معرفی
Douglas J. Falen is a Professor of Anthropology and Director of Human Rights at Agnes Scott College. He holds a BA from Emory University and a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on Beninese society, particularly gender relations, Vodun religion, and the intersection of Christianity with traditional practices. Falen has authored influential works such as African Science: Witchcraft, Vodun, and Healing in Southern Benin and Power and Paradox: Authority, Insecurity, and Creativity in Fon Gender Relations.
His teaching spans cultural anthropology, marriage systems, and linguistic anthropology. Recent scholarship explores Beninese witchcraft, religious syncretism, and the anthropology of alterity. Falen’s fieldwork emphasizes male perspectives on female power dynamics in West Africa, contributing to debates on gender studies and cross-cultural methodologies.
He has served as guest editor for special issues on alterity in Anthropological Forum and co-edited volumes on men’s perspectives in anthropology of women. His invited essays and blogs address globalization’s impact on Vodun and the challenges of ethnographic fieldwork in Benin.
