Marjorie Shostak

Here, in a society of ancient traditions, men and women live together in a nonexploitative manner, displaying a striking degree of equality between the sexes--perhaps a lesson for our own society.
~Marjorie Shostak~

Marjorie Shostak

Marjorie Shostak didn’t study anthropology in college. She actually graduated from Brooklyn College with a degree in literature. But when she and her husband moved to Africa, Shostak became interested in the !Kung Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert, especially the women of the tribes. She began to study the lives of women within the culture. Her book, Nisa, the Life and Words of a !Kung Woman, is one of the most famous pieces of writing in anthropology. Part of the book is Shostak explaining a woman’s role in !Kung culture; another section is the translated true-life stories that Shostak recorded of one !Kung woman named Nisa. Shostak’s book delves into the inner depths of Nisa's life and !Kung women in general. From caring for children and gathering food, to their relationship with men, Shostak describes, in detail, every aspect of their lives. Shostak’s book enticed me to become more interested in the !Kung culture and other foraging societies across the world. Nisa broadened the spectrum of my understanding of indigenous groups. By reading about their culture, I became aware of not only how they live, but how similar our foraging ancestors lived thousands of years ago.
Biography:
Born on May 11, 1945, Marjorie Shostak was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. As mentioned before, Shostak did not earn a degree in anthropology, yet after moving to Africa in 1971, Shostak took an interest in the Kalahari women and decided to write a book about their lives. She began having interviews with many women, but she was having trouble getting down deep into their thoughts and feelings because the women were timid around her. That all ended when Shostak met a very interesting, very talkative and descriptive woman named Nisa. Shostak befriended this woman and her close conversations and observations of Nisa became the focal point for herbook. This friendship, along with her writings about Nisa, made Marjorie Shostak famous and the anthropology world praised her for her work in the Kalahari Desert. In 1993, Marjorie Shostak discovered she had breast cancer. She then decided it was time she went back to visit the !Kung tribe and Nisa. She interviewed Nisa again and wrote a second book, Return to Nisa, about how life had changed for Nisa and her tribe. Marjorie Shostak died of cancer in 1996 at the age of 51. Soon after, her book was published. 		Links To Marjorie Shostak and the !Kung:

Shostak after Death This is an article written in The Economist right after Shostak died. It is a well-written piece about her life and what her work revealed about !Kung life.

Pictures with the !Kung Here are some amazing pictures of Shostak and the !Kung people, many of which are from Shostakis book.

!Kung Culture If you would like to know more about the !Kung culture and their way of life, this website is perfect. It tells you about their traditional lifestyle and history within the Kalahari Desert.

!Kung Life and History This is another !Kung website that explains thier traditional history, family life, and the recent history and relationship with the Botswana Government.





Works by Marjorie Shostak:

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