late in November and going on through January,” says Mr. Bausinger.

The problem, as German television celebrity Mr. Hahne sees it, is that American-style Santas are crowding out Saint Nicholas, the traditional Christmas icon of this hilly Germany village named after the 4th-century bishop. “Santa is a symbol of consumption,” Hahne says. “Nicholas was a real bishop [who] taught us what’s still very true today: giving does not make us poorer. It makes us richer.” >> continue

Christian Science Monitor

To many Germans, Santa's spread is an unwelcome reminder of the encroachment of American commercialism into Europe. "People are starting to become critical of commercialism in every respect," says Hermann Bausinger, a cultural anthropologist at the University of…

Applied anthropology – A wedding ceremony in support of peace in West Timor

Published on December 6, 2004 by lorenz Posted in anthropology in the news, applied anthropology, Asia, culture traditions, politics, Regions, Us and Them

Ingvild Solvang, social anthropologist, Jesuit Refugee Service Indonesia (JRS)

JRS Indonesia has experienced that traditional ways to solve issues of displacement can be very fruitful, not only in West Timor but also in other parts of Indonesia. Finding the appropriate traditional approach becomes a process in itself, which ties the refugees and local communities together. It creates an arena where people sit down to discuss values that are essential in their culture.

In the local community, the binding of local tradition is stronger than formal legal documents. That makes the Fetsawa Umamane ceremony, in this case, an important supplement to the legal process. The combination of a formal legal and traditional approach will hopefully lay a solid foundation for good durable solutions for old and new families in Sukabitetek. >> continue

Ingvild Solvang, social anthropologist, Jesuit Refugee Service Indonesia (JRS)

Cultural complexity in Norway – Turning away from ethnicity as explanatory model

Published on December 3, 2004 by lorenz Posted in anthropology in the news, culture traditions, Europe, interdisciplinary, migration, Us and Them

University of Oslo

Cultural complexity in the new Norway, represents a large commitment by the University of Oslo towards research on cultural diversity. This is the first time in the history of the University of Oslo that it is being worked cross-disciplinary to such an extent.

Through interdisciplinary cooperation, the research project will be able to present new perspectives on Norway as a multicultural society, project manager Professor in Social Anthropology Thomas Hylland Eriksen promised. It is not immigrants alone who will be studied; Norwegians will be studied, too. One will look at ways of being Norwegian, and relations between them. It is of great importance to focus on other identities than ethnic ones. >> continue

University of Oslo

Anthropology and Colonial Violence in West Papua

Published on November 27, 2004 by lorenz Posted in anthropology (general), anthropology in the news, Pacific Oceania, Us and Them

Eben Kirksey, Westpapua.net

Most 19th century anthropologists who participated in violent colonial encounters reinforced popular prejudices, depicting apuans as inherently violent savages. Others, however, wrote critiques, and even conducted letter campaigns, about the savage nature of the “civilizing mission. >> continue (link updated)

(Link via SOSIG – What’s new)

Eben Kirksey, Westpapua.net

Race and Early Modern Studies: The Power of an Illusion and Its Genesis

Published on November 16, 2004 by lorenz Posted in anthropology in the news, books, persons and theories, Us and Them

RedNova reviews two books:

Women and Race in Early Modern Texts. By Joyce Green MacDonald. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. ix + 188 pages.

English Ethnicity and Race in Early Modern Drama. By Mary Floyd- Wilson. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. xii + 256 pages.

“The books reviewed share some noteworthy aspects. Both refuse to focus not only on people of color as raced, but instead analyze the significance of whiteness for cultural and gender identity, and for the development of Britain as a nation. In addition, both demonstrate that aspects of Africa and Africans were purposely forgotten in the early modern period to sustain the development of England as the leader in the slave-trade.”

>> continue

RedNova reviews two books:

Women and Race in Early Modern Texts. By Joyce Green MacDonald. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. ix + 188 pages.

English Ethnicity and Race in Early Modern Drama. By Mary Floyd- Wilson. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. xii…