This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Wellbeing in Buganda: The Pursuit of a Good Life in Two Ugandan Villages Stephen McConnachie PhD in Social Anthropology The University of Edinburgh 2016 Declaration This is to certify that the work contained within has been composed by me and is entirely my own work. No part of this thesis has been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification. Signed: iii iv For Dad v vi ABSTRACT In this thesis, I offer a complex exploration of positive motivation and life evaluation in two adjacent villages in the Buganda kingdom of Central Uganda. Focusing primarily on the lives of five individuals, I examine the tensions and inconsistencies that arise in the day-to-day pursuit of a good life in these villages and argue that, while individual lives may differ, people everywhere face similar concerns in their desire to live well. Through these individuals, but drawing also on wider ethnographic insights, I explore five core themes, with a trajectory broadly moving from more material to more transcendental concerns. These are: making a living, aspiration, gratification deferral, the source of good things, and the importance of connectedness. Running through the thesis is the assertion that wellbeing is a relational and moral project as people’s efforts to live well are inextricably intertwined. A key underlying question is ‘How can we live well in a socially acceptable way?’ This research contributes to the fledgling field of the anthropology of happiness and wellbeing as well as regional scholarship on, for example, development, livelihoods, aspirations, and ‘modernity’. In addition, it speaks to interdisciplinary wellbeing research and I argue that the nuance and contextualisation offered by anthropological and ethnographic study can both augment and challenge the primarily quantitative research from other disciplines. Furthermore, I make a particular claim for the value of biographical approaches to the study of wellbeing. vii viii CONTENTS List of figures ........................................................................................................... xiii List of tables ............................................................................................................. xiii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... xv Glossary .................................................................................................................... xix Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1 Beginnings ............................................................................................................... 2 Happiness literature ................................................................................................. 4 Why anthropology? ............................................................................................ 4 Happiness in anthropology ................................................................................. 8 Regional literature ............................................................................................ 16 A note on terms ..................................................................................................... 19 The field ................................................................................................................ 20 Demographics and the make-up of the villages ................................................ 24 A note on language ........................................................................................... 26 Economy ........................................................................................................... 27 Buganda ............................................................................................................ 28 Researching wellbeing .......................................................................................... 29 The particular .................................................................................................... 31 Biography and narrative ................................................................................... 32 Researching wellbeing in Buganda .................................................................. 34 Research assistance ........................................................................................... 36 Structure of the thesis ............................................................................................ 37 Dramatis personae ................................................................................................... 39 Chapter 1 - Embeera Ennungi (A Good Situation) ............................................... 41 Why embeera ennungi? ......................................................................................... 41 What is embeera ennungi? .................................................................................... 43 Money and wealth............................................................................................. 44 People ............................................................................................................... 46 The wider meaning of embeera ennungi ............................................................... 47 Enablement ....................................................................................................... 47 Relativity........................................................................................................... 49 Embeera and other goods ...................................................................................... 50 ix Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 51 Chapter 2 - Making a Living ................................................................................... 53 Madina ................................................................................................................... 54 Okubeerawo (Being there) .................................................................................... 57 Livelihoods strategies ............................................................................................ 58 Farming ............................................................................................................. 59 Money-making .................................................................................................. 60 Factors influencing subsistence ............................................................................. 62 The weather ....................................................................................................... 63 Health ................................................................................................................ 63 Markets ............................................................................................................. 65 Land issues ........................................................................................................ 66 Other people ...................................................................................................... 69 Jealousy ................................................................................................................. 70 Uncertainty and worry ........................................................................................... 71 Work ...................................................................................................................... 73 Work and leisure ............................................................................................... 75 The social nature of livelihoods ............................................................................ 77 Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 79 Chapter 3 - Aspirations ............................................................................................ 81 Why aspiration? ..................................................................................................... 82 Shaban ................................................................................................................... 83 Shaban’s aspirations .............................................................................................. 87 The shaping of aspirations ..................................................................................... 89 The importance of a house and land ................................................................. 90 The importance of children ..............................................................................