The Intimate Life of Dissent: Anthropological Perspectives

Product Description

The Intimate Life of Dissent examines the meanings and implications of public acts of dissent, which, the authors argue, are never simply about abstract principles, but also come at great personal risk to both the dissidents and to those close to them. Dissent is, therefore, embedded in deep, complex, and sometimes contradictory intimate relations. This book puts acts of high principle back into the personal relations out of which they emerge and take effect, raising new questions about the relationship between intimacy and political commitment. It does so through examinations of practical examples, including Sri Lankan leftists, Soviet dissidents, Tibetan exiles, Kurdish prisoners, British pacifists, Indonesian student activists, and Jewish peace activists. The Intimate Life of Dissent will be of interest to postgraduate students and researchers in anthropology, history, political theory, and sociology, as well as to those teaching introductory undergraduate courses on political anthropology.


About the Author

Harini Amarasuriya is senior lecturer in social studies at the Open University of Sri Lanka.

Tobias Kelly is professor of anthropology at the University of Edinburgh.

Sidharthan Maunaguru is assistant professor of anthropology at the National University of Singapore.

Galina Oustinova-Stjepanovic is a senior research fellow at the University of Edinburgh.