10/24 - Noon - Book Signing & Reception with Dr. Conradin Perner

Dr. Conradin Perner – Book Signing & Reception
WSU Darrell W. Krueger Library
Wednesday October 24
12:00 Noon – 1:00 p.m., Conference Room

WSU Darrell W. Krueger Library invites you to celebrate the acquisition of the four volume monograph: The Anyuak – Living on Earth in The Sky by WSU Lyceum Series speaker Dr. Conradin Perner.

Dr. Conradin Perner is a Swiss scholar who has worked in the fields of literature, ethnography, diplomacy and humanitarian causes. He has been heavily involved in the peace-making process in Sudan.  His Lyceum talk is Thursday, Oct. 25 @ 7:30 p.m. in Stark 103.

The Anyuak live on both sides of the border between South Sudan and South-western Ethiopia. They are a highly intellectual, strong-minded and well-organised people who have created, in the middle of so-called wilderness, a centre of human civilisation. If their socio-political system is of a particular interest, their philosophy is equally fascinating: it centres on the human person and governs his or her relationship not only within human society but also with animals, earthly matters and spiritual forces. Thanks to their stubborn, almost desperate belief in the essential goodness of existence and the positive forces of life, the Anyuak have – in spite of all pressures from outside – up to now succeeded in preserving their cultural identity and maintaining their pride of being “pure human beings”.

The monograph on the history and culture of the Anyuak is the result of more than five years of fieldwork (1976–1983). It is a well-documented, detailed and passionate description of an African people’s spiritual and material world, their culture and history. Myths, oral traditions, stories, maps, genealogies, records of songs and music as well as a great number of photographs invite the reader to join in the journey through the universe of the Anyuak. The author writes:

“More than thirty years have passed since the time of my field work; the Anyuak universe reflected in my monograph has undergone fundamental changes – not always to the benefit of the people.  Will the Anyuak survive “modern times”, get respect for their identity and eventually enjoy their human rights?  Will they be part of any positive development?  The long-standing civil war has ended, the people of South Sudan have decided to separate from the North and take their destiny into their own hands … There is reason to hope!” 

Please join us to review the books, learn about the Anyuak and talk with the author and Lyceum guest Dr. Perner and his host Dr. Beckry Abdel-Magid.