Iron, Gender, and Power: Rituals of Transformation in African Societies

Eugenia W. Herbert

ISBN 10: 0253208335 / ISBN 13: 9780253208330

Published by Indiana University Press, 1994

About this Item

1994. First Paperback Edition. Paperback. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland.

Seller Inventory # V9780253208330

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Iron, Gender, and Power: Rituals of Transformation in African Societies
• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Publication Date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0253208335
• ISBN 13: 9780253208330
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

"[Herbert] has constructed a model of power relationships structured upon gender and age, and derived from male transformative processes, and in so doing has written a notable, and most enjoyable, book." ―African History

"Herbert examines with great care and thoroughness the relationships between gender and power and the rationales that give them social form. . . . [Her] analytical ability is outstanding." ―Patrick McNaughton

"This book is a well-written and essential study of the place of belief in African material culture." ―International Journal of African Historical Studies

Herbert relates the beliefs and practices associated with iron working in African cultures to other transformative activities―chiefly investiture, hunting, and pottery making―to propose a gender/age-based theory of power.

About the Author

EUGENIA W. HERBERT is E. Nevius Rodman Professor of African History at Mount Holyoke College and author of Red Gold of Africa: Copper in Precolonial History and Culture.