Laughing at Leviathan
Subtitle: sovereignty and audience in West Papua
By: Danilyn Rutherford
Series: Chicago studies in practices of meaning; Chicago studies in practices of meaning
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Published: 2012
Place of publication: Chicago; London
Language: eng
Number of pages: 320
ISBN-13: 9780226731971; 9780226731988
Subjects: Politics and government; Sovereignty
Description: "For West Papua and its people, the promise of sovereignty has never been realized, despite a long and fraught struggle for independence from Indonesia. In Laughing at Leviathan, Danilyn Rutherford examines this struggle through a series of interlocking essays that drive at the core meaning of sovereignty itself—how it is fueled, formed, and even thwarted by pivotal but often overlooked players: those that make up an audience. Whether these players are citizens, missionaries, competing governmental powers, nongovernmental organizations, or the international community at large, Rutherford shows how a complex interplay of various observers is key to the establishment and understanding of the sovereign nation-state." --Publisher description.