Why is criticism acceptable in obituaries?
Even when eulogizing the death of a celebrated anthropologist, the writer of an obituary cannot wholly ignore criticism of this figure. Perhaps the tolerance of critique in this otherwise tributary context is a result of the fact that the readers are all presumably familiar already with the work, or perhaps it is because revision and criticism are so essential to the work and life of an anthropologist. Or, most likely, criticism is acceptable precisely because these are already such respected, established and well-known scholars. The obituary of Timothy Asch in Anthropology Today (February 1995), for instance, is recent and is a remembrance of a figure who, while a leading ethnographic filmmaker, is not especially prominent in the field. In this case, the obituary is not a place to critique his films or to allude to evaluations of his work by other anthropologists. Rather, it is a place to reveal the many professional accomplishments that define his life and to illuminate the life that
