Drazkiewicz-Grodzicka, Elzbieta
(2016)
Interview with Arthur Kleinman: A Passion for Anthropology.
Irish Journal of Anthropology, 19 (1).
pp. 109-114.
ISSN 1393-8592
Abstract
I met with professor Arthur Kleinman a day after his keynote speech at the 2016 AAI conference in
Maynooth. The talk he delivered was a moving account of the politics and morality of care and
suffering. But the power of his speech came not only from the insightful theoretical approach, but
first and foremost from sharing a very personal experience of care-giving to his wife of 45 years,
Joan, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2003, and whom Kleinman was taking care
until her death in 2011. So when we met for this interview, I somehow expected a conversation
which would continue in a similar vein, and would follow up on the topics raised the day before.
But paradoxically, in this small Maynooth cafe, the intimate atmosphere of the yesterday’s lecture
hall was nowhere to be found. But even though our talk had a very different ambience, it revealed
a great dedication of Professor Kleinman to anthropology. Without much of ado he directed our
interview to the most current issues in academia. Echoing the conversations that are happening in
most universities in the world, including Maynooth, where curriculum reform is being introduced,
Professor Kleinman noted that we live in a time, when universally the whole academic world is
changing: research universities are moving away from a balanced model combining science,
humanities and social sciences to a model led by applied science. That worldwide emphasis on
applied science raises a question about the purpose of the humanities and social sciences, and what
is their role in the education of students generally, and what role do their fields have. Eventually
what happens is the contraction of humanities and social sciences, which has very substantial
significance for anthropology.
| Item Type: |
Article
|
| Keywords: |
Interview; Arthur Kleinman; Passion; Anthropology; |
| Academic Unit: |
Faculty of Social Sciences > Anthropology |
| Item ID: |
12760 |
| Depositing User: |
Elzbieta Drazkiewicz Grodzicka
|
| Date Deposited: |
16 Apr 2020 13:52 |
| Journal or Publication Title: |
Irish Journal of Anthropology |
| Publisher: |
The Anthropological Association of Ireland (AAI) |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| URI: |
|
| Use Licence: |
This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available
here |
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