Living by the gun in Chad. Armed violence as a practical occupation - Archive ouverte HAL Access content directly
Journal Articles Journal of Modern African Studies Year : 2011

Living by the gun in Chad. Armed violence as a practical occupation

Marielle Debos
  • Function : Author
  • PersonId : 1219694

Abstract

This article explores men in arms' conceptions of armed violence in a country which has been prone to a violent cycle of rebellion and repression. Based on ethnographic research in Chad, it analyses combatants' life trajectories in an unstable political environment and a militarised economy. It moves beyond rebellion towards an analysis of the most mundane patterns of the activities conducted by men in arms, to understand what is at stake beyond times and spaces of war. It argues that armed violence is an ordinary way of expressing contestation, as well as a practical occupation or métier, a French word that indicates a non-institutionalised profession.

Keywords

Not file

Dates and versions

halshs-00826907 , version 1 (28-05-2013)

Identifiers

  • HAL Id : halshs-00826907 , version 1

Cite

Marielle Debos. Living by the gun in Chad. Armed violence as a practical occupation. Journal of Modern African Studies, 2011, 49 (3), pp.409-428. ⟨halshs-00826907⟩
91 View
0 Download

Share

Gmail Facebook Twitter LinkedIn More