ETHNOGRAPHY AS A REPOSITIONING OF ETHNIC KNOWLEDGEic Knowledge

Abstract

This article evaluates the work Ma cà rồng - Ma quỷ, tưởng tượng và bản sắc, xã hội Thái (Vampires - Demons, Imagination and Identity, Tai Society) by author Nguyễn Mạnh Tiến as a valuable study in the fields of anthropology and ethnology. Through an elaborate combination of field ethnography and the deconstruction of textual sources (ranging from "dynastic ethnology" to modern literature), the author vividly reconstructs the portrait of the hybrid entity "phi phóng," thereby illuminating the worldview and complex identity of Tai society. Although the study still presents differing perspectives within the "episteme" (framework of knowledge) of the era—particularly when the author critiques the highland literary and anthropological heritage of previous generations of authors and scholars—the book remains a significant contribution to repositioning ethnic knowledge and respecting cultural diversity.