Conclusion

This chapter recapitulates the main argument and points at directions for reintroducing emotions into anthropological writing. Through the parable of the “Wild Boy” that medicine endeavoured, in vain, to civilise, this conclusion restates that science builds on dreams, fantasies, myths, and the frustrations they result in. Furthermore, violent and erotic tensions condition knowledge about others.Anthropology can therefore move away from the guilt that paralyses it. It can gain impetus from the passions that make us human. It can turn guilt and abjection into creative erotic writing. It can escape politically correct legitimisations. It can describe everything, borrowing from the narrative techniques of masterly writing in world literature.It can do all that, and it probably should.