The Cunning of Recognition

“[This] book should be compelling to anyone interested in the contemporary impasse of liberalism.” - Michael Warner, Artforum

"[The Cunning of Recognition] is packed with original ideas and is written by one of the most interesting thinkers in contemporary anthropology. Beth Povinelli is like a breath of fresh air in Australian Aboriginal anthropology. . . . Well read in philosophy, gender studies, cultural studies and politics, Povinelli applies contemporary theoretical discussions from a wide range of sources to ethnography in subtle and informative ways." - Andrew Lattas, Oceania

"[A] book that provides brave critique and generates thought and heat is one that deserves to be read." - Diane Austin-Broos, The Australian Journal of Anthropology

"Ambitious and bold. . . . Offers much of interest for those understanding the Australian scene and liberal practice and should be read by those interested in Australia and in liberalism more generally." - Francesca Merlan, Journal of Anthropological Research

"An impressive application of both political and cultural theory to anthropology and makes a decisive contribution to the debate on the cultural politics of multiculturalism." - Gerard Delanty, American Journal of Sociology

"Povinelli makes an important point in asserting that Indigenous Australians are often called upon to negotiate impossible contradictory demands to be particular kinds of 'authentic' Indigenous persons." - Katie Glaskin, Anthropological Forum

"Povinelli's critique of liberal multiculturalism is relentless and often ingenious." - Duncan Ivison, Australian Journal of Political Science

"There is a great deal of useful material in this book." - Melanie G. Wiber, Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology

“An intelligent, valuable, and absorbing study. Povinelli relentlessly dissects the legal and affective bases of contemporary multicultural liberalism, while bringing the Australian case squarely into an ethics debate that has up to now been dominated by the North American experience.” - James Ferguson, coeditor of Culture, Power, Place: Explorations in Critical Anthropology

“Elizabeth Povinelli’s The Cunning of Recognition is a breakthrough work that has major implications for redefining the relations between cultural studies and anthropology. With a consistently high level of intellectual excitement and commitment, Povinelli draws together work from a variety of fields in new and provocative ways.” - Benjamin Lee, author of Talking Heads: Language, Metalanguage, and the Semiotics of Subjectivity

“The Cunning of Recognition is one of the most challenging books I have read in years, a passionate and moving account of what the practice of multiculturalism looks like on the ground. Along the way, Povinelli inventively reframes debates within anthropological theory over kinship, culture, and the state. Without platitudes or readymade postures of critique, she shows us an impasse in liberal thought that stems not from its weaknesses, but from its strongest ethical sense of obligation toward those who are different. This is dialectical thinking at its best, painfully and excitingly honest.” - Michael Warner, author of The Trouble with Normal: Sex, Politics, and the Ethics of Queer Life