Health in a Fragile State: Science, Sorcery, and Spirit in the Lower Congo

Description

Based on extensive field research in the Manianga region of the Lower Congo, Health in a Fragile State is an anthropological account of public health and health care after the collapse of the Congolese state in the 1980s and 1990s. This work brings into focus John M. Janzen's earlier books on African health and healing, revealing the collaborative effort by local, national, and international agencies to create viable alternative institutions to those that represented the centralized state. This book documents and analyzes the realignment of existing institutions and the creation of new ones that shape health and healing. Janzen explores the manner in which power and information, including science, are legitimized in the preservation and improvement of health. Institutional validity and knowledge empower citizens and health practitioners to gain the upper hand over the region's principal diseases, including malaria, tuberculosis, typhoid, and HIV/AIDS. Contents List of Illustrations Preface and Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations Introduction Part I: A History of Population and Disease in the Lower Congo 1. Population Decline and Rise 2. Postcolonial Population and Disease Trends Part II: The Social Reproduction of Health 3. Health in Household, Family, and Clan 4. Public Health and Health Care Institutions, Reconfigured 5. Rejoicing in Our Bodies: Popular Meanings of Health Part III: The Legitimation of Power and Knowledge 6. Dumuna: Creating Authority from Below 7. Science, Sorcery, and Spirit 8. Legitimation and Disease Control Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index