Identity and Affect: Experiences of Identity in a Globalising World (Anthropology, Culture and Society) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0745314236 ISBN 13: 9780745314235

Publisher: Pluto Press, 1999

Synopsis

When forces of globalisation and local culture converge, distinctive social habitats are created. Drawing on detailed case studies of South Asian, East African, Melanesian and European societies, Identity and Affect provides a contextual analysis of the formation and expression of local identities and of the affective self-constitution of social agents. The contributors examine in particular the growing fragmentation of social relations in these areas and the impact this is having on individuals and communities who, forced into an increasingly outward orientation, are initiating processes of cultural redefinition and social realignment. The different effects of colonialism on identity formation are examined in studies of communalism in Sri Lanka, untouchables in India, cargo cults in New Guinea and the substitution of food exchange for cannibalism in Kaluana. Focusing on Italians in London and south Asians in East Africa, the formation and experience of belonging to cultural diaspora is explored from the perspective of the individual and the social collectivity. The authors conclude with an exploration of some of the defining experiences of modernity, specifically how individuals in industrial capitalist societies have come to see their identity as dependent on modern forms of industrial, public sector work.

About this title

Synopsis:

This text features a description and analysis of the distinctive social habitats that arise from the interpretation of globalization and local cultures. Through in-depth case studies of South Asian, East African, Melanesian and European societies, the contributors provide an analysis of the formation and expression of local identities and of the affective self-constitution of social agents. A key issue is the increase in scale and fragmentation of social relations which forces individuals and communities into an increasingly outward orientation, and initiates a process of cultural redefinition and social realignment. The effects of colonialism on identity are examined in the chapters on communalism in Sri Lanka, Indian untouchables, cargo cults in New Guinea and the substitution of food exchange for cannibalism in Kaluana. The experience of belonging to cultural diaspora is then explored, focusing on Italians in London and south Asians in East Africa. Narratives allow individuals to speak for themselves and create a self-consciousness of how they are linked to global "cultural streams" and to specific localities.

Finally the book examines some of the defining experiences of modernity, specifically how individuals in industrial capitalist societies have come to see their identity as dependent on modern forms of industrial, public sector work.

About the Author:

John R. Campbell is Lecturer in Social Anthropology and Research Associate at the Centre for Development Studies, University of Wales Swansea.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pluto Press
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0745314236
• ISBN 13: 9780745314235
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320
• Editor: Campbell John R.