Adam Ashforth, an Australian who has spent many years in Soweto, finds his longtime friend Madumo in dire circumstances: his family has accused him of using witchcraft to kill his mother and has thrown him out on the street. Convinced that his life is cursed, Madumo seeks help among Soweto's bewildering array of healers and prophets. An inyanga, or traditional healer, confirms that he has indeed been bewitched. Ashforth, skeptical yet supportive, remains by Madumo's side as he embarks upon a physically grueling treatment regimen that he follows religiously - almost to the point of death. Asforth's beautifully written account of Madumo's struggle shows that the problem of witchcraft is not simply superstition but a complex response to spiritual insecurity in a troubling time of political and economic upheaval. Through Madumo's story, Ashforth opens up a world that few have seen, a deeply unsettling place where the question, Do you believe in witchcraft? is not a simple one at all. The insights that emerge as Ashforth accompanies his friend on an odyssey through Soweto's supernatural perils have profound implications even for those of us who live in worlds without witches.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
The University of Chicago Press
ISBN-13
9780226029719
eBay Product ID (ePID)
95420504
Product Key Features
Book Title
Madumo: a Man Bewitched
Author
Adam Ashforth
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Topic
Witchcraft, Mental Health
Publication Year
2000
Genre
Biographies & True Stories
Number of Pages
260 Pages
Dimensions
Item Height
220mm
Item Width
150mm
Item Weight
450 g
Additional Product Features
Title_Author
Adam Ashforth
Country/Region of Manufacture
United States
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