In the 1980s, the University of Cape Town's social anthropology
department was predominantly oriented by an 'exposé' style of critical
scholarship. The enemy was the apartheid state, the ethical imperative
was clear and a combative metaphor for doing research motivated the
department. Andrew David Spiegel, known affectionately as 'Mugsy' by his
students and colleagues, has been a central, if understated, figure of
this history and helped to frame the theoretical charge of a generation
of students looking to counter apartheid from 'inside'. In a series of
interviews between the senior professor and one of his students -
Jessica Dickson - Spiegel offers a unique perspective from the centre of
anthropology's recent history in South Africa.