Dear All,Some of you asked me to send discussion questions ahead of time, so here are a few to think about before Wednesday, as you read Hallers autobiographical essay:The main topics of this class areethicsandemotionsin ethnography. But before we tackle them head-on, I want to cover some general issues connected with "Writing Birthright"What does the title mean? "Writing Birthright: On Native Anthropologists and the Politics of Representation"? (Cain: "I sold my birthright for a mess of pottage")Does Haller claim special rights to represent Mizrahi Jews because she herself is one?In what sense is she a "subaltern"? (Antonio Gramscicoined the term subaltern in his Prison Notebooks (1973). He never explicitly defined the term, but he referred to subaltern groups as those outside of the hegemonic structure. ForGayatri Spivak, author of Can the Subaltern Speak? (1988), the subaltern is everything that has limited or no access to cultural imperialisma space of difference. Elsewhere she states that subalternity is where social lines of mobility, being elsewhere, do not permit the formation of a recognizable basis of action.)Who are "subalterns" in Haller's autobiographical article"?In what sense is she simultaneously part of the "hegemonic" establishment?Why does this position (straddling two groups) create dilemmas for her? What dilemmas?What are some of Pnina Motzafi Haller's ethical concerns related to the practice of ethnography? General ethical questions1. Utilitarian approach,developed by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, grounded on the assumption that ethical actions are those that provide the greatest balance of good over evil.What courses of action are available?Who will be affected by each action?What benefit or harm will be derived from each action?2. Kantian approach, grounded in the individual's fundamental right to choose for herself or himself and to have these choices respected.Does the action respect the moral rights of everyone?A course of action that will produce benefits for some may also violate the rights of others. Are the overall benefits so large that limiting the rights of some is justified?3. Justice- and fairness- based approach, grounded on the assumption that actions are ethical only if they treat people the same, except when there are justifiable reasons for treating them differently. Both favoritism and discrimination are unjust and wrong.How fair is an action?Which course of action treats everyone the same except where there is a justifiable reason not to?Does the course of action treat everyone the same, or does it show favoritism or discrimination?

You may also want to view the music videos of A-WA, a group formed by three Mizrahi sisters, whose career Pnina Motzafi Haller is following, whether for purely aesthetic reasons or out of professional interest in the use of Yemeni foklore in popular music.http://thejewniverse.com/2015/the-yemeni-sisters-music-video-sweeping-across-israel-and-the-arab-world/It occurred to me that there are telling similarities and differences between the A-WA desert video clip by A-WA and the infamous Polish videoclip by Cleo and Donatanhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wv3yoX83Sk0We will think about ways to relate this discussion to literary representations of subalterns.Finally, we will go on to talk about the place of emotions in Hallers text and two excerpts from the work of Renato Rosaldo and Hortense Powdermaker.Best regards,Dominika Ferens