A companion to the anthropology of the Middle East / edited by Soraya Altorki.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A Companion to the Anthropology of the Middle East presents a comprehensive overview of current trends and future directions in anthropological research and activism in the modern Middle East.

Named as one of Choice 's Outstanding Academic Titles of 2016 Offers critical perspectives on the theoretical, methodological, and pedagogical goals of anthropology in the Middle East Analyzes the conditions of cultural and social transformation in the Middle Eastern region and its relations with other areas of the world Features contributions by top experts in various Middle East anthropological specialties Features in-depth coverage of issues drawn from religion, the arts, language, politics, political economy, the law, human rights, multiculturalism, and globalization

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Excellent balance and integration between theoretical discussions and examinations of current ethnographic and sociopolitical patterns highlight this indispensable addition to both anthropological and interdisciplinary studies of the Middle East. In a preface and 25 essays, contributors include well-established scholars such as editor Altorki, Steven Caton, Dawn Chatty, Shahla Haeri, Nicholas Hopkins, Marcia Inhorn, Suad Joseph, and Deniz Kandiyoti, as well as a fine spate of newer researchers. They analyze topics ranging from aesthetics, dreams, sensuality, music, media, and poetry to reproductive technologies, rural development, displacement, diaspora, and social movements. Altorki notes that contributors emphasize the kinds of questions that anthropologists have asked, "gaps and 'silences'," and directions for future research. The collection's only weakness is the relative underrepresentation of non-Arab populations, especially in Iran and Turkey. The authors make a clear and consistent attempt to address conditions of struggle and change in the Middle East, and to reflect ongoing debates within anthropology concerning questions of identity, agency, memory, cultural production and consumption, and violence within everyday life. An outstanding foundation for advanced undergraduates and a valuable contemporary overview for longer-term students of the Middle East, especially when paired with Sherine Hafez and Susan Slyomovics's Anthropology of the Middle East and North Africa (CH, Feb'14, 51-3328). Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates and above. --Bahram Tavakolian, Denison University