Within the Circle - Softcover

Rugh, Andrea

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0231106793 ISBN 13: 9780231106795

Publisher: Columbia University Press, 1997

Synopsis

When American anthropologist Andrea Rugh rented a room in a small Syrian village, hoping to find time to finish a book she was writing, she never expected to be drawn so deeply into the lives of her neighbors. But she developed close friendships with two households―those of her landlady and her landlady's sister. For eight months Rugh observed and wrote about the lives of these two families and their ten children. The result is a uniquely intimate account of family life and child rearing in Middle Eastern society.

Within the Circle is a detailed, vividly crafted portrait of families in a changing world, chronicling the day-to-day life among family members, between parents and children, and between families and the larger world of the village. The book results from the personal quest of the author to understand the cultural aspects of her own child rearing practices. She contrasts her experiences as an American mother raising three independent, self-sufficient boys with the experiences of village parents striving to form a closely-knit family unit.

About this title

About the Author

ANDREA B. RUGH is an independent consultant and scholar who has lived and worked for more than twenty years in the Middle East.

From the Back Cover

This is a detailed, vividly crafted portrait of families in a changing world, chronicling the day-to-day life among family members, between parents and children, and between families and the larger world of the village.

Edition details

• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0231106793
• ISBN 13: 9780231106795
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288