This article investigates the methods of historical fieldwork—and
the problems, contradictions, and dilemmas inherent in it. It addresses
questions of ethical research, the process of information-gathering,
the relationship between the actual fieldwork experience and the
interpretation and evaluation of research findings, how the researcher
writes and represents her collaborators' words, and the power dynamics
involved in the research process. In addition, this article evaluates
personhood and the intersection between the political, intellectual, and
cultural nexus of being an insider/outsider researcher. It critically
explores the implications of identity creation and negotiation for a
more complex understanding of African women's and gendered histories.
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