Power and performance : ethnographic explorations through proverbial wisdom and theater in Shaba, Zaire / Johannes Fabian.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Fabian, Johannes

Series:

New directions in anthropological writing

New directions in anthropological writing.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Groupe Mufwankolo.

Luba (African people).

Theater--Congo (Democratic Republic)--Shaba.

Philosophy, Luba.

Power (Social sciences).

Theater.

Congo (Democratic Republic).

Physical Description:

xix, 314 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Madison, Wis. : University of Wisconsin Press, [1990]

Summary:

In 1985 the distinguished anthropologist, Johannes Fabian, while engaged in fieldwork in the Shaba province of Zaire, first encountered this saying. Its implications -- for the charismatic religious movements Fabian was examining, for the highly charged political atmosphere of Zaire, and for the cultures of the Luba peoples -- continued to intrigue him, though its meaning remained elusive. On a later visit, he mentioned the saying to a company of popular actors, and triggered an ethnographic brainstorm. "Spontaneously, they decided it would be just the right topic for their next play. On the spot they began planning -- suggestions for a plot were made, problems of translating the French term 'pouvoir' were debated, several actors cited sayings and customs from their home villages..."

Power and Performance examines traditional proverbs about power as it illustrates how the performance of Le pouvoir se mange entier was created, rehearsed, and performed by the Troupe Theatrale Mufwankolo. The play deals with the issue of power through a series of conflicts between villagers and their chief. Both rehearsal and performance versions of the text of this drama are included, in Swahili and in English translation.

Much of what ethnographers study as "culture" is performance, says Fabian, and his work is an attempt to redirect the anthropologist's work from "informative" to "performative" ethnography. The result is a book rich in reflections, asides, evocative descriptions of settings and events, yet with a continuing concern for the limitations of the ethnographer's perspective and of the power relations that are never absent from ethnographic works. Thus it is a genuine experiment in ethnographic writing.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Reflections on Ethnography 3

Discovery: From Informative to Performative Ethnography 3

Performance: Some Uses in and around Anthropology 7

Some Ideas Guiding this Study 11

Moving Ahead: Performance and Survival 15

Chapter 2 The "Problem": Power and Cultural Axiom 21

Of Power and Chicken Gizzards 22

The Missing Proverb 26

Power and Lore: Some Elements in Luba Culture 30

Cultural Axioms and Performance 36

Chapter 3 The Experimenters 40

The Troupe Theatrale Mufwankolo: First Encounter and Some History 40

Popular Theater in Shaba: Settings and Contexts 52

Chapter 4 The Experiment 61

The Setting: Glimpses of Power and Play 61

The Work: A Chronological Account of the Rehearsal Process 64

The Play: Dress Rehearsal and Shooting Le pouvoir se mange entier 80

Chapter 5 Interlude: The Missing Text 87

Ethnographic Texts as Protocols 87

Protocols of What? 92

Remarks and Apologies on Transcription and Translation 97

Chapter 6 Plot and Players 101

From Saying to Play: Developing a Plot 101

Power Is Eaten Whole: Bwana Cheko's Version (Text 1) 101

Power Is Eaten Whole: Mufwankolo's Version (Text 2) 110

The Players 120

Chapter 7 Scene 1: The Law of the Land 125

Introductory Song: Rehearsal Version (Text 3) 125

Last Directions (Text 4) 126

Announcing the Chief: Rehearsal Version (Text 5) 130

The Chief's Speech: Rehearsal Version (Text 6) 131

Directions for the Chief's Departure (Text 7) 136

Announcing the Chief: Final Version (Text 8) 139

The Chief's Speech: Final Version (Text 9) 140

Chapter 8 Scene 2: Trouble Brewing 145

Contesting the Chief: Rehearsal Version (Text 10) 145

Contesting the Chief: Final Version (Fragments: Text 11) 157

Chapter 9 Scene 3: The Case of the Thief 159

The Case of the Thief: Rehearsal Version (Text 12) 161

The Case of the Thief: The Chief's Verdict, Final Version (Text 13) 173

Chapter 10 Scene 4: The Hunter's Visit 175

The Hunter's Visit: Rehearsal Version (Text 14) 176

The Hunter's Visit: Final Version (Text 15) 188

Chapter 11 Scene 5: The Case of Adultery 193

The Case of Adultery: Rehearsal Version (Text 16) 193

The Case of Adultery: Final Version (Text 17) 212

Chapter 12 Scene 6: Revolt in the Fields 225

Revolt in the Fields: Rehearsal Version (Text 18) 226

The Chief Goes to the Fields: Rehearsal Version (Text 19) 239

The Chief Sends Tala Ngai to the Fields (Text 20) 241

Tala Ngai in the Fields (Text 21) 242

The Chief Sends His Guards to the Fields (Text 22) 243

The Chief Sends Bwana Cheko and Masimango to the Fields (Text 23) 244

The Chief Sends His Wife to the Fields (Text 24) 245

The Chief Goes to the Fields: Final Version (Text 25) 246

Chapter 13 Scene 7: The Chief Takes Control: Order Restored 248

The Chief's Final Speech: Kachelewa's Directions (Text 26) 248

The Chief's Final Speech: Rehearsal Version (Text 27) 250

The Chief's Final Speech: Final Version (Text 28) 253

Chapter 14 Reflections and Afterthoughts 257

On Endings, Meanings, and Interpretation 257

All Is Well That Ends Well... 258

Does It "End Well"? 260

Closure and Meaning 261

On Performance, Folklore, and Power 263

Appendix Bwana Cheko's Scenario 291.

Notes:

Includes index.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

0299125106 :

0299125149

OCLC:

21303822