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From Khariji to Kabuli: Being an 'Insider/Outsider' in an Afghan Woman's Fieldwork

From Khariji to Kabuli: Being an 'Insider/Outsider' in an Afghan Woman's Fieldwork This article reflects on the challenges of being an `outsider' in one's own culture and on the journey from being a complete outsider to an `insider/outsider'. Reflecting on fieldwork among women in north-east Afghanistan, the article explores assumptions and perceptions about Badakhshan and its people and the role of fieldwork in shattering them. It is also a reflection about values and compromises and the researcher's struggle to negotiate the appropriate balance. The article sheds light on the researcher's search for and discovery of different versions of herself when faced with a different version of `home'. Keywords: Afghan women, Badakhshan, education, fieldwork, insider, maternal mortality, outsider I spent the summer of 2010 conducting fieldwork in Badakhshan, Afghanistan, to investigate the intended and unintended consequences of interventions targeting maternal mortality, particularly the government's Community Midwifery Education (CME) programme, which is designed to increase the number of trained birth assistants. Born in Jawzjan and raised for the most part in Kabul, I still consider Badakhshan part of `home' for me. However, prior to my departure, and going there as an Oxford student, I was completely preoccupied with concerns about being an `outsider'. This article conveys my thoughts as a Western-educated Afghan http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Anthropology of the Middle East Berghahn Books

From Khariji to Kabuli: Being an 'Insider/Outsider' in an Afghan Woman's Fieldwork

Akbar; Shaharzad
Anthropology of the Middle East , Volume 7 (1) – Jan 1, 2012
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9 pages

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Publisher
Berghahn Books
Copyright
© Berghahn Books
ISSN
1746-0719
eISSN
1746-0727
DOI
10.3167/ame.2012.070106
Publisher site
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Abstract

This article reflects on the challenges of being an `outsider' in one's own culture and on the journey from being a complete outsider to an `insider/outsider'. Reflecting on fieldwork among women in north-east Afghanistan, the article explores assumptions and perceptions about Badakhshan and its people and the role of fieldwork in shattering them. It is also a reflection about values and compromises and the researcher's struggle to negotiate the appropriate balance. The article sheds light on the researcher's search for and discovery of different versions of herself when faced with a different version of `home'. Keywords: Afghan women, Badakhshan, education, fieldwork, insider, maternal mortality, outsider I spent the summer of 2010 conducting fieldwork in Badakhshan, Afghanistan, to investigate the intended and unintended consequences of interventions targeting maternal mortality, particularly the government's Community Midwifery Education (CME) programme, which is designed to increase the number of trained birth assistants. Born in Jawzjan and raised for the most part in Kabul, I still consider Badakhshan part of `home' for me. However, prior to my departure, and going there as an Oxford student, I was completely preoccupied with concerns about being an `outsider'. This article conveys my thoughts as a Western-educated Afghan

Journal

Anthropology of the Middle East – Berghahn Books

Published: Jan 1, 2012

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