Us, Relatives: Scaling and Plural Life in a Forager World (Volume 12) (Ethnographic Studies in Subjectivity)

Anthropologists have long looked to animistic forager-cultivator cultures for insights into the spectrum of human lifeways. Yet they have largely failed to appreciate indigenous horizons of concern and, in cross-cultural comparisons, to factor in enormous disparities in population size between these cultures and others. __Us, Relatives__ examines how scalar blindness has limited our understanding of key issues in forager studies and distorted the insights these societies offer us. In particular, the book argues that contemporary anthropology’s scale-blind multicultural ethos unleashes the power of large-scale conceptual language—of persons, relations, and ethnic groups—into the study of indigenous peoples and eclipses local modes of living plurally that encompass humans and nonhumans through notions of kinship and shared humanity. Drawing on long-term research with a community of South Asian foragers and emphasizing scaling as a universal and variable human activity, Nurit Bird-David develops this argument through a scale-sensitive ethnography of these foragers’ lifeways and horizons. Through the idea of __pluripresence__, she reveals a mode of belonging that subverts the modern ontological touchstone of “imagined communities,” a mode that is not rooted in sameness among strangers but in diversity among relatives, whatever their form. Anthropologists Have Long Looked To Forager-cultivator Cultures For Insights Into Human Lifeways. But They Have Often Not Been Attentive Enough To Locals' Horizons Of Concern And To The Enormous Disparity In Population Size Between These Groups And Other Societies. Us, Relatives Explores How Scalar Blindness Skews Our Understanding Of These Cultures. Drawing On Her Long-term Research With A Community Of South Asian Foragers, Nurit Bird-david Provides A Scale-sensitive Ethnography Of These People As She Encountered Them In The Late 1970s And Reflects On The Intellectual Journey That Led Her To New Understandings Of Their Lifeways And Horizons. She Elaborates On Indigenous Modes Of 'being Many' That Have Been Eclipsed By Scale-blind Anthropology, Which Generally Uses Its Large-scale Conceptual Language Of Persons, Relations, And Ethnic Groups For Even Tiny Communities. Through The Idea Of Pluripresence, Bird-david Reveals A Mode Of Plural Life That Encompasses A Diversity Of Humans And Nonhumans Through Notions Of Kinship And Shared Humanity. She Argues That This Mode Of Belonging Subverts The Modern Ontological Touchstone Of 'imagined Communities, ' Rooted Not In Sameness Among Dispersed Strangers But In Intimacy Among Relatives, Whatever Their Form--provided By Publisher. Prologue : One Of Us -- Introduction : Scalar Blindness And Forager Worlds -- Downscale 1. Maps Of Home -- At Home : Setting And Mind Setting -- Downscale 2. Census Of Relatives -- Living Plurally : Mobility And Visiting -- Downscale 3. Tree Of Relatives -- The Sib Matrix : Dyadic And Sequential Logic -- Couples And Children : Gender, Caregiving, And Foraging Together -- Downscale 4. Taxonomy Of Nonhuman Relatives -- Nonhuman Kin : Unispecies Societies And Plural Communities -- Downscale 5. Family And Ethnonym -- A Continuum Of Relatives : Othering And Us-ing -- The State's Foragers : The Scale Of Multiculturalism -- Epilogue : Pluripresent And Imagined Communities. Nurit Bird-david. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 231-264) And Index. Anthropologists have long looked to forager-cultivator cultures for insights into human lifeways. But they have often not been attentive enough to locals’ horizons of concern and to the enormous disparity in population size between these groups and other societies. Us, Relatives explores how scalar blindness skews our understanding of these cultures and the debates they inspire. Drawing on her long-term research with a community of South Asian foragers, Nurit Bird-David provides a scale-sensitive ethnography of these people as she encountered them in the late 1970s and reflects on the intellectual journey that led her to new understandings of their lifeways and horizons. She elaborates on indigenous modes of “being many” that have been eclipsed by scale-blind anthropology, which generally uses its large-scale conceptual language of persons, relations, and ethnic groups for even tiny communities. Through the idea of pluripresence, Bird-David reveals a mode of plural life that encompasses a diversity of humans and nonhumans through notions of kinship and shared life. She argues that this mode of belonging subverts the modern ontological touchstone of “imagined communities,” rooted not in sameness among dispersed strangers but in intimacy among relatives of infinite diversity. Anthropologists have long looked to forager-cultivator cultures for insights into human lifeways. But they have often not been attentive enough to locals’ horizons of concern and to the enormous disparity in population size between these groups and other societies. Us, Relatives explores how scalar blindness skews our understanding of these cultures and the debates they inspire. Drawing on her long-term research with a community of South Asian foragers, Nurit Bird-David provides a scale-sensitive ethnography of these people as she encountered them in the late 1970s and reflects on the intellectual journey that led her to new understandings of their lifeways and horizons. She elaborates on indigenous modes of “being many” that have been eclipsed by scale-blind anthropology, which generally uses its large-scale conceptual language of persons, relations, and ethnic groups for even tiny communities. Through the idea of pluripresence , Bird-David reveals a mode of plural life that encompasses a diversity of humans and nonhumans through notions of kinship and shared life. She argues that this mode of belonging subverts the modern ontological touchstone of “imagined communities,” rooted not in sameness among dispersed strangers but in intimacy among relatives of infinite diversity. "Anthropologists have long looked to forager-cultivator cultures for insights into human lifeways. But they have often not been attentive enough to locals' horizons of concern and to the enormous disparity in population size between these groups and other societies. Us, Relatives explores how scalar blindness skews our understanding of these cultures. Drawing on her long-term research with a community of South Asian foragers, Nurit Bird-David provides a scale-sensitive ethnography of these people as she encountered them in the late 1970s and reflects on the intellectual journey that led her to new understandings of their lifeways and horizons. She elaborates on indigenous modes of 'being many' that have been eclipsed by scale-blind anthropology, which generally uses its large-scale conceptual language of persons, relations, and ethnic groups for even tiny communities. Through the idea of pluripresence, Bird-David reveals a mode of plural life that encompasses a diversity of humans and nonhumans through notions of kinship and shared humanity. She argues that this mode of belonging subverts the modern ontological touchstone of 'imagined communities, ' rooted not in sameness among dispersed strangers but in intimacy among relatives, whatever their form"--Résumé de l'éditeur Contents List of Illustrations Prologue: One of Us Introduction: Scalar Blindness and Forager Worlds Downscale 1. Maps of Home 1. At Home: Setting and Mind Setting Downscale 2: Census of Relatives 2. Living Plurally: Mobility and Visiting Downscale 3. Tree of Relatives 3. The Sib Matrix: Dyadic and Sequential Logic 4. Couples and Children: Gender, Caregiving, and Foraging Together Downscale 4. Taxonomy of Nonhuman Relatives 5. Nonhuman Kin: Unispecies Societies and Plural Communities Downscale 5. Family and Ethnonym 6. A Continuum of Relatives: Othering and Us-ing 7. The State’s Foragers: The Scale of Multiculturalism Epilogue: Pluripresent and Imagined Communities Acknowledgments Notes References Index