Ethnographic Borders And Boundaries

"'A stunning collection of border-crossing, transgressive essays on the complexities of living in the twilight zones of the postmodern, complexities made visible by contemporary ethnography at the crossroads. A must read.'- Norman K. Denzin, Emeritus Professor, University of Illinois Immigrants, migrants, displaced and diasporic persons: all have been constrained or enabled by borders of some sort. This bookexplores international cases of how and why such boundaries come to be; who is affected by sociallyconstructed borders; what it means to individuals and nation-states to recognise and deal with arbitrary divisions; and finally, what might be done to find - and act on -solutions to the inequity wrought by these borders and boundaries"--

This volume explores from an anthropological perspective the complexities of borders and migration: the difficulties of crossing a militarized geographic boundary, engaging in the process of moving across a social barrier delineated by linguistic, religious cultural or political differences, or aiding migrants' survival through the arrival, resettlement and assimilation process? The authors of the 22 carefully written, sensitive essays included here provide invaluable insights into the legal, social and moral dimensions of migration.

The 20th century has seen a greater opening of the borders and a movement of larger masses of people than ever before. Stereotypes of peoples developed through economic or wartime encounters. Political and cultural borders do not coincide. There are linguistic, ethnic and social boundaries. Deconstructions of national borders refer to changing attitudes to the national symbols in a world of globalisation and reconstructions of borders to territorialisation processes on the national and local level. A boundary may be visible or invisible, geographical, mental or symbolic; drawing boundaries may be a conscious or unconscious act. There are concrete, complex and abstract borders waiting for breaking.

Borderlands are often seen as zones of instability, uncertainty, marginality, and danger. Yet, they increasingly attract the attention of ethnographers as a unique lens through which to view the intersections of the national, transnational, and global forces that shape the securities and insecurities of our globalizing age. The contributors to this volume examine how different kinds of (in)security manifest and interconnect at state borders, encompassing the personal and the political, the social and the economic, in ways that reinforce or undermine the identities of those whose lives these borders frame. Drawing upon case studies from the Southern Cone, the U.S.-Mexico border, and borders in Greece, Ireland, and southeast Asia, the authors show that borders raise questions of security not just for those who live and cross them, including ethnographers, but also for the sustainability of the physical environments and wildlife disturbed by the passage, movement, and containment borders generate.

International borders are among the most significant political inventions of modern times. The borders between national states are not just important to the peoples and governments who face each other across the borderline – any international border can become a regional hotspot of global concern. But aside from the significant role borders play in national and international affairs, borders are also places and spaces where people live, work, raise families, and build businesses. Written for students across disciplines, Borders, Boundaries, Frontiers introduces readers to the study of borders and border cultures. Thomas M. Wilson examines both historical foundations and current developments in the field, with an emphasis on anthropological contributions. Ultimately, Borders, Boundaries, Frontiers encourages students to explore the role anthropology plays in the understanding of contemporary borders.

In Sometime Kin, Sandra Wallman paints the portrait of an Alpine settlement – its history, economy and culture, and its unusual resistance to outsiders and modernization. Against this, her journal shows the villagers embracing her four small children and acting as participant observers in the two-way process of research. This project happened more than forty years ago and involved a uniquely large fieldwork family, but its insights have wider significance. The book argues that the intrusion of observation inevitably distorts the ordinary life observed, that the challenges of multi-vocality and “truth” are always with us, and that memory is the bedrock of every ethnographic enterprise.

China and Russia are rising economic and political powers that share thousands of miles of border. Despite their proximity, their interactions with each other - and with their third neighbour Mongolia - are rarely discussed. Although the three countries share a boundary, their traditions, languages and worldviews are remarkably different. Frontier Encounters presents a wide range of views on how the borders between these unique countries are enacted, produced, and crossed. It sheds light on global uncertainties: China's search for energy resources and the employment of its huge population, Russia's fear of Chinese migration, and the precarious independence of Mongolia as its neighbours negotiate to extract its plentiful resources. Bringing together anthropologists, sociologists and economists, this timely collection of essays offers new perspectives on an area that is currently of enormous economic, strategic and geo-political relevance.

The Shadow Side of Fieldwork draws attention to the typically hidden or unacknowledged aspects of ethnographic fieldwork encounters that nevertheless shape the resulting knowledge and texts. Addressing these invisible, elusive, unspoken or mysterious elements introduces a distinctive rigor and responsibility to ethnographic research. Luminaries in anthropology dare to explore the 'unspeakable' and 'invisible' in the ethnographic encounter Considers personal and professional challenges (ethical, epistemological, and political) faced by researchers who examine the subjectivities inherent in their ethnographic insights Explores the value, and limitations, of addressing the personal in ethnographic research Includes a critical discussion of the anthropologist’s self in the field Introduces imaginative rigor to ethnographic research to heighten confidence in anthropological knowledge