The Afterlife Is Where We Come From

Nonfiction, History, Africa, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Anthropology
Cover of the book The Afterlife Is Where We Come From by Alma Gottlieb, University of Chicago Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Alma Gottlieb ISBN: 9780226330631
Publisher: University of Chicago Press Publication: October 31, 2015
Imprint: University of Chicago Press Language: English
Author: Alma Gottlieb
ISBN: 9780226330631
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication: October 31, 2015
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Language: English

When a new baby arrives among the Beng people of West Africa, they see it not as being born, but as being reincarnated after a rich life in a previous world. Far from being a tabula rasa, a Beng infant is thought to begin its life filled with spiritual knowledge. How do these beliefs affect the way the Beng rear their children?

In this unique and engaging ethnography of babies, Alma Gottlieb explores how religious ideology affects every aspect of Beng childrearing practices—from bathing infants to protecting them from disease to teaching them how to crawl and walk—and how widespread poverty limits these practices. A mother of two, Gottlieb includes moving discussions of how her experiences among the Beng changed the way she saw her own parenting. Throughout the book she also draws telling comparisons between Beng and Euro-American parenting, bringing home just how deeply culture matters to the way we all rear our children.

All parents and anyone interested in the place of culture in the lives of infants, and vice versa, will enjoy The Afterlife Is Where We Come From.

"This wonderfully reflective text should provide the impetus for formulating research possibilities about infancy and toddlerhood for this century." — Caren J. Frost, Medical Anthropology Quarterly

 

“Alma Gottlieb’s careful and thought-provoking account of infancy sheds spectacular light upon a much neglected topic. . . . [It] makes a strong case for the central place of babies in anthropological accounts of religion.  Gottlieb’s remarkably rich account, delivered after a long and reflective period of gestation, deserves a wide audience across a range of disciplines.”—Anthony Simpson, Critique of Anthropology

 

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

When a new baby arrives among the Beng people of West Africa, they see it not as being born, but as being reincarnated after a rich life in a previous world. Far from being a tabula rasa, a Beng infant is thought to begin its life filled with spiritual knowledge. How do these beliefs affect the way the Beng rear their children?

In this unique and engaging ethnography of babies, Alma Gottlieb explores how religious ideology affects every aspect of Beng childrearing practices—from bathing infants to protecting them from disease to teaching them how to crawl and walk—and how widespread poverty limits these practices. A mother of two, Gottlieb includes moving discussions of how her experiences among the Beng changed the way she saw her own parenting. Throughout the book she also draws telling comparisons between Beng and Euro-American parenting, bringing home just how deeply culture matters to the way we all rear our children.

All parents and anyone interested in the place of culture in the lives of infants, and vice versa, will enjoy The Afterlife Is Where We Come From.

"This wonderfully reflective text should provide the impetus for formulating research possibilities about infancy and toddlerhood for this century." — Caren J. Frost, Medical Anthropology Quarterly

 

“Alma Gottlieb’s careful and thought-provoking account of infancy sheds spectacular light upon a much neglected topic. . . . [It] makes a strong case for the central place of babies in anthropological accounts of religion.  Gottlieb’s remarkably rich account, delivered after a long and reflective period of gestation, deserves a wide audience across a range of disciplines.”—Anthony Simpson, Critique of Anthropology

 

More books from University of Chicago Press

Cover of the book Life on Ice by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Distinguishing Disability by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Physiologus by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Mahler by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Themes out of School by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Accounting for Capitalism by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Primate Societies by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book The Book of Eggs by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Learning from Madness by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Teachers of the People by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Closed Circuits by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Nollywood by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book Natural Questions by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book The Beast and the Sovereign, Volume I by Alma Gottlieb
Cover of the book About Method by Alma Gottlieb
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy