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On Burning One’s Bridge: The Context of Gluckman’s Zulu Fieldwork

With the previously unpublished chapter “The Research Situation” (circa 1946)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 May 2014

Robert J. Gordon
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Abstract

Gluckman’s 1940 essay “An Analysis of a Social Situation in Modern Zululand” (aka as “The Bridge”) is widely acknowledged as one of the most influential in social anthropology for signalling a paradigm shift. This paper publishes a chapter of a previously unpublished, undated manuscript by Gluckman – probably from 1946 – describing how he did fieldwork in Zululand. A contextualizing essay discusses why Gluckman went to Zululand, what his preparations were, how he famously got “banned,” the role of the regent and the native commissioners in orchestrating this, and how local anti-semitism also played its part. It also suggests that his “banning,” coupled to his marriage in 1939 to Mary Brignoli, a member of the communist party, were crucial factors leading to this paradigm change. Finally, the afterlife of “The Bridge” is sketched showing how dismal was its original reception among peers and colleagues.

Résumé

L’article de Gluckman de 1940, “An Analysis of a Social Situation in Modern Zululand” (alias “The Bridge”) est largement reconnu comme l’une des contributions les plus influentes de l’anthropologie sociale pour la raison qu’il a marqué un changement de paradigme. Cet article publie un chapitre d’un manuscrit inédit et non daté de Gluckman – probablement écrit en 1946 – décrivant sa démarche de terrain au pays zulu (“Zululand”). Une étude de mise en contexte explique pourquoi Gluckman se rendit au pays zulu, quels ont été ses préparatifs, comment, comme on le sait, il fut “banni,” le rôle du régent et des commissaires locaux dans l’organisation de son bannissement et comment l’antisémitisme local joua son rôle. L’article suggère aussi que son bannissement ainsi que son mariage, en 1939, avec Mary Brignoli, un membre du parti communiste, constituèrent des facteurs cruciaux dans l’accomplissement de ce changement de paradigme. En dernier, l’article ébauche les coulisses de “The Bridge” en montrant comment sa première réception auprès des pairs et des collègues fut un lamentable échec.

Type
New Sources For South African History
Information
History in Africa , Volume 41 , June 2014 , pp. 155 - 194
Copyright
Copyright © African Studies Association 2014 

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