European University Institute Library

Jim Scott on resistance, Podcast, Jim Scott

eng

libretto or text

not applicable

not applicable

lectures speeches

Jim Scott on resistance

electronic resource

1351504724

Jim Scott

SAGE research methodsSocial Science Bites

Podcast

Resistance does not need to be a grand statement or organised action against the oppressor. It can be a small, daily action by the average citizen, who may, in fact, not even recognise that they are resisting anything at all. In this Social Science Bites podcast, Jim Scott explores the many kinds of resistance, which can range from 'forms of resistance that announce themselves publicly' to 'forms that are more subtle and unobtrusive in order to protect the people who are protesting from massive retaliation'.Scott reflects on his research in the late 1970s, where he spent 18 months living in a Malaysian village, learned Malay language and came to understand the local Kedah dialect to observe the relations between the rich and poor people in the village. At this time, the introduction of the combine harvester had left many people unemployed and many tenants homeless. In response, the community did not organize any public protests, as this would have been dangerous, but there were instances of sabotage and the killing of livestock.To conduct the research, Scott explains, 'I tried to be a fly on the wall and occasionally asked what I thought to be questions that would be enlightening if they were answered.' Furthermore, he notes that it is important that he was able to enter the community without any expectation or predetermined views about what he should expect, which allowed for the acts of resistance to be more greatly discovered.He found that the responses he received often depended on the community to whom he was speaking: one set of answers from the poor community, one from the rich community and another when the communities were mixed. This is something he refers to as the 'hidden transcript', or what poor people say when rich people are not listening. The concept can also be applied to figures of authority; for example, a student may not give the same response or opinion when their professor is present as they would when they are in a group consisting only of fellow students.--, Provided by publisher

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