In an Antique Land and Dramas of Nationhood   Term Paper ID:42866 Click to get this paper

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Paper Abstract: This paper discusses the different approaches, methods, views of difference, and gender differences in the ethnographies of two authors; Amitav Ghosh, In An Antique Land: History in the Guise of a Traveler’s Tale, and Lila Abu-Lughod, Dreams of Nationhood: The Politics of Television in Egypt. Paper Introduction: In an Antique Land Dramas of Nationhood In Amitav Ghosh\'s In an Antique Land History in the Guise of aTraveler\'s Tale and Lila Abu-Lughod\'s Dreams of Nationhood The Politics ofTelevision in Egypt each authors provides an ethnography of a distinctkind Ghosh\'s work combines a mystery story in his search for an Indianslave who lived nearly years ago a depiction of life in twelfthcentury India Egypt and other locations and an examination of life incontemporary rural Egypt based on Ghosh\'s own observations of Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. It is while living in the villages that Egyptian farmersbecome Abu-Lughod's friends and even extended family, probing him about hisIndian heritage. Where Ghosh is concerned, there seems to be anegative bias toward western influence that makes it seem like he believesdifficulties within the communities and nations he observes stem fromhistorical oppression. They thinkGhosh and his Indian people are uncivilized for their own unique culturalpractices and customs. There is a sharpcontrast in the conclusion that each author makes with respect to theimpact of globalization and the wave of modernity it drives on thecommunities they observe. As Abu-Lughod (71) asks inconsidering the larger ramifications of such misperceptions, "What effectsdo such distorted images of the rural and uneducated and such unrealisticmessages about the values of education and national development have?"Melodramas reinforce such messages while at the same time shaping and beingshaped by them. In contrast, Abu-Lughod does not viewglobalization as a negative or destructive force where culture or nationalidentity is concerned. Heseems to blame the West for the conditions of modern India and Egypt,"Soon, the remains of the civilization that had brought Ben Yiju toMangalore were devoured by that unquenchable, demonic thirst that has ragedever since, for almost give hundred years, over the Indian Ocean, theArabian Sea and the Persian Gulf" (Ghosh 266). Her focus is mainly on the reactions oftwo communities of women, one of them made up of maids employed by wealthyand mainly foreign employers in Cairo and the other consisting of ruralvillagers. Works CitedAbu-Lughod, Lila. Chicago, IL: Univ. To this, Ghosh adds his own observations and experiences based onliving in, and interviewing the inhabitants of, two farm communities on theoutskirts of Alexandria. It is readily apparent that both the methods and the approaches ofGhosh and Abu-Lughod are distinct in the ethnographic accounts they offerin their works In an Antique Land and Dramas of Nationhood, respectively.Whether these differences stem from different worldviews or diverse viewson difference or gender, one thing remains clear. Indoing so, we see that Abu-Lughod finds historic images of rural inhabitantsas misguided as policies of government or Islamism that have not worked tounite culture and bring development. The melodramas also represent a source ofnational pride because the shows are broadcast to the larger Arab world.The subgroups of women observed by Abu-Lughod are typically those whoseviews are seen as backwards historically. Abu-Lughod's methods are more akin to those of the professionalethnographer, including fieldwork and media content analysis. As one Egyptian informs Ghosh (126), "You shouldtry to civilize your people. Ghosh's work combines a mystery story in his search for an Indianslave who lived nearly 1 years ago; a depiction of life in twelfthcentury India, Egypt, and other locations; and an examination of life incontemporary rural Egypt based on Ghosh's own observations of two farmingcommunities while earning his doctoral degree. Dramas of Nationhood: The Politics of Television in Egypt. It is fromthese materials that Ghosh rebuilds a picture of medieval society in theregion. This limited approachmay make the extrapolation of her findings onto the national level somewhatlacking in credibility. of Chicago Press, 2 4.Ghosh, Amitav. You should tell them to stop praying to cowsand burning their dead." Only greater interaction on a personal level canlead to the understanding required to experience a harmonious discourseamong distinct cultures. Aconclusion will address the difference between the two authors with respectto the impact they believe globalization is having on the communities theyobserve. This analysis willexamine how Ghosh and Abu-Lughod observe difference, how they manage theirjobs as ethnographers, their methods and tools, and provide a discussion ofwhether gender seems to affect the approach of the ethnographers. In the Upper Egyptian fieldsite, the author interacts with her informants in a similar manner to Ghoshby engaging them on their own turf and in their own cultural milieu. Abu-Lughod's ethnographyprovides a content analysis of popular Egyptian melodramas and the reactionto them of two different classes of women in her examination of how mediashapes, but is also shaped by, national identity. As he tells us ofUstaz Sabry, "On another occasion, in a speech on superstitions andmistaken beliefs he had eloquently condemned the custom that womenobserved, of leaving offerings at the graves of the dead...He and otherteachers had even succeeded in uniting the villagers against a man who wasknown to perform exorcism rituals for women, secret Ethiopian rites calledZar" (Ghosh 146). Abu-Lughod argues these melodramas are extremely important to an understandingof not only national identity for Egyptians but also the issues that shapeand inform national identity, such as politics, religious extremism, genderissues, and everyday existence. She remainsmore detached and aloof from her subjects than Ghosh who seems obsessedwith Bomma but never explores why and who views his subjects as extendedfamily. The methods used by Ghosh and Abu-Lughod are quite distinct.Ghosh's methods are multi-faceted. Travel is part of the author's methods, as he even travels toMangalore to see what it was like when Ben Yiju and Bomma were forced torelocate there. We get deeper insights into the essence of thevillagers due Ghosh's intimate engagement among them. Abu-Lughod's methods involve a content analysis of popularEgyptian melodramas, in contrast to Ghosh's use of primary documents. In an Antique Land: History in the Guise of a Traveler's Tale. Ghosh learns from these interactions that it is possiblefor people with differences in culture, religion, and language to co-existin harmony, but aspects of modern existence from imperialism and self-interest to nationalism and the need for conquest derail such a discourse.Ghosh's close-up and personal nature and approach with the villagers, likehis landlord Abu-Ali and students like Nabeel, ironically results in thevillagers observing Ghosh and observing difference themselves. Ghosh's close interactions with the villagers permitshim to see issues of significance to Egyptians, from fundamentalism andreligious extremism to gender issues and those of politics. In fact, Egyptian television demonstrates that anational framework remains critical for understanding issues ofsignificance to Egyptians on the political, religious and social levels. In an Antique Land & Dramas of Nationhood In Amitav Ghosh's In an Antique Land: History in the Guise of aTraveler's Tale and Lila Abu-Lughod's Dreams of Nationhood: The Politics ofTelevision in Egypt, each authors provides an ethnography of a distinctkind. New York: Vintage, 1994. In a sense, by focusing on primarily female subjects Abu-Lughodshows how emotion is a social construct crafted by the media of televisionand its melodramas in Egypt. One of the mostsignificant of these is the fact that Abu-Lughod's ethnography is focusedon observations of two female classes of Egyptians. She also travels to the offices of the producers of themelodramas, who conflict over the values and issues presented in them.Similarly to Ghosh, Abu-Lughod (16 ) finds modernity conflicting withtradition through the vehicle of television, which attempts to forge astrong bond of unity on the national level as former institutions likereligion are undermined, "The urgency with which television serials aretrying to shore up a national identity is surely related to the weakeningof that strong sense of the nation that had been produced a few decadesago." In addition, like Ghosh's part-travelogue approach, Abu-Lughod's isa mobile and multi-site ethnography, focusing on television as only oneaspect of the communities she is exploring. In contrast, it seems Ghosh'swork is more suffused with anger toward the west that borders on bias. This undermines the overallcredibility of his conclusions. He relies on primary sources from theGeniza of old Cairo, which houses eight centuries of documents frominvoices to biblical texts, to find the Indian slave Bomma, who worked forand became a representative in travels of Abraham Ben Yiju. As Ghosh (214) writes about a modern Indian/Muslimdialogue, "We would have known, both of us, that all that was mere fluff.In the end, for millions and millions of people on the landmasses aroundus, the West meant only this-science and tanks and guns and bombs." Thiskind of blame seems to pervade Abu-Lughod's perspective and undermines hisprofessional credibility. However, we see an empathetic and unbiasedapproach to her population by Abu-Lughod. Where gender is concerned, there do seem to be some differencesbetween the approach taken by Ghosh and Abu-Lughod. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.

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