The name is absent

while revealing the nature of modern Kenya. In both cases, the models provide a
snapshot of the object and dynamic structures surrounding it that provide a
method for communicating structures and relationships that would have been
missed or difficult to explain. In all object methodologies, the visual
representation is important in revealing the complexity of dynamic objects like
oathing. The approach allows much more flexibility in representing, presenting,
and understanding processes that are changing.

Method OfApproach: Fieldwork

Although my early research questions about rituals were asked in 2003,
this research formally began in late 2008 and ended in the spring of 2009. My
fieldwork consists primarily of interviews and survey questionnaires. Through the
help of several research assistants and my husband’s Kenyan family members,
nearly thirty interviews were formally conducted and twenty-four detailed surveys
were completed that spanned the district and areas of Nairobi, Machakos, Kitui,
Makueni, and Kangundo. Most of the Mau Mau participant interviews followed a
similar format that allowed me to compare responses. The objective of the
interviews was to understand an individual’s personal history, meaning,
testimony, and memories associated with the Mau Mau movement and oathing.
In addition, I collected special interviews that involved ritual specialists who
shared their personal perspectives on their use of rituals as a source and form of
power that proved very useful in understanding the inner meaning and working of
their belief system.

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