This book is an established classic A pioneering achievement and laid the groundwork for a sociological theory of nutrition Audrey Richards work is beginning to enjoy a revival in anthropological study and awareness of her importance is growing
The force of hunger in shaping human character and social structure has been largely overlooked. This omission is a serious one in the study of primitive society, in which starvation is a constant menace. This work remedies this deficiency and opens up new lines of anthropological inquiry. The whole network of social institutions is examined which makes possible the consumption, distribution, and production of food-eating customs, as well as the religion and magic of food-production.
The force of hunger in shaping human character and social structure has been largely overlooked. This omission is a serious one in the study of primitive society, in which starvation is a constant menace. This work remedies this deficiency and opens up new lines of anthropological inquiry. The whole network of social institutions is examined which makes possible the consumption, distribution, and production of food-eating customs, as well as the religion and magic of food-production.
Hunger and Work in a Savage Tribe examines the cultural aspects of food and eating among the Southern Bantu, taking as its starting point the bold statement 'nutrition as a biological process is more fundamental than sex'. When it was first published in 1932, with a preface by Malinowski, it laid the groundwork for sociological theory of nutrition. Richards was also among the first anthropologists to establish women's lives and the social sphere as legitimate subjects for anthropological study.
What does "TRIBALISM" mean in the modern world? How does it affect the formation of political parties and the competition for office in the central governments of developing countries? What are the difficulties in modernizing local government and rural agricultural in countries where there are marked differences in language and political organization between different groups? The author examines the special political and economic problems which face the new East African states of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, taking Uganda, where she lived for five years, as a case study. Her final chapter describes the forces making for national consciousness and a sense of national identity in modern Africa, and the part played by the elite in these movements.
While there have been a number of descriptions and interpretations of boys' initiation rituals, Audrey Richards's classic study of initiation rites among the Bemba remains one of the few studies to deal in detail with the initiation of girls into adult life. Dr Richards observed the entire chisungu or female initiation rite, an almost continuous series of complex ceremonies lasting for a month. Her detailed description of the elements of the ritual, and her analysis of it in terms of the culture of matrilineal society, have made this a classic ethnographic and theoretical text. Celebrating the attainment of sexual and social maturity, the puberty rituals reflect tribal attitudes to sex, fertility, marriage, and the rearing of children. We see how women's ceremonies portray and try to enforce the social obligations of marriage and the setting up of the kinship group, and the conflicts of interest that are involved.
While there have been a number of descriptions and interpretations of boys' initiation rituals, Audrey Richards's classic study of initiation rites among the Bemba remains one of the few studies to deal in detail with the initiation of girls into adult life. Dr Richards observed the entire chisungu or female initiation rite, an almost continuous series of complex ceremonies lasting for a month. Her detailed description of the elements of the ritual, and her analysis of it in terms of the culture of matrilineal society, have made this a classic ethnographic and theoretical text. Celebrating the attainment of sexual and social maturity, the puberty rituals reflect tribal attitudes to sex, fertility, marriage, and the rearing of children. We see how women's ceremonies portray and try to enforce the social obligations of marriage and the setting up of the kinship group, and the conflicts of interest that are involved.
This reprint of a study by Dr. Audrey Richards (1899-1984) describes the living conditions of the Bemba of North-Eastern Rhodesia, with special reference to the effects of migrant labour on the social and economic life of a mainly agricultural society. Although primarily concerned with the production, distribution, and consumption of food, and with conditions of labour and standards of living, the book gives a vivid picture of the social structure of the Bemba - their political organisation and the functions of the chief, systems of land-tenure, kinship groupings, and the whole complex of economic, social, and magico-religious factors which arise in any community. The book has been widely recognised as an authoritative study particularly among economists and anthropologists.
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