On Anthropological Discourse

On Anthropological Discourse Carol Upadhya I AM writing in response to Meenakshi Thapan's reaction (EPW, September 21) to my review of two recent ethnographic texts on rural women in north India (EPW, July 20). My intention in that review was not to attack anthropology in general, but to raise questions about certain trends within (mainly American) cultural anthropology through a critique of recent work on India. Since Thapan appears to have misunderstood the basis of this critique, I would like to clarify my position by situating it in the context of recent debates, which I describe briefly (of course, at the risk of over-simplifying the issues and various positions taken). Because it is not possible to spell out any of these arguments in a brief note, I refer below to a number of writers who have taken a similar position.