Sleeping Tiger - by Clare L Boulanger (Paperback)

About the Book

A Sleeping Tiger is a rare book-length treatment of urbanization among Dayaks and also offers a fresh perspective on ethnicity, class, and the context in which they function to the benefit of some and the great detriment of others.

Book Synopsis

A Sleeping Tiger is a rare book-length treatment of urbanization among Dayaks and also offers a fresh perspective on ethnicity, class, and the context in which they function to the benefit of some and the great detriment of others.

Review Quotes

Clare Boulanger's A Sleeping Tiger is a theoretically sophisticated but concisely written account of how the Dayaks, a large ethnic minority in east Malaysia and adjacent parts of Borneo, are struggling to adapt the ethnic language in which Malaysians have argued political issues so that Dayaks too can benefit from the system, which favors the interests of Malays. Boulanger sensitively shows how modernization not only disrupts traditional communities but the sense of self-worth, which she refers to as "dignity," imbedded in the complex personal relationships traditional life requires. The enormous simplifications entailed in being moden, "modern," require recasting of the Dayak vision of themselves. The clarity of Boulanger's language and theoretical approach would make this book useful to upper-level courses on ethnicity, "development," and Southeast Asia, as well as to area specialists.

About the Author

Clare L. Boulanger, a cultural anthropologist, carried out dissertation research in Malaysia in 1988-89 and returned to the country for the Sarawak project covered in this volume. She has published several articles on Malaysia; recently, she also edited an anthology on American culture (Reflecting on America: Anthropological Views of U.S. Culture, Allyn & Bacon, 2007). Dr. Boulanger is a Professor of Anthropology at Mesa State College in Grand Junction, Colorado, where she has taught since 1993.