Event overview
Abstract: The way in which work is conceptualized and practiced constitutes a site of performance where an artisan becomes “authentic”. I take the notion of authenticity not as a static, reified characteristic of a bounded self, but rather as a process of self-formation whereby an individual continually negotiates, proclaims, challenges and performs authenticity. For Muslim artisans who I worked with in Delhi, the use of conceptual language as well as embodied praxis is key to constructing one’s self as authentic. In this paper, I will discuss two concepts that are foundational for understanding the formation of a particular embodied subject, i.e. those who considered themselves to be authentic, or real artisans (the phrase used in Urdu is asli karigar). These two concepts are cleanliness (saaf), as a mark of both quality of work and quality of environment, and worship (ibaadat), particularly exemplified through the Islamic practice of “zikr” or remembrance of God. I argue that exploring both language and practice in the formation of an embodied subject provides insight into alternate notions of piety, which have fostered a particular kind of work “ethic” among Muslim artisans.
Biography: Mira Mohsini is an ESRC Postdoctoral Fellow at Goldsmiths. Her work examines the marginalization of urban Muslim artisans in India and explores processes of subject-making from the perspective of those living on the margins. She is particularly interested in the historical influences of Sufism among populations of settled urban artisans, and how such influences are manifest in contemporary discourses about work and labour.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Nov 2011 | 4:00pm - 6:00pm |
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