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Night life in southern urban M ali: being a M uslim maquisard in Bougouni
Author(s) -
Chappatte André
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of the royal anthropological institute
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.62
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1467-9655
pISSN - 1359-0987
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9655.12121
Subject(s) - power (physics) , ethnography , sociology , conformity , morality , gender studies , geography , ethnology , political science , law , anthropology , physics , quantum mechanics
Alcohol has been part of local culture in southwest M ali since precolonial times. In the last century, when I slam spread into the region, it became a ‘haram’ (forbidden) substance; therefore its consumption moved to the margins of society. Based on an ethnography of night life in discreet bars called ‘maquis’ where power, wealth, and alcohol become juxtaposed during the night in the small town of Bougouni, this article explores how M uslims handle their participation in forbidden activities from within a local M uslim community. Analysing the social significance of the darkness of the night in relation to a public I slam based on sight, it illustrates how forbidden activities are handled through strategies of diurnal conformity and nocturnal discretion in urban M ali. Exploring the fact that a M uslim can at the same time be known as a respectable member of the local community and a suspected drinker during the night, this analysis aims to demonstrate that the interplay between display and secrecy is an important component of morality in urban M ali, while the wealth and power of mͻgͻbaw (big men) often work as veils that cover their forbidden activities. Besides studying the ways M uslims strive to be pious, this article finally stresses the need to explore also the field of haram as an integral part of a M uslim life so as to develop a humanly wider and more complete understanding of I slam's relationship to contemporary M uslim societies.