Care Anthropology / Anthropology of Caring

🇨🇦 Canada Canada is a vast country in northern North America, known for its multicultural society and history of colonialism. While often presented as a modern liberal democracy, Canada’s formation and development have been deeply shaped by the displacement, marginalisation, and governance of Indigenous peoples. Inuit women and children at summer camp, Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut , August 1906 ( Guardian ) 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Indigenous Canada Two main groups who are considered Indigenous to Canada are the  Inuit  and the  First Nations . These groups have distinct languages, histories, territories, and relationships to the Canadian state. 🔍 Comparison Chart Category Inuit First Nations Used to be known as… Eskimo (now outdated and considered offensive) Indian (outdated; still used legally in the Indian Act but not preferred) Region Arctic regions : Nunavut, northern Quebec , Labrado...

Tackling TB Imagine it is 1955. You are a government official in Ottawa. Tuberculosis is devastating the Inuit population, and you have been told to bring the epidemic under control. Here are some challenges: Inuit live across an enormous, remote area, often moving between camps. There are very few hospitals in the Arctic. Doctors generally don't speak Inuktitut. Inuit names can change and people don't necessarily have surnames, making it difficult to keep track of patients. Housing is often crowded, which helps TB spread. You have limited money and staff. Come up with five practical things the Canadian government should do. Think about: How will you identify people? How will you find and regularly test them? Where will people with TB be treated? Could you change where/how people live to make healthcare easier to provide? How will you know whether your policies are working? Governmentality To analyse our responses, let's build a deeper understanding of governmentality...

Welcome to Module 10 of Transforming Lives through Care , a first-year Anthropology subject at La Trobe University.  In this module, we anlayse welfare and care in terms of governmentality . The basic idea is that modern systems of care though non-violent, actually create greater control over the population. This is not overtly violent but it is more effective. 🎯 Learning Goals By the end of this week, you should be able to: explain the idea of  governmentality use  governmentality  to analyse caring practices  critique the idea of  governmentality 🚦  Introduction Governmentality is a mentality. Most people are unaware that they have this mentality. Although this mentality has only emerged in Europe's modern period, it seems to us to normal and natural. We think that governments should help people live long and happy lives. To achieve this we expect governments not to control us but to take  care   for of us. We, in turn, make ourselves g...

  Main point We are accustomed to thinking of rules as things that constrain us. But actually, rules also free us: Language rules restrict what I can say but also allow me to communicate.  Road rules restrict how I drive but also allow me to travel safely and efficiently. So, instead of thinking in terms of rules and freedom, we need other concepts. This is where the concepts of structure and agency come in.  Structure refers to the social arrangements, rules, and arrangements that shape what we can do. Agency is our capacity to act and make choices within these structures.  Consider a Filipina migrant employed to care for an elderly person in Taiwan. Many aspects of her situation are structured . Migration laws affect whether she can enter Taiwan and what work she can do. Her employer determines many of her working conditions. Wages, gender expectations and economic inequalities between countries also shape her situation. But she still exercises agency ....

Structure & Agency  How did you get to class or work today?  If you drove, you:  (a) had a range of roads available to you.  (b) chose which route to take.  If you took public transport, you:  (a) had trains, buses, or trams running on particular routes and timetables.  (b) chose which service to catch.  If you travelled another way, explain:  (a) the physical and social arrangements that made your journey possible. (b) the choices you made within those arrangements.  In the examples above, does " structure " describe (a) or (b)? What about " agency "?   Anthropologists often distinguish between structure and agency .  "Structure" refers to the social, economic, political, and physical arrangements that shape what people can do. Structures create opportunities but also impose limits.  "Agency" refers to a person's capacity to make choices and act within those structures. We cannot act with complete freedom, but...

 Welcome to Module 9 of Transforming Lives through Care. This is part of a course in the Anthropology of Care at La Trobe University. In earlier modules, we focused on care in informal settings (such as the home and family) and through informal mechanisms (such as kinship , ritual and reciprocity ). In this and the following modules, we shift our attention to professional care in formal settings. It is 'professional' because carers are trained, follow recognised standards and are paid for their work. And it is 'formal' because the care is organised through institutions such as hospitals, aged-care facilities, government agencies and private organisations, rather than being provided through family or community relationships alone. What is the difference? Consider this story from Aya Yasutake's book on caring for dementia patients in Japan. A woman explained to Yasutake:  If my dad has dementia, I can't tell him he needs to go to an aged Home. I have to ask the ...

 Welcome to our Module entitled Migration: Global Care Chains.  So far, we have examined how care creates kinship, circulates through gifts and reciprocity, and contributes to social reproduction. This week, we expand our perspective beyond individual households and communities. We ask what happens when care crosses national borders—and when one family’s solution to its care needs creates a care gap elsewhere. 🎯 Learning Goals By the end of this module, you should be able to:  define " migration " and  "global care chain ";  trace how paid and unpaid care are connected across households and countries;  explain how migration can be an act of care while also producing separation and loss;  apply the concepts of " remittances ", " reciprocity ", " social reproduction "   and care as a " commodity " to migrant care work;   identify how " gender ", " race ", " class " and " global inequality ...