Nuer Lives Nuer Journeys is an ethnography about African Nuer who have migrated to Minnesota. The author of the book is the anthropologist Dr. Jon D. Holtzman. The Nuer are an African people, specifically from Sudan (Holtzman 2008: 2). The Nuer base their way of life around growing crops and raising livestock. Additionally, they belong to the Nilo-Saharan cultural/linguistic group and are a sizable ethnic group in southern Sudan. The Nuer became refugees during the second civil war in Sudan, a war caused by tensions between the north and the south (Holtzman 2008: 17). The war endangered their lives, so, they fled to refugee camps in bordering countries. From there, the Nuer applied for resettlement, and after a long and rigorous process gained
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This particular expression shows that while both cultures have similarities, including material valuables, America, however, has a significantly different culture than Africa. Moreover, the Nuer highly value both cows and cars. For the Nuer in Sudan, cows are a source of wealth, and cows also have great symbolic significance (Holtzman 2008: 3). In fact, the book takes a segment from another work by Evans-Pritchard stating that cattle are central to Nuer lives and that they would do practically anything to defend their herds (Holtzman 2008: 4). Unlike in Africa, Nuer refugees are more likely to own cars, that can serve vital roles in their lives. Having a car means having transportation and access to work and school. It is a form of freedom. However, unlike cows, cars are not deeply symbolically rooted in their culture, and a Nuer person probably would not risk their life for a car. The Nuer also use cattle in marriages as bridewealth, thus cattle integrate into kinship ties. Vehicles are useful, but they do not serve these same purposes. Furthermore, in America, if a Nuer refugee owns a car they have cultural prestige (Holtzman 2008: 64). Likewise, a Nuer person has prestige in Sudan if they own cattle. Unfortunately for the Nuer, cows are less problematic than cars. For a car, they must give payments, pay for repairs, and pay for insurance. …show more content…
The Nuer are farmers and herders, they toil land and tend to animals for their survival. In Africa, they are self-sustainable, and often skip work. This is not the case for the Nuer in Minnesota, where money is, irritatingly, a necessity for survival. Instead of agropastoralism, the Nuer in Minnesota work at jobs that are low paying and unpleasant, such as meat packing plants (Holtzman 2008: 59). Moreover, welfare is quite common among the Minnesotan Nuer. As refugees, they are eligible for five years of welfare, and often prefer it to tedious and toilsome work. Despite this, the Nuer need to work in order to survive in both places. Additionally, in Sudan, taking care of children is not a problem for the Nuer. If both parents are away or busy, the grandparents or the community frequently supervise to check that the kids act safely (Holtzman 2008: 62). However, in Minnesota, the community is not as close, so this is not an option. A style similar to a community helping take care of kids is a childcare system like a day-care. In both cases, the parents are entrusting the safekeeping of their children to others. Unfortunately, the opportunity cost of paying a childcare institution to watch Nuer kids while at work may be counterintuitive, depending on how much a parent earns at their job. Furthermore, the Nuer in Africa do not need
This particular expression shows that while both cultures have similarities, including material valuables, America, however, has a significantly different culture than Africa. Moreover, the Nuer highly value both cows and cars. For the Nuer in Sudan, cows are a source of wealth, and cows also have great symbolic significance (Holtzman 2008: 3). In fact, the book takes a segment from another work by Evans-Pritchard stating that cattle are central to Nuer lives and that they would do practically anything to defend their herds (Holtzman 2008: 4). Unlike in Africa, Nuer refugees are more likely to own cars, that can serve vital roles in their lives. Having a car means having transportation and access to work and school. It is a form of freedom. However, unlike cows, cars are not deeply symbolically rooted in their culture, and a Nuer person probably would not risk their life for a car. The Nuer also use cattle in marriages as bridewealth, thus cattle integrate into kinship ties. Vehicles are useful, but they do not serve these same purposes. Furthermore, in America, if a Nuer refugee owns a car they have cultural prestige (Holtzman 2008: 64). Likewise, a Nuer person has prestige in Sudan if they own cattle. Unfortunately for the Nuer, cows are less problematic than cars. For a car, they must give payments, pay for repairs, and pay for insurance. …show more content…
The Nuer are farmers and herders, they toil land and tend to animals for their survival. In Africa, they are self-sustainable, and often skip work. This is not the case for the Nuer in Minnesota, where money is, irritatingly, a necessity for survival. Instead of agropastoralism, the Nuer in Minnesota work at jobs that are low paying and unpleasant, such as meat packing plants (Holtzman 2008: 59). Moreover, welfare is quite common among the Minnesotan Nuer. As refugees, they are eligible for five years of welfare, and often prefer it to tedious and toilsome work. Despite this, the Nuer need to work in order to survive in both places. Additionally, in Sudan, taking care of children is not a problem for the Nuer. If both parents are away or busy, the grandparents or the community frequently supervise to check that the kids act safely (Holtzman 2008: 62). However, in Minnesota, the community is not as close, so this is not an option. A style similar to a community helping take care of kids is a childcare system like a day-care. In both cases, the parents are entrusting the safekeeping of their children to others. Unfortunately, the opportunity cost of paying a childcare institution to watch Nuer kids while at work may be counterintuitive, depending on how much a parent earns at their job. Furthermore, the Nuer in Africa do not need