Beekeepers' beecomings and the agency of a bee

Juliusz Galiński

doi:10.23858/EP66.2022.3061

Opublikowane: 2022-12-21

Tom 66 (2022)

Beekeepers’ Beecomings and the Agency of a Bee

Juliusz Galiński

Etnografia Polska

Dział: Artykuły

https://doi.org/10.23858/EP66.2022.3061

Abstrakt

The limits of non-human agency are still a highly disputed topic in the humanities and social sciences. This paper is a case study of the relationship between Polish beekeepers and bees, based on data collected during two and a half years of participant observation and conducting ethnographic interviews. I suggest that bees have an immense amount of agency in their contact with humans. Bees shape people in their image in the process of bee-coming, thus influencing the way they think, speak, and behave. Moreover, bees have a great deal of autonomy when it comes to the inner architecture and politics of the hive. A significant means of manifesting bees’ agency is that of stinging. Stinging is a direct message to the human, a way of signaling the bees’ needs and feelings. Surprisingly, in this relationship between insects and humans, the insect has the upper hand.

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Zasady cytowania

Galiński, J. (2022). Beekeepers’ Beecomings and the Agency of a Bee. Etnografia Polska, 66, 143–158. https://doi.org/10.23858/EP66.2022.3061

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Utwór dostępny jest na licencji Creative Commons Uznanie autorstwa 4.0 Międzynarodowe.

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