A Different Kind of War Story

The Ethnography of Political Violence

by Carolyn Nordstrom

A Different Kind of War Story takes us to the frontlines of one of the most brutal wars in recent history. The setting is Mozambique during the fifteen-year war of terror that took a million lives—mostly civilian—and completely destroyed homes, crops, hospitals, schools, and even access to water. The characters are the soldiers who fought it, the thieves and opportunists who profited from it, and the ordinary people whose lives were shattered by it and from whose ranks emerged the heroes and healers who created peace.

Combining contemporary theory and innovative methodology, Nordstrom explores the nature and culture of terror warfare and raises thought-provoking questions about state power, civilian resistance, and the politics of identity. She compares the conflict in Mozambique with similar conflicts and offers a new way of looking at political violence, showing that just as violence is learned, it can be unlearned.

Genres: Anthropology, Nonfiction, Africa

272 pages, Paperback

First published October 14, 1997

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I found the way Nordstrom wove political theory into her ethnography to be quite artful and was fascinated by much of it, she doesn't necessarily give one the most holistic or nuanced representation of the war in Mozambique. To some extent she acknowledged this. I enjoyed her exploration of the different mechanisms Mozambicans employed to resist violence in peaceful ways and how their view of violence differed from the underpinnings of Western culture and philosophy. I would recommend pairing this with Culture in Chaos: An Anthropology of the Social Condition in War for a more well rounded look.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written personal anthropological look into Mozambique's little known and often overlooked war ravaged past.

[Evelyn Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

An anthropological study done of the front lines of a war torn country.