Ethnography Book Analysis

Critical Book Analysis of "HIV Exceptionalism: Development through Disease in Sierra Leone" by Adia Benton Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Critical Book Analysis of "HIV Exceptionalism: Development through Disease in Sierra Leone" by Adia Benton HIV/AIDS remains one of the most challenging health conditions in the world because it still has no cure. To manage HIV/AIDS, countries must invest a lot of resources to cater to public education, research, and various forms of management medication. To some developing countries, executing every necessary move in managing HIV/AIDS is a challenge. As such, they rely on support from developed countries to manage the condition of the infected and also to mitigate its spread. To a large extent, the approaches accorded HIV/AIDS management in developing countries come with various challenges as shown in Adia Benton’s book "HIV Exceptionalism: Development through Disease in Sierra Leone". Benton fosters her study in Sierra Leone in which she perceives HIV exceptionalism as a challenge that demands an insightful intervention. In this analysis, emphasis is put on exploring Benton’s work through the lenses of the author’s purpose, findings, and relationship with class readings. The analysis also delves into how the book outlines HIV /AIDS as a health issue in Sierra Leone. Benton’s ethnographic research offers new insight as it explores how the global HIV/AIDS response has shaped and been shaped by local dynamics, particularly within the context of post-conflict Sierra Leone. Overview and the Author’s Purpose Benton showcases two purposes in the book. Primarily, she focuses on critiquing the dominance of HIV exceptionalism in the context of global health interventions with a specific emphasis on Sierra Leone. Exceptionalism, as per the author, is the single focus on HIV at the expense of other illnesses. With such a focus, HIV overshadows other illnesses and triggers resource diversion to the detriment of the progress made in addressing other illnesses. As per Benton’s understanding, Sierra Leone faces other illnesses that should attract equal, if not more, attention from the government and the international community. The second purpose of the author is to exploit the complex tangle between illnesses such as HIV with various socio-political prospects in Sierra Leone. The author employs the second purpose to outline various dynamics surrounding the individuals living with HIV. Specifically, she emphasizes aspects such as disclosure, expectations, and stigma that they face due to an emphasis on exceptionalism in Sierra Leone. To achieve the above purposes, Benton highlighted various prospects linked to HIV exceptionalism in Sierra Leone and their implication for global management of the illness. The book is set in the period following Sierra Leone’s brutal civil war that occurred between 1991 and 2002. The war depleted the country thereby leading it into a serious need for international aid to reconstruct it. One prospect to note is that Sierra Leone, at the time, had a low HIV prevalence compared to other African countries. However, the government showcased itself as one of the most burdened nations due to HIV prevalence. Consequently, Sierra Leone became one of the leading beneficiaries of HIV/AIDS resources channeled for interventions in Africa. According to the author, exceptionalism led to the creation of the “HIV Industry” in Sierra Leone. The industry consists of various international programs dedicated to HIV/AIDS, healthcare workers, and Non-Governmenta...