John Comaroff
Encyclopedia
John L. Comaroff is a Harold H. Swift Distinguished Service professor of Anthropology
and Social Sciences at the University of Chicago
. He is also Research Professor at the American Bar Foundation.
Comaroff was born in Cape Town
in 1945 and received his BA at the University of Cape Town
in 1968. After college he and his wife left South Africa for the United Kingdom, where he received his Ph.D. from the London School of Economics
in 1973. His field research focus is on the Tswana people of Southern Africa
. He researches and publishes independently and in collaboration with his wife, Jean Comaroff
, who is also a distinguished service professor at U of C. His interests also include corporate Christianity, witchcraft, political culture, colonialism, the history of consciousness, politics, historical anthropology, law, post colonialism, modernity, and social theory.
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
and Social Sciences at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. He is also Research Professor at the American Bar Foundation.
Comaroff was born in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
in 1945 and received his BA at the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
in 1968. After college he and his wife left South Africa for the United Kingdom, where he received his Ph.D. from the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
in 1973. His field research focus is on the Tswana people of Southern Africa
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. Within the region are numerous territories, including the Republic of South Africa ; nowadays, the simpler term South Africa is generally reserved for the country in English.-UN...
. He researches and publishes independently and in collaboration with his wife, Jean Comaroff
Jean Comaroff
Jean Comaroff is Bernard E. & Ellen C. Sunny Distinguished Service Professor of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago and Honorary Professor of Anthropology at the University of Cape Town. She is an expert on the effects of colonialism on people in Southern Africa.She...
, who is also a distinguished service professor at U of C. His interests also include corporate Christianity, witchcraft, political culture, colonialism, the history of consciousness, politics, historical anthropology, law, post colonialism, modernity, and social theory.
Independent
- "Governmentality, Materiality, Legality, Modernity: On the Colonial State in Africa." In J-G Deutsch, P. Probst & H. Schmidt, eds., Perspectives on African Modernities. London: James Currey, 2002.
Collaborative with Jean Comaroff
- "Colonizing Currencies: Beasts, Banknotes and the Color of Money in South Africa." In P. Geschiere & W. van Binsbergben, eds., Commodification: Things, Agency, and Identities: The Social Life of Things Revisited. Munster, Germany: LIT, 2006.
- "The Portraits of an Ethnographer as a Young Man: The Photography of Isaac Schapera in 'Old Botswana.'" Anthropology Today. (2006) 22(1):10-17.
- Law and Disorder in the Postcolony (eds.) University of Chicago PressUniversity of Chicago PressThe University of Chicago Press is the largest university press in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including The Chicago Manual of Style, dozens of academic journals, including Critical Inquiry, and a wide array of...
, 2006. - "Figuring Crime: Quantifacts and the Production of the Un/real." Public Culture. (2006) 18(1):207-44.
- "Reflections on Youth. From the Past to the Postcolony." In A. Honwana and P. De Boek, eds., Makers and Breakers, Made and Broken: Children and Youth as Emerging Categories in Postcolonial Africa. Oxford: James Currey, 2002. Also in G. Downey and M.S. Fisher, eds., Frontiers of Capital: Ethnographic Reflections on the New Economy. Duke University Press (in press).
- "Ethnicity, Inc." (Chicago Studies in Practices of Meaning), University Of Chicago PressUniversity of Chicago PressThe University of Chicago Press is the largest university press in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including The Chicago Manual of Style, dozens of academic journals, including Critical Inquiry, and a wide array of...
(July 15, 2009)