Sleight of Hand: The Expropriation of Balinese Culture

Abstract

In a prior paper (Suartika, Zerby, & Cuthbert, 2018), cultural space and its social meaning were examined in detail. While the three main gateways into culture were analyzed, the actual processes through which culture is abstracted by capital were not discussed. Below we seek to advance on our initial model. Hence the dominant processes by which culture is both politicized and commodified by capital are explored using political economy as a reference point. Historically, appropriation and exploitation have dominated the development process universally. But while they remain functional, they have lost much of their relevance. We maintain that expropriation is now on the ascendant, a process we call sleight of hand due to the closeted nature of expropriation processes. Since all three principles are frequently used in isolation or conflated to each other in error, the paper first clarifies terminology before exploring their relevance for Bali. We then outline the nature of resultant conflicts, with examples from nature, economy and ideology using the littoral zone as exemplary of tourism impacts. In conclusion, we suggest that processes of expropriation establish a baseline for understanding how culture is used to further political and economic agendas in Bali.

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