Abstract
This is a tour of a construction project: the assembly of a 250- meter chain link fence in Penjem, Gambia, by me, a young American woman, along with seven inexperienced U.S. volunteers and four Gambian men. It’s also a tour of the construction of a trans-continental story. In this project I examine not only what happened at the fence but also how the travel experience transformed, and why this evolution matters in an American woman’s project of culture shock and reflection. The result, Asaba, Pull!, explores the power as well as the limits of a story as translation and representation of a person and culture, and how those inherent fences help to map out the volcanic processes of travel, leaving and returning.
Recommended Citation
Svenson, Rachel
(2011)
"Asaba, Pull! A Construction from an African Fence,"
Proceedings of GREAT Day: Vol. 2010, Article 8.
Available at:
https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/proceedings-of-great-day/vol2010/iss1/8