Small Countries : Structures and Sensibilities

Ulf Hannerz

ISBN 10: 0812248937 / ISBN 13: 9780812248937

Published by University Of Pennsylvania Press Jun 2017, 2017

About this Item

Neuware - What is a small country Is a country small because of the size of its territory or its population Can smallness be relative, based on the subjective perception of a country's inhabitants or in comparison with one's neighbors How does smallness, however it is defined, shape a country and its relations with other countries Answers to these questions, among others, can be found in Small Countries, the first and only anthropological study of smallness as a defining variable. In terms of population size, some two thirds of the countries of the world can now be considered small countries, and they can be found in all world regions except North America and East Asia. They exhibit great diversity with regard to culture, history, and institutional arrangements, so there can be no model of any 'typical' small country. Yet the essays collected by Ulf Hannerz and Andre Gingrich identify a range of family resemblances in such areas as internal connectivity and sensibilities of identity. Contributors describe a number of similar problems with which small countries must cope, on domestic levels as well as in their transnational and global encounters. For some small countries, challenges such as media organization and branding have a negative impact on real or perceived vulnerability, while for others, the same challenges facilitate success stories. Comparative case studies cover a diverse set of regions, including the Caribbean, Middle East, Africa, and Europe, and employ diverse anthropological approaches. Tacit assumptions about scale, identities, and networks in everyday social life are best revealed through close, interpretive effort. At times a sense of shared belonging comes to the fore with particular events, such as a national crisis or an unexpected success in international sports, offering scope for situational analyses. In showing how small countries confront globalization, Small Countries reveals how the sense of scale intensifies when the world as a whole shrinks. Contributors: Regina F. Bendix, Aleksandar Bo kovi¿, Virginia R. Dominguez, Thomas Hylland Eriksen, Andre Gingrich, Beng-Lan Goh, Ulf Hannerz, Sulayman N. Khalaf, Eva-Maria Knoll, Jacqueline KnÖrr, Orvar LÖfgren, JoÃo de Pina-Cabral, Don Robotham, Cris Shore, Richard Wilk, Helena Wulff.

Seller Inventory # 9780812248937

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Small Countries : Structures and Sensibilities
• Publisher: University Of Pennsylvania Press Jun 2017
• Publication Date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0812248937
• ISBN 13: 9780812248937
• Binding: Buch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 231W x 157H x 30D millimeters 231 millimeters width by 157 millimeters height by 30 millimeters depth
• Weight: 703 grams

About this title

Synopsis

What is a small country? Is a country small because of the size of its territory or its population? Can smallness be relative, based on the subjective perception of a country's inhabitants or in comparison with one's neighbors? How does smallness, however it is defined, shape a country and its relations with other countries? Answers to these questions, among others, can be found in Small Countries, the first and only anthropological study of smallness as a defining variable.
In terms of population size, some two thirds of the countries of the world can now be considered small countries, and they can be found in all world regions except North America and East Asia. They exhibit great diversity with regard to culture, history, and institutional arrangements, so there can be no model of any "typical" small country. Yet the essays collected by Ulf Hannerz and Andre Gingrich identify a range of family resemblances in such areas as internal connectivity and sensibilities of identity. Contributors describe a number of similar problems with which small countries must cope, on domestic levels as well as in their transnational and global encounters. For some small countries, challenges such as media organization and branding have a negative impact on real or perceived vulnerability, while for others, the same challenges facilitate success stories.
Comparative case studies cover a diverse set of regions, including the Caribbean, Middle East, Africa, and Europe, and employ diverse anthropological approaches. Tacit assumptions about scale, identities, and networks in everyday social life are best revealed through close, interpretive effort. At times a sense of shared belonging comes to the fore with particular events, such as a national crisis or an unexpected success in international sports, offering scope for situational analyses. In showing how small countries confront globalization, Small Countries reveals how the sense of scale intensifies when the world as a whole shrinks.
Contributors: Regina F. Bendix, Aleksandar Bošković, Virginia R. Dominguez, Thomas Hylland Eriksen, Andre Gingrich, Beng-Lan Goh, Ulf Hannerz, Sulayman N. Khalaf, Eva-Maria Knoll, Jacqueline Knörr, Orvar Löfgren, João de Pina-Cabral, Don Robotham, Cris Shore, Richard Wilk, Helena Wulff.

About the Author

Ulf Hannerz is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Social Anthropology at Stockholm University. Andre Gingrich is Director of the Institute for Social Anthropology, Austrian Academy of Sciences.