Fuary, Maureen (2001) Book review of "Secret Places: my life in New York and New Guinea" by Tobias Schneebaum, Madison and London: The University of Wisconsin Press. Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology, 2 (2). pp. 169-171.

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Abstract

[Extract] Schneebaum's autobiography, focusing on his personal and professional life in New York and with the Asmat of West Papua, is a very disappointing and frustrating book. Not the least of the problems, is the misleading advertising which accompanies the book, citing anthropology and ethnology as a key focus, along with gay male identity. What Schneebaum is doing, or was doing among the Asmat in no way resembles anthropology. Indeed, he is not an anthropologist. He is an artist, and most of his time in West Papua was spent cataloguing an artefact collection, acquiring Asmat artefacts, and lecturing to tourists. In fact, this book is a rambling narrative, in need of a strong editorial hand, about the author's gay Jewish identity, Asmat and European art, and Asmat men, who Schneebaum renders 'savage', erotic and exotic.

Item ID:	18942
Item Type:	Article (Book Review)
ISSN:	1740-9314
Date Deposited:	04 Jun 2012 07:14
FoR Codes:	16 STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY > 1699 Other Studies in Human Society > 169905 Studies of Pacific Peoples Societies @ 20% 17 PSYCHOLOGY AND COGNITIVE SCIENCES > 1701 Psychology > 170199 Psychology not elsewhere classified @ 20% 20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2002 Cultural Studies > 200205 Culture, Gender, Sexuality @ 60%
SEO Codes:	97 EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE > 970119 Expanding Knowledge through Studies of the Creative Arts and Writing @ 100%
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