The Objects of Evidence

Part of The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute Special Issue Book Series, the contributors to this volume share the conviction that anthropology can no longer afford to ignore the importance of the concept of evidence, either for the ways in which anthropologists carry out their work (methodology) or present and justify their findings (epistemology). Demonstrates that evidence is something that all anthropologists must possess Shows how the collection of evidence in the field is still, without doubt, one of the main ingredients of what Bronislaw Malinowski once referred to as 'the ethnographer’s magic' Reveals how the concept of evidence has received little sustained attention in print – especially when compared to related concepts, such as 'fieldwork', 'truth', 'facts', and 'knowledge' Argued from a variety of theoretical perspectives and a rarity in its ability to orchestrate some many different – and vibrant – paradigms and points of view

Notes on editor and contributors vii Foreword ix Preface xi 1 Matthew Engelke The objects of evidence 1 2 Maurice Bloch Truth and sight: generalizing without universalizing 21 3 Christopher Pinney The prosthetic eye: photography as cure and poison 31 4 Anthony Good Cultural evidence in courts of law 44 5 Sharad Chari The antinomies of political evidence in post-Apartheid Durban, South Africa 58 6 Stefan Ecks Three propositions for an evidence-based medical anthropology 74 7 Martin Holbraad Definitive evidence, from Cuban gods 89 8 Webb Keane The evidence of the senses and the materiality of religion 105 9 Charles Stafford Linguistic and cultural variables in the psychology of numeracy 122 10 Nicola Knight & Rita Astuti Some problems with property ascription 135 Index 151