High Albania M Edith Durham 9781545551073 Books
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In High Albania, Victorian anthropologist and travel writer M (Mary) Edith Durham presents a vivid and fascinating insight into the culture, customs, people, and the lands of Northern Albania as it was in the early 20th century.
High Albania M Edith Durham 9781545551073 Books
I really liked this book, because it's interesting on different levels. First, it is a travelogue of a journey to a region that includes parts of modern-day Albania, Montenegro, and Kosovo. It was undertaken in 1908, a time when "the Near East" apparently was understood by Westerners to include Eastern Europe (or at least those parts still under the Ottomans). This region was considered to be "the Lhassa of Europe", in terms of being little-known, largely "off the map". The mere tale of the journey, as such - the remarkable characters, the surprises, dangers and hardships encountered, the twists and turns, is well-written, engagingly told, and very interesting as just "adventure travel". In addition, the ethnographic descriptions of the daily life and beliefs of the Albanian people of those days are fascinating in themselves. There is a little bit of everything, from tattooing, to dress and hair fashions, hospitality, cooking, household economy, gun culture, games, humor, and religious beliefs. I recommend an illustrated version, for the drawings and photos. Despite taking note of the ignorance and grinding poverty of their circumstances, Durham's account of the Albanians is also remarkably even-handed when comparing them to the British and western Europeans of that day. Much of the narrative concentrates on dialogues with her traveling companions about "blood relations" - both in the sense of kinship, marriage and tribe, and in the sense of honourable retribution, or "blood debt", which was a major part of the culture. There are illustrative anecdotes - some traditional, and some ostensibly from the actual experiences of her hosts and companions. Her description of their tribal, vs. an individualistic perspective on duty and responsibility is particularly interesting.On yet another level, the narrative is particular to a historical moment - it climaxes just at the time of the "Young Turks" coup, and reflects the political and social circumstances of the place and time - in the Balkans, during the prelude to the First World War. The author very much sympathized with the Albanian people. She was no friend of the Great Powers of her day, as she describes their machinations to gain and/or keep influence over the region. Her very personal account of how "everything started to go wrong" (and perhaps could not have helped but go wrong, given the systematic ignorance and mismanagement already in place) is perceptive, compelling, and tragic. It will also have an uncomfortably familiar ring to anyone familiar with American (or any other great power's) misadventures in foreign policy.
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Tags : High Albania [M. Edith Durham] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. In High Albania</i>, Victorian anthropologist and travel writer M (Mary) Edith Durham presents a vivid and fascinating insight into the culture,M. Edith Durham,High Albania,CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform,1545551073,Europe - General,HISTORY Europe General,History,HistoryWorld,History: World,Non-Fiction,PRINT ON DEMAND
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High Albania M Edith Durham 9781545551073 Books Reviews
Ms. Durham does a great job of depicting Northern Albanian culture and history, while doing it in a very engaging and captivating way.
The tribal life is passionate and unwavering. I am 1/7th Turkish and I did not know how to understand my forebears. My fear for these tribes is the inability to get along. I enjoyed the bravery of the main character. I could not go forth so bravely, God bless all and I pray lend a hand for compromised relationships,
Interesting historical look at Albania. She travels through a period where a woman would never be allowed and is usually accepted by the locals. Blood feuds do become tiresome.
Ms. Durham's writing was so vivid that I traveled with her. It is amazing that a woman from a foreign country traveling accompanied only by a single guide much of the time through such untamed areas in the early 1900s could go unmolested. It is a tribute to the fact that she was not judgmental of and was open to learning about local culture , history, and cultures that she did so. It is also a tribute to the honor and courtesy of the local tribes. It iwould have been good if the author had explained the meaning and concepts behind the occasional foreign words in the text. Sometimes they could be ascertained from the context, but not always. Otherwise a thrilling ride through untamed regions of the world.
I enjoyed reading this fascinating book and would recommend it to anyone who wants to know about Albania or travels in 1900. Ms. Durham was a Victorian lady who traveled around Albania similar to the many others I have read. What a group of remarkable women.
I know what you're thinking Albania? Really? REALLY! This 1909 book documents the travels of Edith Putnam, an Englishwoman who was told to take a vacation for health reasons. She chose Albania. The result is a fascinating (really) travelogue, reminiscent of Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad, in which Putnam ventures (often alone) through a volatile country undergoing revolution from its Ottoman overlords. The author overcomes numerous obstacles--including difficult terrain, weather extremes, lawlessness numerous clan "blood feuds" and male intolerance--to craft a fast-moving documentary. Putnam was strong-willed and self-confident and more than held her own--of which the reader benefits.
And the Victorian lady who discovered it. No other historical text or account will give you a better, more vivid and fascinating insight into the culture, customs, people, and the lands of Northern Albania as it was in the early 20th century. Hers is an unimaginable tale of a people that for all practical purposes lived in Medieval times even though this was 1908.Every Albanian or those interested in Albanian people should read "High Albania" and sit back and marvel at this grand feat. We owe her a great deal of gratitude and I, for one, will forever remember her graceful writing, her tireless efforts to give posterity a postcard of a past which would have forever remained in the dark history without the "Queen of the Highlands".
I really liked this book, because it's interesting on different levels. First, it is a travelogue of a journey to a region that includes parts of modern-day Albania, Montenegro, and Kosovo. It was undertaken in 1908, a time when "the Near East" apparently was understood by Westerners to include Eastern Europe (or at least those parts still under the Ottomans). This region was considered to be "the Lhassa of Europe", in terms of being little-known, largely "off the map". The mere tale of the journey, as such - the remarkable characters, the surprises, dangers and hardships encountered, the twists and turns, is well-written, engagingly told, and very interesting as just "adventure travel". In addition, the ethnographic descriptions of the daily life and beliefs of the Albanian people of those days are fascinating in themselves. There is a little bit of everything, from tattooing, to dress and hair fashions, hospitality, cooking, household economy, gun culture, games, humor, and religious beliefs. I recommend an illustrated version, for the drawings and photos. Despite taking note of the ignorance and grinding poverty of their circumstances, Durham's account of the Albanians is also remarkably even-handed when comparing them to the British and western Europeans of that day. Much of the narrative concentrates on dialogues with her traveling companions about "blood relations" - both in the sense of kinship, marriage and tribe, and in the sense of honourable retribution, or "blood debt", which was a major part of the culture. There are illustrative anecdotes - some traditional, and some ostensibly from the actual experiences of her hosts and companions. Her description of their tribal, vs. an individualistic perspective on duty and responsibility is particularly interesting.
On yet another level, the narrative is particular to a historical moment - it climaxes just at the time of the "Young Turks" coup, and reflects the political and social circumstances of the place and time - in the Balkans, during the prelude to the First World War. The author very much sympathized with the Albanian people. She was no friend of the Great Powers of her day, as she describes their machinations to gain and/or keep influence over the region. Her very personal account of how "everything started to go wrong" (and perhaps could not have helped but go wrong, given the systematic ignorance and mismanagement already in place) is perceptive, compelling, and tragic. It will also have an uncomfortably familiar ring to anyone familiar with American (or any other great power's) misadventures in foreign policy.
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