Visayan Vignettes: Ethnographic Traces of a Philippine Island.

Visayan Vignettes: Ethnographic Traces of a Philippine Island. Jean-Paul Dumont's Visayan Vignettes (1992) is an extremelywell-written account of his fieldwork in the island of Siquijor, a placewhich is far more prosaic than its notoriety for its witches suggests.Dumont's description of his stay in the island evokes warm imagesof simple fishing folk struggling to gain a living amidst increasinglydifficult circumstances. Writing in the style of the new ethnography ethnography:see anthropology; ethnology. ethnographyDescriptive study of a particular human society. Contemporary ethnography is based almost entirely on fieldwork. , heis deliberately self-conscious about rhetorical effects and rejects anyattempts at a totalizing discourse. The result is a very engagingimpressionistic im��pres��sion��is��tic?adj.1. Of, relating to, or practicing impressionism.2. Of, relating to, or predicated on impression as opposed to reason or fact: impressionistic memories of early childhood. portrait of an outsider's attempts to convey therelationships experienced in Siquijor. This portrait is as revealing ofthe new ethnography's concern with self-reflection as it is of the'Others' of which it speaks or writes. Dumont purposefully organizes his account around shortdescriptions of his central characters, including brief historical andgeographical sketches, origin myths, genealogies and a comment on thepresentational role of love for the constitution of Siquijorian society.With its nuanced exploration of local life, the study could almost bemistaken for an ethnographic eth��nog��ra��phy?n.The branch of anthropology that deals with the scientific description of specific human cultures.eth��nog novel were it not for the copious inclusionof Cebuano words and kinship charts indicating the complex worlds andgenealogical ties among its inhabitants. These authorial signpostsremind us that we are dealing with an anthropological account offieldwork rather than the loose interpretations of a work of fiction. While we are not sure and are never told the purpose of thisstudy, beyond a vague admission of being seduced by the island'sname and, as a form of fieldwork apologesis, that the book is aboutfishermen and farmers, what emerges is a sensitive account of a group ofsubsistence peasants and their relationships with the local elite.Patently aware of his cultural limitations, Dumont nevertheless providesus with what he regards as a balanced account of local society. Hispreferences are clearly with the poor villagers rather than the townelite, with whom he appears to have difficulty relating, partly becausethey show so little interest in his work. The study revolves aroundAuntie Diding, an interesting and formidable woman whom anyone familiarwith the Philippines would instantly recognize as a combination of thebest qualities of Cory and Imelda (i.e. a solid common sense combinedwith a simplistic sim��plism?n.The tendency to oversimplify an issue or a problem by ignoring complexities or complications.[French simplisme, from simple, simple, from Old French; see simple religiosity re��li��gi��os��i��ty?n.1. The quality of being religious.2. Excessive or affected piety.Noun 1. religiosity - exaggerated or affected piety and religious zealreligiousism, pietism, religionism and a mischievous creativity). In otherwords Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke"put differently , the mater familia This article is about the Polish political party. For other uses, see Familia (disambiguation). Familia ("The Family," from the Romain familia which constitutes Philippine society. Dumont spent a year living in this small and rural Siquijorianfishing village. During this time he befriended and was accepted intothe kin-group of his main informants, which included some townspeople aswell as rural villagers. Besides exploring the intimate relationships invillage life, including ambiguous ties with the town elite, Dumontoffers us a glimpse of his characters, main activities -- fishing,farming, petty trading -- as well as the vagaries of rural liferesulting in the ups and downs ups and downs?pl.n.Alternating periods of good and bad fortune or spirits.ups and downsNoun, plalternating periods of good and bad luck or high and low spirits of personal and family fortunes. Some ofthese sketches or vignettes such as a brief history of the island and ofits geography are deceptively simple but certainly required considerablepatience and scholarly perseverance to reconstruct. A short descriptionof a minor and inconsequential in��con��se��quen��tial?adj.1. Lacking importance.2. Not following from premises or evidence; illogical.n.A triviality. earthquake is a compelling and masterfuldiscussion of the role of myth as an unsatisfactory but neverthelessessential attempt at making sense of an often contradictory world. Aperfect example of serendipity serendipityhappy finding of an unexpected object or solution while searching for something else. both in its meaning and setting, theearthquake opens up channels of inquiry hitherto unavailable. Only whenthe routines of life are unexpectedly interrupted do we come acrossconscious attempts at legitimation, revealing unstated expectations andrationalizations. Dumont takes full advantage of this event, showing howminor dramas may take on major responses in situations where thetensions of everyday life are either ignored or denied. While Dumont provides some very revealing portraits of Siquijorianlife, other aspects of local society remain vague. Dumont had moreaccess to senior adults than to younger people which may explain why hissketches of youth are relatively poorly developed. There is somebackwardness in describing the costs of living in the field, includingwhat appears to be extremely favourable circumstances for employingdomestic help. The situation both reflects and parodies the ethnographicenterprise. A researcher with limited funds wishes to establishhimself/herself in the field for a considerable time and developintimate relations with informants. Unaware of local conventions and inthe absence of a well-defined cash economy, the situation is open tomisunderstanding and exploitation. Most fieldworkers do not intend tostay for longer than is necessary to collect their data, while thenatives hope to involve newcomers in their complex networks of exchange.Dumont is caught in this common difficulty and rather than appearnaively over-generous describes a situation where everyone profitsequally. If one is crude enough to ask what the natives got out of hispresence, the answer is a basketball. In contrast, the ethnographer eth��nog��ra��phy?n.The branch of anthropology that deals with the scientific description of specific human cultures.eth��nog isjustly overwhelmed with guilt over the generosity of the natives.Unfortunately, other fieldworkers are probably even less concerned withnotions of equal or moral exchange than is Dumont. Despite the many good features of this ethnography there areglaring gaps in the account. These range from the conventionalanthropological expectations of descriptions of rituals and othersymbolic structures to more sociological aspects such as class, politicsand the economy. Although it is pleasant to read a well writtenethnographic account without having to deal with reams of arid data andoften meaningless ritual transcriptions, Dumont provides unexpecteddetails such as the various meanings of the legua a Spanish measure oflength, some original Spanish texts or even the average size of farmsover time but he is curiously silent about the demographic compositionof his village or the class structure of the municipality. There seemsno pattern for the provision of information. This difficulty is linkedto the lack of discussion regarding the purpose of the study and itsrelationship to a broader research agenda. Despite the presence oftheoretical references, there is no discussion of the Philippineethnographic literature except for the occasional mention of a localsource. It is as though a Philippine anthropological corpus to whichDumont might care to contribute from the perspective of his Siquijorexperience did not exist. The text ends with a long discussion of the nature of love (gugma)in Siquijor or rather it ends with an explication ex��pli��cate?tr.v. ex��pli��cat��ed, ex��pli��cat��ing, ex��pli��catesTo make clear the meaning of; explain. See Synonyms at explain.[Latin explic of gugma'slinguistic usage. Drawing on the lyrics of a popular Cebuano song, localpoetry and the provincial anthem, Dumont explores the semanticconstruction of love. A discussion of the emotions largely absent inearlier ethnography has become a common topic in recent investigations.Renato and Michelle Rosaldo Michelle Zimbalist Rosaldo (1944, New York - 1981, Philippines), known to her friends and colleagues as Shelly, was a social, linguistic, and psychological anthropologist famous for her studies of the Ilongot tribe in the Philippines and for her pioneering role in women's studies dealt with it extensively in their study ofthe Ilongot but Dumont ignores their work, as he does Kiefer'sdiscussion of violence among the Tausug. For someone with Dumont'sevident scholarly thoroughness this neglect must be intended and part ofhis method of a 'principled impressionism'. Unfortunately,this principle only works if one is aware of a broader context withinwhich vague brushstrokes evoke a moving image of an already recognizablescene. In this case Dumont's impressions of Siquijor presume anawareness of current anthropological concerns with reflectivity re��flec��tiv��i��ty?n. pl. re��flec��tiv��i��ties1. The quality of being reflective.2. The ability to reflect.3. and thecritique of objective reason. It also presumes a close familiarity withthe vagaries of Philippine life for the reader to be able to separateinsight from banality. An informed reader will appreciate Dumont'sinsights and nuanced interpretations but I expect that most readersunfamiliar with rural Philippine life will misconstrue mis��con��strue?tr.v. mis��con��strued, mis��con��stru��ing, mis��con��struesTo mistake the meaning of; misinterpret.misconstrueVerb[-struing, -strued his impressions.One possible source of misinterpretation is the tranquil and pastoralpicture of Siquijorian society portrayed by Dumont, which includes aprissy sexuality. Siquijor is an island of gentle beauty where we formone whole big family, was how the natives described the island andthemselves to Dumont. This view was particularly espoused by the townelite who wanted to project an image of their island more suitable for aholiday commercial and who were pragmatically motivated by an interestin tourism. Dumont explores the validity of such a view, showing howkinship is as often conveniently forgotten as it is invoked. However,the overall impression gained from his account is of a peaceful islandwhere conflict is subtley expressed so as to cause a minimum ofembarrassment, where people make jokes about witches whilesimultaneously believing in them and where sexuality is hidden beneath acloak of shyness and propriety. Apart from a man bashing his old motherfor switching the radio off, there is no mention of overt violence inthe text. Despite Siquijor's reputation for witchcraft, Dumontfails to discuss its significance except in the context of a practicaljoke aimed at himself The theme of sexuality rarely enters the text andpeople, except when drunk, are too shy to discuss it openly. And yetDumont mentions the often pragmatic attitude to sexual arrangements madein the village, including hints of bisexuality. But all of this isimplied rather than made explicit. Anyone vagely familiar with thePhilippines will immediately recognize the partiality of such animpression even if a closer familiarity would also confirm its veracity.It is almost as if Dumont wants to confirm the official Siquijorian viewof themselves particularly in the context of their neighbours wholargely ignore the island or assume it to be a den of witches. In thislatter sense Dumont's account counterbalances ethnographiesdetailing rampant violence, dysfunctional beliefs or exotic sexualities.Siquijorians emerge as a dignified people struggling with their povertybut still managing to lead meaningfully rich lives, gracious andgenerous to a fault and perhaps over-accommodating, since they neverappear to misbehave mis��be��have?v. mis��be��haved, mis��be��hav��ing, mis��be��havesv.intr.To behave badly.v.tr. in the presence of the anthropologist. This is anenjoyable ethnography even if I remain skeptical of the conceptual gainsof its approach. Anthropologists have always found it difficult tobalance the power of an engaging narrative versus the equally insistentdemand to present data. Dumont is, however, only partially successfuland his interrupting asides often get in the way of the narrative or thedata. One cannot help but get the impression that Dumont is writing forthe devotees of currently fashionable ethnography rather than for hisfellow Filipinists or the broader anthropological reader, to say nothingabout a Filipino readership.