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The Modernity Bluff: Crime, Consumption, and Citizenship in Côte d’Ivoire
In Côte d’Ivoire, appearing modern is so important for success that many young men deplete their already meager resources to project an illusion of wealth in a fantastic display of Western imitation, spending far more than they can afford on brand name clothing, accessories, technology, and a robust nightlife. Such imitation, however, is not primarily meant to deceive—rather, as Sasha Newell argues in The Modernity Bluff , it is an explicit performance so valued in Côte d’Ivoire it has become a matter of national pride.
Called bluffeurs , these young urban men operate in a system of cultural economy where reputation is essential for financial success. That reputation is measured by familiarity with and access to the fashionable and expensive, which leads to a paradoxical state of affairs in which the wasting of wealth is essential to its accumulation. Using the consumption of Western goods to express their cultural mastery over Western taste, Newell argues, bluffeurs engage a global hierarchy that is profoundly modern, one that values performance over authenticity—highlighting the counterfeit nature of modernity itself.
Called bluffeurs , these young urban men operate in a system of cultural economy where reputation is essential for financial success. That reputation is measured by familiarity with and access to the fashionable and expensive, which leads to a paradoxical state of affairs in which the wasting of wealth is essential to its accumulation. Using the consumption of Western goods to express their cultural mastery over Western taste, Newell argues, bluffeurs engage a global hierarchy that is profoundly modern, one that values performance over authenticity—highlighting the counterfeit nature of modernity itself.
296 pages, Paperback
First published May 14, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
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December 12, 2021Read for ANT 272
April 14, 2020
Pros: The topic and setting are original, the research is interesting, the message is clear, it shows the reader unexpected links between different contextual phenomena and parts of Ivorian culture.
Cons: It lacks in good writing and many things are repeated a lot throughout the book. Also it generalizes a little too much and too often.
If you want to have a look at Ivorian culture and its political, historical and global context, it's a great book, but it's not really fun or easy to read. Plus you have to keep in mind that it doesn't provide a broad look at cote d'ivoir, it's very focused on Abidjan and specific parts of the culture there.
Cons: It lacks in good writing and many things are repeated a lot throughout the book. Also it generalizes a little too much and too often.
If you want to have a look at Ivorian culture and its political, historical and global context, it's a great book, but it's not really fun or easy to read. Plus you have to keep in mind that it doesn't provide a broad look at cote d'ivoir, it's very focused on Abidjan and specific parts of the culture there.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 18, 2014
This was disappointing. It's one of the only (perhaps the only?) English language book in recent years about Ivorian culture, and I just didn't find the author very credible.
Most problematic for me was his tendency to sensationalize and exoticize Ivorian culture. Banal and common acts of adolescent rebellion are described as if they were somehow special to the Abidjan culture. From his conversations with some disaffected Abidjanais youth who form part of loose gangs, for instance, he draws the conclusion that Ivorian youth feel themselves to be above most common jobs, a conclusion rendered ridiculous by the millions of Ivorian youth working in such jobs throughout Abidjan. Yet, in my experience, youth everywhere rebel against the chains of ordinary adult life, although most of them ultimately accept their fate as unexceptional cogs in the universe. Likewise, the author explains the conflicting glamour of elite French culture and Nouchi (gangster) culture as if these dueling ideals are somehow a conundrum unique to Ivorian youth. But American youth from all demographics are torn between these same types of contrasting archetypes.
Maquis, the outdoor restaurants here, are described as a uniquely Ivorian phenomenon in which prostitution flourishes and flamboyant displays of artificial wealth abound. I don't doubt that these phenomena exist at some maquis, but I've experienced most maquis as simple outdoor restaurants that serve traditional Ivorian food. At one point, in an attempt to show how integral maquis are to Ivorian life, the author asks an Ivorian what would happen if the government tried to shut down all of the maquis in Abidjan, and the incredulous respondent says that it could never happen, and that the people would never allow it. But it's a ridiculous question, akin to asking what would happen if the politicians tried to shut down every cafe in the U.S.
I don't claim to be any more of an expert on Ivorian culture than the author; his experience was his experience. But I disliked reading this exoticization of Ivorian culture; it felt sensationalist and dishonest. Ultimately, these descriptions killed the credibility of the book for me and I had to put it down about halfway through.
Most problematic for me was his tendency to sensationalize and exoticize Ivorian culture. Banal and common acts of adolescent rebellion are described as if they were somehow special to the Abidjan culture. From his conversations with some disaffected Abidjanais youth who form part of loose gangs, for instance, he draws the conclusion that Ivorian youth feel themselves to be above most common jobs, a conclusion rendered ridiculous by the millions of Ivorian youth working in such jobs throughout Abidjan. Yet, in my experience, youth everywhere rebel against the chains of ordinary adult life, although most of them ultimately accept their fate as unexceptional cogs in the universe. Likewise, the author explains the conflicting glamour of elite French culture and Nouchi (gangster) culture as if these dueling ideals are somehow a conundrum unique to Ivorian youth. But American youth from all demographics are torn between these same types of contrasting archetypes.
Maquis, the outdoor restaurants here, are described as a uniquely Ivorian phenomenon in which prostitution flourishes and flamboyant displays of artificial wealth abound. I don't doubt that these phenomena exist at some maquis, but I've experienced most maquis as simple outdoor restaurants that serve traditional Ivorian food. At one point, in an attempt to show how integral maquis are to Ivorian life, the author asks an Ivorian what would happen if the government tried to shut down all of the maquis in Abidjan, and the incredulous respondent says that it could never happen, and that the people would never allow it. But it's a ridiculous question, akin to asking what would happen if the politicians tried to shut down every cafe in the U.S.
I don't claim to be any more of an expert on Ivorian culture than the author; his experience was his experience. But I disliked reading this exoticization of Ivorian culture; it felt sensationalist and dishonest. Ultimately, these descriptions killed the credibility of the book for me and I had to put it down about halfway through.
July 15, 2024
Non-local White anthropologist thinks he is the best person to pontificate about the authenticity of a modern urban subculture in the Ivory Coast. More at 7.
Okay, not to be flippant, the author does have some interesting & nuanced views about modernity, authenticity, & (post?)colonialism, but I just can't help but feel he isn't the person to be passing this judgement even if the judgement is somewhat evenhanded.
Also terrible academic writing made to be as impenetrable & viscous as humanly possible, some of the worst I've ever encountered. Why do we teach people to write this way? Oddly the sections talking about actual things that happened during his ethnographic work are well written & illustrated his points clearly, but then we'd dive back into the swamps of the dreaded theory. YIKES! Sections of this were so murky I completely skipped them as they are about as informative, except to a special priestly class well versed in the jargon known as poatmodern social science professors, as reading a phone book written in some ancient forgotten language. Such is the "performance" of the intellectual class in AmeriKKKa, I suppose.
Okay, not to be flippant, the author does have some interesting & nuanced views about modernity, authenticity, & (post?)colonialism, but I just can't help but feel he isn't the person to be passing this judgement even if the judgement is somewhat evenhanded.
Also terrible academic writing made to be as impenetrable & viscous as humanly possible, some of the worst I've ever encountered. Why do we teach people to write this way? Oddly the sections talking about actual things that happened during his ethnographic work are well written & illustrated his points clearly, but then we'd dive back into the swamps of the dreaded theory. YIKES! Sections of this were so murky I completely skipped them as they are about as informative, except to a special priestly class well versed in the jargon known as poatmodern social science professors, as reading a phone book written in some ancient forgotten language. Such is the "performance" of the intellectual class in AmeriKKKa, I suppose.
October 18, 2013
This book utilizes postmodernism within its analysis of the colonial, White supremacist racist, patriarchal, and capitalist consequences of European expansion without taking into consideration that the supposed social phenomena of "bluffing" is a consequence of French colonialism & the history of the Ivory Coast showcases that it is one of the many African nations that went through intense French assimilation and aspires to be more like European nations. This is basically a book investigating a consequence of colonialism and White supremacy but due to the postmodernist component of post colonial critique is incapable of conducting analysis without leaving White Supremacy clear and not to blame. You can tell the book is racist when within the first 6 pages into the book the author uses the racist term "voodoo" & not the respectful and correct term vodou.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews