num_pages: 488
description: Betafo, a rural community in central Madagascar, is divided between the descendants of nobles and descendants of slaves. Anthropologist David Graeber arrived for fieldwork at the height of tensions attributed to a disastrous communal ordeal two years earlier. As Graeber uncovers the layers of historical, social, and cultural knowledge required to understand this event, he elaborates a new view of power, inequality, and the political role of narrative. Combining theoretical subtlety, a compelling narrative line, and vividly drawn characters, Lost People is a singular contribution to the anthropology of politics and the literature on ethnographic writing.
language: English
title: Lost People: Magic and the Legacy of Slavery in Madagascar
titlecomplete: Lost People: Magic and the Legacy of Slavery in Madagascar
genres: Anthropology, Ethnography, Politics, Academic, Nonfiction, History, Madagascar, Africa
ratings_count: 43
publisher: Indiana University Press