Anthropology is fieldwork!

 Photo by: University of Massachusetts Amherst  

 

Anthropology is the most humanistic of the sciences and the most scientific of the humanities~Alfred L. Kroeber

Anthropology is a very fascinating and interesting module one that a student can choose to study, and this is because it simply offers many answers to questions about the origins of many existing things hence, the explanation of it being a science study of humankind that studies all facts about the society, human behavior, culture, tools, techniques,traditions, languages, beliefs ,mechanisms ,beauty and art in both the past and the present. Now, the main purpose of anthropology is to make the world safe for human difference(Ruth Benedict’s quote) and enshrine those differences, because we all know that being unique is beautiful and admirable.

However, I like to argue that without fieldwork none of all the works was gonna be available to us as credible content worth citing in any research. What really is fieldwork then? Anthropologic fieldwork is the actual way of how the anthropologists gather their data about themselves and people among who they do research, using the process of immersing oneself in as many aspects of the daily cultural lives of people as possible in order to study their behaviors and interactions.

One of the founding fathers of these method of gathering information in anthropology is said to be a British man known  as Bronislaw Molinowski. It is said that he advocated to go out into the field to carefully study what his research was about which was something very uncommon since most of anthropologists found gathering of information in the University labs and libraries worth doing. He would go to a village live with them, learn their language, interact with them, learn the ways and eat their food. Since , his time fieldwork has been regarded as a very essential method of gathering crucial and distinguishing aspect of information in anthropology. Fieldwork itself is increasingly a practised in highly contemporary and traditional settings.

Fieldwork is very important since it helps anthropologists by giving them precise and detailed understanding of information about different social acts and relation of different cultural groups of people of a certain chosen place of study. Even if the study takes place at museums or historical sites, if they use this kind of method it would help them with getting very precise and detailed information about underlying cultural and symbolic meanings of texts and objects. Fieldwork is also important because it influences how research is carried out, it determines the prevailing outcomes, determines the results for the study, whose voices will be represented in the final reports or decisions and it helps in acknowledging  and locating views,values, and beliefs to the research process. 

Fieldwork types that anthropologists undertake differ according to factors such as topic of investigation, questions guiding the research, the field of the research, funders, age, sex , political plus economic factors and ethnicity of anthropologists together with their technological facilities they have.But, I have learned that anthropologists don’t use this kind of method only to gather information instead, they may also make use of quantitative information which we know to be the gathering of information through surveys and structured questionnaires especially in interdisciplinary settings. However, most of the social anthropologists use qualitative data research which is gathering information through interviews and fieldwork. Most anthropologists recommend this use of a method. A variant observation method also exists but in the monkey setting.

Then all this information that’s gathered by the anthropologists is then recorded in journals, articles and research notes that are accessible and available to be read and reviewed. Others are recorded at the academic textbooks of students and they come in handy to learners.

Anthropology is life! The most humanistic of the sciences and the most scientific of the humanities.And without it there’s just total chaos in the world! 

Chaotic lockdown experiences!

   

By:Mbalenhle Mbanjwa

Prudence Mjoli loves working although it limits her bonding time with her children.She would’ve loved to go to work, sadly she couldn’t due to the shutdown of some business enterprises. However, it gave her a chance to make up for all the time she has lost for bonding with her kids.

“This lockdown has been an eye opener in life but it has badly affected our future plans and our hustles.My business has been affected because for us to make money we rely on the customers and we also rely on this business for paying bills and putting food at the table. So the total shutdown really was a struggle because single parents like me were struggling as there was no means of income and those social grants were delayed but also not enough when received because food prices increased which led to few groceries being bought that quickly runs out in between a month”,she says.

Then the ANC and other prominent NGO’s saw the need to provide food parcels to Orange Farm’s community to help reach out to the needy. Delivering the food parcels house-to-house strictly adhering to the COVID-19 regulations of sanitizing,maintaining social distancing and the wearing of musks.

“One would certainly think that in devastating times like these,corruption would stop.However,out of all the 15 extensions of Orange Farm,only extension 7 got those food parcels and the rest didn’t. Residents complained and Thetha Fm (our local radio station) saw the need to discuss the allegations with the ANC Ward Counselors because it was stated that they shared the parcels amongst themselves for their families and sold the remaining to people at the street corners for lower prices than in the actual markets. The radio called them and they dropped their calls which made residents really angry. I myself was also angry,I still am angry even now but I took the decision to never ever vote for the corrupt and selfish ANC again!”, she says angrily.

Then the NGO’s stopped reaching out after hearing of corruption involved in the process.The community then decided to march against the corrupt ANC’s Ward Counselors and hell broke lose! Police threw grenades at them and shots fired which led to 207 being injured and 10 dead!

Lucas Meu-emu one of the Orange Farm’s residents argues that it is impossible to be in lockdown when there’s no electricity nor water. Especially because even tertiary students went back home and are expected to continue studying online, which requires electricity.

“It’s been months that many area’s of O.F like our’s have no electricity.Making it very much impossible for us to stay at home because it’s boring since we have no electricity for entertainment such as TV channels and social media platforms. We always have constant family fights as everyone is back home. Imagine having nothing to do for days and having no electricity at the same time.”he says.

For electricity it was understandable because O.F is one of many townships that owe Eskom a lot of money.Plus,every winter they get severe power cuts .This got out of hand in June when Rand Water stopped water supply.

“For many unemployed people like us, we rely on water and hygienic soaps for protesting us against the untouchable devil,yet they stop water supply. We then couldn’t wash our bodies, let alone our hands! How do they expect us to follow the Covid-19 regulations if they stop even water? We organized a march at the N1 golden highway for recognition. It then became a water and electricity march which also got out of hand as people robbed bakery and alcohol trucks.They closed in Eskom cars that entered using different routes and destroyed them. This time soldiers we sent, people were arrested and charged fines.Later, Eskom supplied electricity and Rand Water supplied water”,he says happily.

Rendani Ratshilumela an Orange Farm Police Station’s female detective states that since the start of lockdown our community has recorded 22 cases of Gender Based Violence. Of which only 6 of them victims and perpetrators died.

“One of the shocking cases are that of the 48 years woman and that of a 3 years old girl who were both raped, killed and thrown to yellow washing baskets and shoved under the bridge. We tried warning people to guard safe their children because they are always playing at the streets but after the incident other two young girls went missing and were found raped, killed and this time nailed to the road. It was traumatic!”,she says crying.

The community and intouch project held a 5 days march against GBV early July and the funerals were donated for. Celebrity Ntando Duma attended the funerals and took it to Instagram to urge people to stop GBV and support the movement. 

It has really been chaos in Orange Farm as people are faced with many challenges during this lockdown,but mostly it has made it clear that we fighting many things at once! God bless and heal our nation!

Life is a stage! A fighter's inspiring role.

Photo by :Anele Booysens

A country’s frontline worker, Covid-19 response team worker.

In an intimate chat with Dikeledi Tlali, one of many Orange Farm's Community Health Workers who are frontline workers who then bring about hope and help during this 'untouchable devils' pandemic faced globally. She opens up about positive and negetive aspects of her work during the pandemic, being a single mom,her purpose and how she balances her roles. TEXT:MBALENHLE MBANJWA

After arrival at work, a gathering of prayer is held in the morning,asking God to start the day with them, to protect them from COVID-19 and to give them strength to inform people and to install the willingness in people to fight the 'untouchable devil'. 'She always have shown signs of determination and the willingness to help people. So much for a 40 year old woman' says her collegue laughing.

'Generally, I have an early start', she says. Not surprising, since she is the mother of two! She has one daughter with her late husband and she then opened her heart and home to her late sister's son. Her day starts with getting children ready for school and taking them to school. 'In between the take-off and the drop-off to school,there are quite interesting conversations together  with laughs but sometimes moods also take part', she laughs. How does she do it?I ask. By God's grace, strength and by winging it, laughs Dikeledi. 'After getting everyone to school, I pray for their protection and mine,then do a 20 minutes home work out, bath and go to work', she says.

She lost her husband in 2013.It was a difficult time for her and her family, yet she managed to be an amazing single mother, persevere and provide for her children. 'My husband's passing struck me straight to depression but with the help of God I came out alive', she says. When her kids had anger issues, she had to stand firm and help them. They even went to family counseling due to the husband's passing. 'I love challenges that come with motherhood, although nothing could have prepared me for hurdles I faced, she says. 'Now I educate them to wear gloves, masks and sanitize in order to fasten the curve. I don't want to lose them to this devil, they are my world, my whys. That's why I feel I have resilience to sustain', she says.
"My first priority is to be the best mom I can be to my kids"

"Life throws curve balls at you, and it's how you deal with those curves balls that count"

They help screen people, find out if people have Covid-19 similar symptoms, give people information and they also give out medication to Ext 7's Clinic regular patients. 'It feels good to help people that's why I love it',she says. Fieldwork helps you to appreciate different cognitive levels of thinking as we get people who ask questions and those that help share information. It offers a daily-basis learning experience about unknown things', she says. 'Yesterday some guy said to me he believes and disbelieves that COVID-19 exists', she laughs. That reveals how people are confused during this pandemic about this untouchable devil due to arguments made on social media. People don't know what to believe and what not to. 'We teach and urge our community members to take this issue at hand serious and always take precautionary measures',she says.
'A challenge we face is that it is hard to change stubborn people's fixed minds on whether it exists or not but we try by all means to convince them because it will take all of the nation to fasten the curve',she says.

How then does she do it? I ask. 'I love all my roles and I'm not complaining because it's all part of being a parent, employee and a community worker. But overall it is God that helps me along the way', she says.

Interesting facts about her:

*She loves helping people.
*She loves reading the incredible personal stories of women because she believes that women are powerful and as soon as we can realize our strength and potential, no limit can be set on what we can achieve.
*She wants to inspire her children to believe in themselves and to let them know that it is okay not to be perfect.