godfrey lienhardt - Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology

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GODFREY LIENHARDT (1921-1993)
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JASO
VOL. XXVIII 1997 No. 1
SPECIAL ISSUE IN MEMORY OF GODFREY LIENHARDT
Edited by Ahmed AI-Shahi and Jeremy Coote
CONTENTS
JEREMY COOTE
Preface ...................................... 1-3
AHMED AL-SHAHI
Introduction 4-6
AHMED AL-SHAHI
Ronald Godfrey Lienhardt, 1921-1993: Biographical Notes
and Bibliography ............................... 7-24
GODFREY LIENHARDT
Seven Talks
Dinkas of the Sudan 27-32
Plato and the Vailala Madness ..................... . 33-39
'High Gods' among some Nilotic Peoples ............. . 40-49
Simpler Societies in an Industrialized World 50-55
C. G. Seligman and Ethnology in the Sudan 56-62
Two Great British Social Anthropologists: Sir James Frazer
and Sir Edward Evans-Pritchard .................... . 63-82
Anthropology and the View from Afar 83-89
In Memory of Godfrey Lienhardt:
Appreciations and Memoirs, Poems and Songs
AHMED AL-SHAHI
A Year in Baghdad ............................. . 93-96
STEPHEN MADUT BAAK
Yenakan .................................... . 96-97
iv Contents
Appreciations and Memoirs, Poems and Songs (continued)
GERD BAUMANN
Presence Perfected: Talking to Godfrey Lienhardt . . . . . . . . . 97-101
PAUL BAXTER
Babes, Bras, and Budgies 101-104
JOHN W. BURTON
An Encounter with Godfrey Lienhardt ................ . 104-106
JEREMY COOTE
Statler, Waldorf, and I ........................... . 107-109
FRANCIS M. DENG
Debt to Godfrey Lienhardt ........................ . 109-118
ZACHARIAH BOL DENG
Thienydeng 119
EVA GILLIES
Looking Back . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
JACK GOODY
Godfrey ..................................... . 120-121
WENDY JAMES
A Glass of Madeira ............................. . 121-123
DOUGLAS H. JOHNSON
Godfrey and the Rediscovery of Second-Hand Knowledge 123-124
BONAMALWAL
In Memory of a Tribal Friend 124-127
F. C. T. MOORE
How Anthropologists Think . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127-128
RUTH PADEL
Cymbals for Strauss 129-130
PHILIP LYON ROUSSEL
Master of the Fishing Spear? 130-131
Contents v
Appreciations and Memoirs, Poems and Songs (continued)
JOHN RYLE
A Sociable Anthropologist ........................ . 131-133
NYUOL M. BOL, mIlK A. GIlR-THIIK, and DUANG AJING AROP
Tene Thienydeng: In Memory of Godfrey Lienhardt
Translations by Bona Malwal ...................... . 133-136
Contributors to this Issue ..................... . inside back cover
Copyright © JASO 1998. All rights reserved.
ISSN UK 0044-8370
Typeset in Times Roman at
Oxford University Computing Service
Printed in Great Britain by
Antony Rowe Ltd., Chippenham, Wiltshire
Frontispiece: The photograph of Godfrey Lienhardt at the front of this issue is the official
photograph taken when he took up the post of Vicegerent at Wolfson College, Oxford, a post
he held from 1973 to 1975. Today it hangs outside the College's general office, alongside those
of the College's other former Vicegerents. It is reproduced here by kind permission of Wolfson
College.
JASO 28/1 (1997): 1-3
PREFACE
THE editors of JASO, on whose behalf as well as my own I now write, are pleased
to publish this Special Issue of the Journal in memory of Godfrey Lienhardt. In
doing so, we think back to Lienhardt's retirement in 1988, which was marked by
the publication of two volumes. A Special Issue of this Journal on 'Names and
their Uses' (guest-edited by J. H. W. Penney) was published with contributions
from a number of colleagues, friends, and st~dents who had participated in a series
of informal colloquia that Lienhardt had organized on the topic of Names (see
JASO, Vol. XIX, no. 2 (1988». Former students and others inspired by his work
also contributed to the publication of a volume in JASO's Occasional Paper series:
Vernacular Christianity: Essays in the Social Anthropology of Religion Presented
to Godfrey Lienhardt, a Festschrift volume edited by Wendy James and Douglas
H. Johnson (JASO Occasional Papers No. 7; Oxford: JASO, 1988).
Taken together, the three volumes-the two earlier ones and this present one
emphasize Lienhardt's close involvement and support for the Journal from its
earliest days until his death in 1993. He chose it as the vehicle for the publication
of a number of his essays, most notably for his Frazer Lecture for 1991, which
appeared in these pages shortly before his death (Vol. XXIV, no. 1 (1992), pp.
1-12). More than this, however, he provided moral support through encouraging
a diverse range of students and scholars to contribute to the Journal. Through this
he helped to make JASO better known, not only within Oxford but also in wider
anthropological circles in Britain and abroad, and thus contributed to the inter
national reputation of the Journal. In 1981 or thereabouts Meyer Fortes remarked
to me how disappointing it was that Lienhardt was publishing so little, and that
what he was publishing was appearing in JASO, rather than in Africa or Man.
Lienhardt, I think, saw publishing in JASO as achieving two aims. He was con
tributing to the discipline that was so important to him (and to which, pace Fortes,
he continued to contribute up until the time of his death), and he was supporting
2 Jeremy Coote
an important institution for anthropology at Oxford. Lienhardt had no ambition for
himself, but he was ambitious for his students and saw the Journal as providing
valuable experience for those who worked on it and as an excellent vehicle in
which young anthropologists could publish for the first time.
This support for Oxford anthropology also applied to JASO's 'sister' institu
tion, the Oxford University Anthropological Society. Lienhardtjoined the Society
soon after his arrival in Oxford in 1948 and remained a member for the rest of his
life. Typically, though he was technically already a Life Member and had no need
to pay any subscription in later life, he insisted on paying an annual subscription,
as well as supporting the activities of the Society in other ways. He also addressed
the Society on at least three occasions. He spoke at the 472nd meeting (held on
Wednesday 24 May 1950) on 'Some Nilotic Religious Beliefs'. Serving as the
Society's President for the year 1956-57, he gave his presidential address at the
548th meeting (held on Wednesday 4 December 1957) on 'The Beliefs and Cus
toms Surrounding the Situation of Death among the Anuak'. Finally, he addressed
the 557th meeting (held on 18th February 1959) with a 'Comment on Anthropo
logy and Literature', presumably a revised version of the talk given at the Institute
of Contemporary Arts in London in 1955 that was later published in JASO (Vol.
N, no. 2 (1973), pp. 59-67).
Lienhardt also served as'President more recently, for the 1981-82 and 1982-83
academic years. With hindsight this period appears to have been one of the most
successful in the Society's history. Meetings were held regularly every other week
during term and attracted substantial audiences from the Oxford anthropological
community and from the multidisciplinary collegiate community of Wolfs on, where
the meetings were held. These meetings contributed to the prominence of anthro
pology at Wolfson, Oxford's largest postgraduate college. Of course, Lienhardt's
presence-and that of other fellows and students attracted to the college-had
already given anthropology a presence at Wolfson, but the activities of the Society
confirmed the intellectual and social contribution that anthropologists could make
to the life of the college. Anthropology's presence at Wolfson-and Lienhardt's
contribution to it-is now marked by the establishment of the Godfrey Lienhardt
Memorial Fund. This was set up with funds bequeathed by Lienhardt himself and
contributions from his colleagues, friends, and students. The Fund exists 'for the
promotion of social and cultural anthropology in the continent of Africa south of
the Sahara Desert, but excluding the Republic of South Africa'. The first awards
have already been made and the Fund remains open for further contributions. An
announcement about the fund appears below (page 137). The fund will continue
to remind us of Lienhardt's support for anthropology at Oxford.
This brief Preface has touched on a limited aspect of Lienhardt's immense
contribution to anthropology. Other aspects of his life and work-at Oxford, in
the Sudan, and elsewhere-are dealt with in Ahmed AI-Shahi' s biographical notes
and in the memoirs and appreciations, contributed by former colleagues, students,
and friends, that appear below. We hope that this Special Issue, taken as a whole,
Preface 3
constitutes a fair reflection of a remarkable and much-loved personality, whose
passing we continue to mourn.
In preparing this Special Issue for publication, Ahmed AI-Shahi and I have
received assistance from a number of people. For general assistance we are grate
ful to Tania Kaiser. For helping to resolve particular queries, we are grateful to the
following: Peter Allmond of the Bodleian Library, University of Oxford; Jonathan
Benthall of the Royal Anthropological Institute; Mr John Davis of the BBC's
Written Archives Centre; Dennis Duerden; Professor John Haffenden; Dr M. A.
Jamieson of the Department of Anthropology, London School of Economics; Miss
B. J. Kirkpatrick of the Royal Anthropological Institute; Ms Therese Nolan of
Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc.; Professor W. S. F. Pickering; and Ms Jan Scriven
of Wolfson College, Oxford. We are also grateful to Mike Morris of the Tylor
Library at Oxford's Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology and to the staff
of the Bodleian Library for their expert, unfailing assistance.
Finally, the Editors of JASO are grateful to Wolfson College and to the Insti
tute of Social and Cultural Anthropology for their generous support of this
extended Special Issue.
JEREMY COOTE
JASO 2811 (1997): 4-6
INTRODUCTION
THiS Special Issue of JAso hi memory of dodftey Liennardt contaIns seven
previously unpubHsHed talks by him; a hibI'iogtapny of his work with biographical
notesj fifteen apptec:iatidns ana memoirs, by some of his friends, and former stu
dents'i as well as {wb' poems arid three soti'gs.
As Godfiey Lf~l!f1rat&fs llifetary' execut6t~, I bave had the task of sorting his
pap~ts an'& cretidl'ng ¥row 15e'sf i@ make tbe- malerial acce'ssiibte to' a wldet reader
ship. 'the. nest task W'a'S to' com'PNe' a {l,ibIrography <;j,f ll1s pu'bli'shed work, which
is, I' hope', c01'liple'te. Along, wi~i¥ fh~s~, 1 li'ave put tog'ether notes on hils acadentic
careei: 'Ffiese do; not amOunt t6~ <1' biography as such, out win perhaps be: helpful
tei sfutl~nt!s: interesrecli iifr ~is WOl!t.
net'
seven: papers prf151ished here ate by no nH~ans all tno'se that were left
unputMlshed' at the' time of. hils c.Ieatb., They are, rather, those th'at fits! C'ame to
li'gnt, arrd wnrehi required tne lea:s( edi~(}'ri'al work. they are published bere in
chiot1t:>logtc'al' ord'et: thee first I1'aving been wtiften' fa 1957, the last in 1989.
Though se'l1ected rather atbitrari'ly, fl1ey db tepre&sent Lienhardt's range of interests.
the' domi;nant themes ate the NIlbtes of th:e Southern Sudan and; ill' pmicular, the
i>inlb~~ comparative reHgion; and tl\~ Ms-tory of' anthropology, in particular the role
of individuals in it.
As anyone familiar with his publ'ished w'mk will have te'alised, uenhardt never
published anything until. it met his own 6xadlTl'g standards. this dften meant that
a paper would go through a numher of typescripts before he considered it ready.
To give an example, among his pape-rs there' are two typescripts of the es,say on
Sit James Frazer and Sir Edward Evatls-Pritchatd published here; on eac'11 cJf whicl1
there are deletions and additions. None of the papers puhHshttd here had been
provided with footnotes and references. They were, of cOUrse, wotking papers ilnd
had Lienhardt prepared them for publicatiofi, he would no doubt have prcJvidgd tne
necessary scholarly apparatus. Jeteiliy COdte and I have d(jfi~ oUr best t<1 pltrvide
Introduction 5
this, though there remain a few gaps where Lienhardt left insufficient clues to
enable a reference to be tracked down.
Three of the papers published here are transcripts of radio talks. Lienhardt
gave seven talks on BBC radio in the 19508 and 1960s, of which three were
published contemporaneously (see the biographical notes and bibliography below
for details). Of those published here, the first, 'Dinkas of the Sudan', is particular
ly interesting as it takes the form of a dialogue, scripted by Lienhardt; between
himself and a Dinka. The Dinka both reacts and responds to what the anthropo
logist has to say about his people and enriches and sharpens the anthropologist's
observations and perceptions. These three talks, like all the p~pers published here,
should be understood as contributions to contemporary anthropological debates.
The talks in particular are, in a sense, historical documents in their own right.
Aimed at non-anthropological audiences, they deal accessibly with complex issues.
'Dinkas of the Sudan' was prepared for one of the BBC's schools broadcasts and
aims to provide an accessible word-picture of another way of life.
About half of the appreciations and memoirs published below are revised
versions of addresses given at the gathering to remember him which was held at
his Oxford college, Wolfson, on Saturday 7 May 1994. This was, in fact, a won
derful occasion-quite different in character, naturally, from the funeral six months
before. As Lienhardt had requested that no memorial service should be held for
him, this spring Saturday afternoon was to be a Celebratiop. In his address at
Lienhardt's Requiem Mass (see JASO, Vol. XXIV, no. 2 (1993), pp. 101-3), Peter
Riviere had remarked how 'Godfrey is no longer with us in person, but I know
that whenever a company of his friends meet, his name will be on their lips'.
Many of us have found that to be very true, and no more so than at this Celebra
tion, when all the people one had met over the years at his regular table in the pub
were gathered in one place. In all, some two hundred friends and colleagues
gathered to celebrate Lienhardt's life. After the addresses, a group of British-based
Dinka danced and sang three songs--one traditional, two specially composed for
the occasion by Nyuol M. Bol, Thiik A. Giir-Thiik, and Duang Ajing Arop. The
performance provided a rousing end to the more formal part of the afternoon. In
the evening a dinner was held, and Lienhardt's friends stayed on to reminisce.
Jeremy Coote and I are grateful to Stephen Madut Baak, Paul Baxter, Zachariah
Bol Deng, Wendy James, Philip Lyon Roussel, and John Ryle for agreeing to the
publication of their addresses here. We are also grateful to Nyuol M. Bol, Thiik
A. Giir-Thiik, and Duang Ajing Arop for agreeing to the publication here of the
specially composed songs, and to Bona Malwal for providing the English transla
tions. My own address also appears here, in revised form.
While space in this publication is limited, it has been possible to include here
a few other memoirs, as well as two poems dedicated to Lienhardt. The memoirs
by Gerd Baumann, John W. Burton, Jeremy Coote, Francis M. Deng, Douglas H.
Johnson, Bona Malwal, and F. C. T. Moore were written especially for publication
here. We are also delighted to be able to include here the piece by Jack Goody,
which was written two days after Lienhardt's death but remained hidden among
6 Ahmed Al-Shahi
his papers until three years later when he sent a copy to Peter Riviere. It is fitting
that Lienhardt's great love of poetry is reflected in the publication here of two
poems. Ruth Padel's 'Cymbals for Strauss' is dedicated to him and was first
published in 1975. Eva Gillies' 'Looking Back' reflects on Lienhardt's death and
is published here for the first time.
It has been possible to include material from only a few of the many people
among his wide circle of friends around the world who may have liked to contrib
ute. We trust that Lienhardt's other friends will understand our predicament and
not feel left out. We have no doubt they will find much to value in the affection
ate appreciations published here. They may also like to know about the brief, but
excellent, pen portrait of Lienhardt by Keith Ovenden that appears in his biography
of Dan Davin (see pages 265-6 of A Fighting Withdrawal: The Life of Dan
Davin-Writer, Soldier, Publisher, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996).
The addresses, memoirs, and poems are published together below in alphabet
ical order by author. It seemed fitting, however, to end this publication with the
Dinka songs, which drew to a close the formal part of the Celebration four years
ago. The final words of the third and final song are a prayer for peace in Sudan
so that a shrine can be erected to Thienydeng (Lienhardt's Dinka name) among the
shrines of the Dinka ancestors.
Godfrey Lienhardt, and his brother Peter (who died in 1986), were central
personalities of an extraordinary era in the history of Oxford's Institute of Social
Anthropology, in particular, and of the University of Oxford in generaL The affec
tion in which Godfrey's memory is held is greater than any single volume could
adequately represent. This modest volume and the efforts that went into preparing
it are, however, offered in his memory. He is missed and will be remembered,
always.
AHMED AL-SHAHI