So, an exciting opportunity this way comes. The University of California Press and the Center for a Public Anthropology are having a competition which, if I were to win, would mean that my dissertation would be written and published as a general interest book. Wow!!! I have until October to work on framing my questions for a broad audience and work up a writing sample.
So, I’m asking for a few things for help. Now, I would like to know what kinds of things are in the news about Africa, and about families (not necessarily about African families), and especially what about these news items interests or bores you. Also, I’m trying to think of how to frame my research to address interests that might go beyond the specific local of my research and make you really interested in reading a whole book that mostly talks about Africa. What do you wonder about Africa, or about families? Any little question at all, because trends will help me, even if you don’t have a question it will take a whole book to answer.
Later, of course, I will be looking for non academic people to read a draft and comment on what grabs their interest and what makes their eyes glaze over. Honesty may hurt, but it will be appreciated!
So, the comments section is probably the easiest way to get the info to me, and may help stimulate discussion, but you can email me if you want to. ecogrrl@gmail.com
Thanks so much!
Filed under: writing Anthropology
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I mostly pay attention to the on-the-ground reports of various innovative techniques used to solve real and present problems in parts of Africa.
I have to admit that “family” is not real part of that, except that a lot of what I read has to do with livelihood. That is, the sort of livelihood I saw in the various neighbourhoods around Ghanaian cities.
I think most, if not all, that I see in the news about Africa has to do with war, famine, disease, and despotic dictators. News loves trouble. But that leaves a very stilted view of many places, Africa among them. When I read about other countries or cultures, what I find most intreguing is any information or perspective that allows me to see the connection (sometimes intangible) between those people’s lives and my own. Most of the time, the hoards of despondant people seen plodding along some dust-ridden road to an overcrowded and barren looking refugee camp somewhere dont’ look like people I can identify with. Why would they? But that makes it very easy to seperate their humanity (not just their circumstances) from our own. any information about their thoughts/lives etc. which dispells that illusion is interesting to me. So efforts on the parts of people to solve some of the universal human issues, cope with change, apply they’re education or expertice, etc., when presented from a perspective that is real and current, will be good reading for me.