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These days, development inspires scant trust in the West. For critics who condemn centralized efforts to plan African societies as latter day imperialism, such plans too closely reflect their roots in colonial rule and neoliberal economics. But proponents of this pessimistic view often ignore how significant this concept has become for Africans themselves. In 'Bewitching Development', James Howard Smith presents a close ethnographic account of how people in the Taita Hills of Kenya have appropriated and made sense of development thought and practice, focusing on the complex ways that development connects with changing understandings of witchcraft. Similar to magic, development's promise of a better world elicits both hope and suspicion from Wataita. Smith shows that the unforeseen changes wrought by development& greater wealth for some, dashed hopes for many more& foster moral debates that Taita people express in occult terms. By carefully chronicling the beliefs and actions of this diverse community& from frustrated youths to nostalgic seniors, duplicitous preachers to thought-provoking witch doctors& 'Bewitching' 'Development' vividly depicts the social life of formerly foreign ideas and practices in postcolonial Africa.

Taita (African people) --- Witchcraft --- Economic development --- Taita (Peuple d'Afrique) --- Sorcellerie --- Développement économique --- Social life and customs --- Rites and ceremonies --- Moeurs et coutumes --- Rites et cérémonies --- #SBIB:39A10 --- #SBIB:39A73 --- Antropologie: religie, riten, magie, hekserij --- Etnografie: Afrika --- Rites and ceremonies. --- Social life and customs. --- Taita Hills (Kenya) --- Economic conditions. --- Développement économique --- Rites et cérémonies --- Black art (Witchcraft) --- Sorcery --- Occultism --- Wicca --- Dabida (African people) --- Davida (African people) --- Dawida (African people) --- Kidabida (African people) --- Kitaita (African people) --- Taita (Bantu tribe) --- Teita (African people) --- Wataita (African people) --- Ethnology --- Development, Economic --- Economic growth --- Growth, Economic --- Economic policy --- Economics --- Statics and dynamics (Social sciences) --- Development economics --- Resource curse --- Teita Hills (Kenya)

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

These days, development inspires scant trust in the West. For critics who condemn centralized efforts to plan African societies as latter day imperialism, such plans too closely reflect their roots in colonial rule and neoliberal economics. But proponents of this pessimistic view often ignore how significant this concept has become for Africans themselves. In Bewitching Development, James Howard Smith presents a close ethnographic account of how people in the Taita Hills of Kenya have appropriated and made sense of development thought and practice, focusing on the complex ways that development connects with changing understandings of witchcraft. Similar to magic, development's promise of a better world elicits both hope and suspicion from Wataita. Smith shows that the unforeseen changes wrought by development-greater wealth for some, dashed hopes for many more-foster moral debates that Taita people express in occult terms. By carefully chronicling the beliefs and actions of this diverse community-from frustrated youths to nostalgic seniors, duplicitous preachers to thought-provoking witch doctors-BewitchingDevelopment vividly depicts the social life of formerly foreign ideas and practices in postcolonial Africa.

Taita (African people) --- Witchcraft --- Economic development --- Development, Economic --- Economic growth --- Growth, Economic --- Economic policy --- Economics --- Statics and dynamics (Social sciences) --- Development economics --- Resource curse --- Black art (Witchcraft) --- Sorcery --- Occultism --- Wicca --- Dabida (African people) --- Davida (African people) --- Dawida (African people) --- Kidabida (African people) --- Kitaita (African people) --- Taita (Bantu tribe) --- Teita (African people) --- Wataita (African people) --- Ethnology --- Social life and customs. --- Rites and ceremonies. --- Taita Hills (Kenya) --- Teita Hills (Kenya) --- Economic conditions. --- witches, witchcraft, anthropology, anthropological, kenya, kenyan, african, africa, development, imperialism, imperial, colonialism, colonial, neoliberal, neoliberalism, political, politics, government, governing, economics, economy, ethnography, ethnographic, wataita, magic, morality, morals, occult, occultism, diversity, witch doctors, postcolonial, postcolonialism, taita hills, social live, customs, ceremonies, reinvention, miscommunication, living standards.