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ISBN: PB: 9780226624341

ISBN: HB: 9780226624204

University of Chicago Press

May 2019

264 pp.

22.8x15.2 cm

15 halftones

PB:
£23,00
QTY:
HB:
£68,00
QTY:

Fada

Boredom and Belonging in Niger

Landlocked and with an economy reliant on subsistence agriculture, Niger often comes into the public eye only as an example of deprivation and insecurity. Urban centers have become concentrated areas of unemployment filled with young men bored and idle, trying, against all odds, to find meaning where little is given. At the heart of Adeline Masquelier's groundbreaking book is the fada – where men gather to talk, play cards, listen to music, and drink tea. As a place where young men forge new forms of sociability and belonging outside the arena of work, the fada is an integral part of Niger's urban landscape. By considering the fada as a site of experimentation, Masquelier offers a nuanced depiction of how young men in urban Niger engage in the quest for recognition and reinvent their own masculinity in the absence of conventional avenues to self-realization. In an era when fledgling and advanced economies alike are struggling to support meaningful forms of employment, this book offers a timely glimpse into how to create spaces of stability, respect, and creativity despite precarious conditions.

About the Author

Adeline Masquelier is professor of anthropology at Tulane University. She is co-editor of "Critical Terms for the Study of Africa", also published by the University of Chicago Press.