Local Scholars, Global Experts: from a Native’s Point of View

Abstrakt

In recognizing the hierarchies among different kinds of scholars and scholarships, my paper tackles the problem of the absence Eastern European anthropologists from mainstream scholarly discourse. Going against a line of thought which explains this absence in terms of “Western hegemony,” the paper shifts attention to different issues, asking: is Eastern European absence necessarily detrimental? What are the conditions of translating local concerns into global ones and what is the cost of this process? And finally, in which ways is Western scholarship present in the works of local anthropologists and what are the problems that local anthropology is facing? Although the paper discusses developments in Poland, I hope it may shed light on a broader Eastern European context. I also trust that the discussion on the presentday challenges of anthropology in Eastern Europe may be helpful for addressing dilemmas and queries within anthropology at large.