Nancy Scheper-Hughes

Anthropology American 1944 103 quotes

A leading medical anthropologist known for her critical work on suffering, violence, and the ethics of organ transplantation.

Quotes by Nancy Scheper-Hughes

The 'ethics of fieldwork' require constant self-reflection and accountability.

Article 1990

The 'globalized body' is both a site of connection and exploitation.

Commodifying Bodies 2003

To understand the world, we must look at it from the bottom up, not just the top down.

Death Without Weeping: The Violence of Everyday Life in Brazil 1992

The 'culture of violence' is not inherent; it is learned and perpetuated.

Death Without Weeping: The Violence of Everyday Life in Brazil 1992

Anthropology's greatest strength is its ability to make the familiar strange and the strange familiar.

Speech 1995

The 'politics of compassion' can be a double-edged sword, sometimes masking deeper inequalities.

Essay 2000

The 'body as commodity' is a chilling reality in the global economy.

Commodifying Bodies 2003

We must challenge the notion that some lives are more valuable than others.

Death Without Weeping: The Violence of Everyday Life in Brazil 1992

The 'anthropology of suffering' is not just about documenting pain, but about understanding its social roots.

Death Without Weeping: The Violence of Everyday Life in Brazil 1992

The 'humanitarian gaze' can sometimes obscure the systemic causes of suffering.

Speech 2000

The 'ethics of organ donation' are complex and demand careful consideration of power and vulnerability.

Commodifying Bodies 2003

The body is a social product, shaped by culture and power relations.

Death Without Weeping 1992

Mothers in the shantytowns of Brazil learn to numb themselves to the death of their children as a survival mechanism.

Death Without Weeping 1992

Violence is not an aberration but the underside of everyday life.

Death Without Weeping 1992

Organ trafficking reveals the ultimate commodification of the human body.

Commodifying Bodies 2000

In war and peace, violence is normalized through social structures.

Violence in War and Peace 2003

Anthropology must engage with the suffering of the marginalized.

Interview 1980

The poor are not passive victims; they resist in subtle ways.

Death Without Weeping 1992

Death is not the end but a continuation of social neglect.

Death Without Weeping 1992

Bioethics without anthropology is blind to cultural realities.

Speech 2004