Universally Comprehensible, Arrogantly Local
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Universally Comprehensible, Arrogantly Local . Universally Comprehensible, Arrogantly Local South African Labour Studies from the Apartheid Era into the New Millennium Wiebke Keim éditions des archives contemporaines Copyright of the first edition : Transcript Verlag, Bielefeld (Germany) Copyright © 2015 Éditions des archives contemporaines Tous droits de traduction, de reproduction et d’adaptation réservés pour tous pays. Toute reproduction ou représentation intégrale ou partielle, par quelque procédé que ce soit (électronique, mécanique, photocopie, enregistrement, quelque système de stockage et de récupération d’information) des pages publiées dans le présent ouvrage faite sans autorisation écrite de l’éditeur, est interdite. Éditions des archives contemporaines 41, rue Barrault 75013 Paris (France) www.archivescontemporaines.com ISBN 9782813001825 9 782813 001825 Acknowledgements This book is a revised version of the German publication “Vermessene Disziplin. Zum konterhegemonialen Potential afrikanischer und lateinamerikanischer Soziolo- gien” (Bielefeld, transcript 2008). The translation of this work was funded by Geis- teswissenschaften International – Translation Funding for Humanities and Social Sci- ences from Germany, a joint initiative of Fritz Thyssen Foundation, the German Federal Foreign Office, the collective society VG Wort, and the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (German Publishers & Booksellers Association). I am ex- tremely grateful for the prize money for the translation, and am delighted to now finally be able to present the full version of my results to my colleagues in South Africa, who made such a significant contribution to this volume’s successful comple- tion. The German book is based on the revised version of my PhD thesis, “Vermessene Diszi- plin – nordatlantische Dominanz und konterhegemoniale Strömungen in der Entwick- lung afrikanischer und lateinamerikanischer Soziologien” (University of Freiburg/Paris IV-Sorbonne, 2006). Although writing a PhD is for the most part a solitary endeav- our, a work such as the present one needed the support and collaboration of many other individuals, who were directly involved to a greater or lesser degree and to whom I am thus deeply indebted. Special thanks are due to my supervisors: Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Eßbach, who was will- ing to take on a project that initially seemed somewhat risky, thought me capable of carrying it out, and for four years provided me with advice that was always insightful, supportive and reassuring. Prof. Dr. Jean-Michel Berthelot (†), my teacher in Paris, who sadly was unable to see the completion of this project, which he inspired in a conversation following the completion of my Maîtrise. I hope I have been able to live up as much as possible to his standards of rigorous argumentation and explanation, which he was such a master of himself. Most of the text was prepared in the antici- pation that it would be subjected to his critical gaze. My thanks also go to Dr. Terry Shinn, who unreservedly agreed to supervise me and my project following Berthelot’s death. Only thanks to him was I able to keep my supervision franco-german until the end. Furthermore, my gratitude is due to Prof. Ari Sitas, who immediately realised my project’s relevance to the sociologies of the South and the ongoing debates there. His comments on the still somewhat precarious project proposal encouraged me to carry it out. He kindled my interest in the sociology of work and industrial sociology ii Acknowledgements in South Africa, welcomed me at his department and established the first contacts to other institutions there. Furthermore, two conversations during the project’s initial stage with Dr. Roland Waast at the “Institut de Recherche pour le Développement” in Paris were a great help in problematising its theoretical framework. This is where my idea of counterhegemoniality in science first emerged. PD Dr. Axel Paul leapt in at very short notice to complete the panel for the PhD viva, which was held in French. Now to all those individuals who supported me in carrying out the case study in South Africa: many, many thanks! A great number of people were willing to share their knowledge, experiences and opinions in long conversations, and this book would not have been possible without these extensive interviews. My thanks go to Sthembiso Bhengu, Andries Bezuidenhout, Debby Bonnin, Belinda Bozzoli, Sakhela Buhlungu, David Cooper, Shane Godfrey, Jay Govender, Jonathan Grossman, Judith Head, Hlengiwe Hlela, Karl von Holdt, David Jarvis, Ken Jubber, Dave Kaplan, Ian Macun, Neva Makgetla, Tessa Marcus, Simon Mapadimeng, Gerhard Maré, Johann Maree, Bethuel Maserumule, Tanya van Meelis, Mvusi Mgeyane (†), Sarah Mosoetsa, Rajen Naidoo, Blade Nzimande, Lungisile Ntsebeza, Devan Pillay, Andiziwe Zenande Tingo and Eddie Webster. With his great organisational talent, Jay Govender had already sorted out all local practical issues before I even arrived. He provided a place for me to work in the IOLS-Research office, and our many conversations and activities gave me a closer understanding of the realities of his country and his university. Khayaat Fakier and Shameen Singh, the SWOP secretaries, made their infrastructure available and helped me to navigate the administration of their university. Sheetal Dullabh and her mother provided both creature comforts and emotional balance. The creativity and energy of the students of the Wits Drama School, particularly Michael Matsie, brightened up the final stage of my stay in South Africa. Lenin Matthias Riedel proofread the entire German version of the present work. The work involved in qualitative social research across different languages – transcrib- ing, translating and editing – was assisted by Aurélie Clément Tainsa, Sheetal Dul- labh, Bastian Hermisson, Silén Ingendahl, Moritz Keim, Michael Matsie and Manuel Quinon as well as my dear friend Anna Schnitzer. Pratiyan Morgenthaler reliably solved all computer-related issues. Annette Ehinger, working in the examination office of the Joint Committee of Freiburg University, was able to provide competent and reliable solutions to all of the specific problems arising from the joint supervision. Thanks also go to Martine Brient, An- nie Devinant, Regina Klingenberg and Doris Seitz, the departmental secretaries in Freiburg and Paris, who cheerfully dealt with administrative issues. Margaret Hiley provided the English translation in a quality that merits great thanks. I am also indebted to Anja Löbert of textworks translations for her professional man- agement of the translation project. Stefanie Hanneken at transcript has been ex- tremely supportive in finding a suitable publisher for the English version of this book and in managing the legal aspects of the task. Lastly, a final proofreading of the book was carried out by Jean-Yves Bart thanks to support from the Excellence Initiative of Acknowledgements iii the University of Strasbourg, funded by the French government’s Future Investments program. My family and friends were a great support. Thanks go to: My father, Eris Johannes Keim (†), without whose moral support and intellectual encouragement this work could not have been produced. Over the entire period, he provided advice on the con- tent, corrections to the text and suggestions on how to organise the work, contributing to the project’s success; he was also involved in creating the first printed version. My grandfather, Werner Mittrücker (†), who has been a role model for my own life in his indestructible confidence and optimism. This work is dedicated to both of them. My partner of many years, Ergün Bulut, who patiently tolerated my absences, some- times mental and sometimes physical. He was prepared to put his personal interests aside for my academic ones, and always supported me in both emotional and prac- tical matters. My mother, Renate Mittrücker, and my brother, Moritz Keim, who always provided me with places and moments of peace and recovery far away from sociology, and whose pragmatism was able to alleviate both intellectual and organi- sational problems. My flatmates: Henry Anthonipillai, Almila Akça, Erhan Gencer (†), Ezgi and Helma Haselberger, Anika Meckesheimer, Helmut Meinel and Angelika Schiesser, who created an environment in which even the most impossible of projects would be able to flourish. Claude Vérynaud, who supported me during my visits to Paris and was willing to sort out administrative issues that I was unable to deal with from afar. During the most intensive phase of analysis and writing, Lascoux was a veritable heaven on earth. There I was also looked after by Jacques and Madeleine Vérynaud and Marie-Hélène Ausanneau, for which I am hugely grateful. Finally, several organisations provided financial backing for this project. Besides the above-mentioned support for the translation, these were: the German Academic Exchange Service, the Landesgraduiertenförderung Baden-Württemberg, the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, the Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft der Universität Freiburg and the Franco-German University. They provided the material foundations on which social-scientific research depends. My gratitude goes to all of them. The revision of the manuscript for the English translation took part during the time I was leading the project “Universalität und Akzeptanzpotential von Gesellschaftswissen” at the University of Freiburg, which was supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). I also thank the BMBF for its support of my academic work. Wiebke Keim Istanbul,