Voorheesville Public Library

QUESTIONS

Why is Mischa Berlinski (the narrator, not the author) at first intrigued and later obsessed with the story of Martiya van der Leun’s crime and her fate?
Because he can’t interview Martiya, Berlinski learns about the various stages of her life and work by talking to people who knew her. Do they give him reliable and truthful information?
The Thailand of the novel is not a traveler’s paradise. How is it depicted?
One of the themes of the novel is the intersection of cultures: in the book European and American anthropologists study societies in Asia and Africa and write about them. Are they reliable transmitters of information about the people they study?
What happens when you put people and their cultures “under the magnifying glass”?
What is the “fieldwork” to which the title refers?
What role do rumors, gossip, innuendo and hearsay play in the story?
Why does Martiya have a hard time adjusting to life in Dan Loi? How does she eventually adapt? What does she learn about the Dyalo?
What does Berlinski learn about Karen’s and Martiya’s life as graduate students? Who were their models and heroes?
Joseph Atkinson tells Mischa that “The field did to Martiya what the field always does: it scoured her and revealed the person underneath the encrusted layers of culture and ingrained habit and prejudice” (p. 57). What does Martiya learn about herself?
Karen says her idea about fieldwork was that it would be “a liberation, a way to shed the scaly skin of self” (p. 184). Did her own experience prove this to be true?
What is Berlinski’s opinion of anthropological work?
What kind of missionaries are the Walkers? How are they received in the countries in which they work? Are they accepted by the local people? What message do they use to try and bring the Dyalo to Christianity?
How is David’s time spent in the U.S. as a nomad similar to the fieldwork done by anthropologists?
Does Martiya disapprove of the missionaries’ work in Dan Loi, or does she feel threatened by them?
What does Berlinski think about the missionaries?
Why does Mischa and Rachel’s relationship fall apart?
What light does the novel shed on the notion of “foreignness”?

Questions compiled by Suzanne Fisher (fishers@uhls.lib.ny.us)


	Fieldwork by Mischa Berlinski
	QUESTIONS Why is Mischa Berlinski (the narrator, not the author) at first intrigued and later obsessed with the story of Martiya van der Leun’s crime and her fate? Because he can’t interview Martiya, Berlinski learns about the various stages of her life and work by talking to people who knew her. Do they give him reliable and truthful information? The Thailand of the novel is not a traveler’s paradise. How is it depicted? One of the themes of the novel is the intersection of cultures: in the book European and American anthropologists study societies in Asia and Africa and write about them. Are they reliable transmitters of information about the people they study? What happens when you put people and their cultures “under the magnifying glass”? What is the “fieldwork” to which the title refers? What role do rumors, gossip, innuendo and hearsay play in the story? Why does Martiya have a hard time adjusting to life in Dan Loi? How does she eventually adapt? What does she learn about the Dyalo? What does Berlinski learn about Karen’s and Martiya’s life as graduate students? Who were their models and heroes? Joseph Atkinson tells Mischa that “The field did to Martiya what the field always does: it scoured her and revealed the person underneath the encrusted layers of culture and ingrained habit and prejudice” (p. 57). What does Martiya learn about herself? Karen says her idea about fieldwork was that it would be “a liberation, a way to shed the scaly skin of self” (p. 184). Did her own experience prove this to be true? What is Berlinski’s opinion of anthropological work? What kind of missionaries are the Walkers? How are they received in the countries in which they work? Are they accepted by the local people? What message do they use to try and bring the Dyalo to Christianity? How is David’s time spent in the U.S. as a nomad similar to the fieldwork done by anthropologists? Does Martiya disapprove of the missionaries’ work in Dan Loi, or does she feel threatened by them? What does Berlinski think about the missionaries? Why does Mischa and Rachel’s relationship fall apart? What light does the novel shed on the notion of “foreignness”? Questions compiled by Suzanne Fisher (fishers@uhls.lib.ny.us)