Prisoners of Freedom: Human Rights and the African Poor (California Series in Public Anthropology) [Paperback]

Harri Englund (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 12, 2006 | ISBN-10: 0520249240 | ISBN-13: 978-0520249240 | Edition: 1

In this vivid ethnography, Harri Englund investigates how ideas of freedom impede struggles against poverty and injustice in emerging democracies. Reaching beyond a narrow focus on the national elite, Prisoners of Freedom shows how foreign aid and human rights activism hamper the pursuit of democratic citizenship in Africa. The book explores how activists' aspirations of self-improvement, pursued under harsh economic conditions, find in the human rights discourse a new means to distinguish oneself from the poor masses. Among expatriates, the emphasis on abstract human rights avoids confrontations with the political and business elites. Drawing on long-term research among the Malawian poor, Englund brings to life the personal circumstances of Malawian human rights activists, their expatriate benefactors, and the urban and rural poor as he develops a fresh perspective on freedom--one that recognizes the significance of debt, obligation, and civil virtues.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is an exceptionally interesting and well researched book on a topic of enormous importance. It brings careful ethnographic fieldwork to bear on the new 'culture of rights' that has developed in democratized post-colonial African states such as Malawi, and by doing so develops a powerful and consequential critique." - James Ferguson, Stanford University "In this exceptionally rich and thought-provoking study of human rights fundamentalism in Malawi, Harri Englund makes an original contribution to debates on democracy, freedom, civil society, and poverty in Africa. His vivid ethnographic prose brings to life Malawian human rights activists, their expatriate benefactors as well as the urban and rural poor." - Francis B. Nyamnjoh, Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa"

From the Inside Flap

"This is an exceptionally interesting and well researched book on a topic of enormous importance. It brings careful ethnographic fieldwork to bear on the new 'culture of rights' that has developed in democratized post-colonial African states such as Malawi, and by doing so develops a powerful and consequential critique."--James Ferguson, Stanford University

"In this exceptionally rich and thought-provoking study of human rights fundamentalism in Malawi, Harri Englund makes an original contribution to debates on democracy, freedom, civil society, and poverty in Africa. His vivid ethnographic prose brings to life Malawian human rights activists, their expatriate benefactors as well as the urban and rural poor. This is a major contribution on a major topic."--Francis B. Nyamnjoh, Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 260 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (September 12, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520249240
• ISBN-13: 978-0520249240
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #333,398 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > History > Africa > Malawi

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