Reading, writing and discussing books is an essential tool in academia. Therefore, we will take our time and read two monographs together (overly long chapters will be summarized by presentations). The idea is to read a classic and a modern economic/ecological ethnography and to explore both continuities and change in the field. Both books are based on long-term immersion and intimate relationships with their research subjects; they are beautifully written and fun to read. I recommended you buy your own copies. Affordable paperback versions are available.
First, we read "The Hidden Frontier: Ecology and Ethnicity in an Alpine Valley" (1999 [1974]) by John Cole and the famous Eric Wolf. It addresses core concerns in economic anthropology such as household production, reproduction and inheritance in an Italian- and in a German-speaking community in South Tyrol (Italy). Cole and Wolf also tackle the still burning questions of how the ecology, capitalism and nationalism impact on everyday life.
Second, we will read "Porkopolis: American Animality, Standardized Life, and the Factory Farm" (Blanchette 2020). This stunning (and beautifully illustrated) book is the fruit of empathetic participant observation with pigs, veterinaries and racialized farm and slaughterhouse workers in the USA. Along the “disassembly line,” Alex Blanchette traces how these diverse agents raise, fatten, slaughter and render one of the largest pig herds in the world. Porkopolis revisits themes from Hidden Frontier and newly engages with science and technology, human-animal relations, racism and climate change.
- Teacher: André Thiemann