Imagining the Good Life: Negotiating Culture and Development in Nepal Himalaya (Social Sciences in Asia)

Combining ethnographic research and theoretical reflections on the pursuit of the good life in a Tibetan community in the Nepal Himalaya, this book offers a perspective in seeking to understand contemporary experience of development and globalization. This Original Book Analyses Cultural Change And Experience Of Development In Terms Of The Pursuit Of The 'good Life' As A Social Process. While Recent Anthropological Critiques Of Development Highlight The Importance Of 'local Knowledge', This Book Argues That These Critiques Have Not Gone Far Enough, And Suggests That A Much More Fundamental Issue Concerns The Ends Of Development As Seen From A More Holistic, Cultural Perspective. Based On Ethnographic Research Among An Ethnic Tibetan Community In The Nepal Himalaya, The Book Eloquently Illustrates How The Pursuit Of The Good Life Is Inextricably Tied To Space And History, And Demonstrates The Relevance Of Ethno-historically Generated Conceptions Of The 'good Life' To The Practice Of Development.--book Jacket. By Francis Khek Gee Lim. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [219]-228) And Index. This is a book of great originality that analyses cultural change and experience of development in terms of the pursuit of the 'good life' as a social process. While recent anthropological critiques of development highlight the importance of 'local knowledge', this book argues that these critiques have not gone far enough, and suggests that a much more fundamental issue concerns the ends of development as seen from a more holistic, cultural perspective. Based on ethnographic research among an ethnic Tibetan community in the Nepal Himalaya, the book eloquently illustrates how the pursuit of the good life is inextricably tied to space and history, and demonstrates the relevance of ethno-historically generated conceptions of the 'good life' to the practice of development.