SEMINAR: Asian Studies Seminar

In this seminar, theories of agency, embodiment and constructions of the maternal body will be examined. Since fieldwork for this PhD project is scheduled to commence in April 2012, the ethnographic data presented in this seminar will be limited. Almost 15% of Indonesian households are unofficially headed by women. These are some of Indonesia’s poorest households, where maternal mortality rates are highest. In Southeast Sulawesi, bridewealth in its varying forms and amounts affects not only agency, but also how the uses and meanings of women’s bodies are understood. This presentation will focus on beliefs about the maternal body, the effects of bridewealth on gendered power relations, and the social contexts within which various forms of women’s agency are enacted. The role of women’s agency in creating dynamic linkages between subjects, objects and social forces will also be investigated.