Avenues of participation : family, politics, and networks in urban quarters of Cairo / Diane Singerman.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [315]-330) and index.

Egypt and Popular Political Expression. The Context and Approach of the Study -- Ch. 1. The Family, Politics, and the Familial Ethos. The Public/Private Dichotomy and Political Participation. Patrimonialism, the Family, and Participation in a Middle Eastern Context. The Familial Ethos. Conclusion: An Ethos beyond the Household -- Ch. 2. Reproducing the Family. Choosing a Mate: "Shababiik, shababiik, id-dunya kullaha shababiik" Marriage Protocol, or the Rules of Engagement. Sexuality and the Transgression of Public Norms. The Cost of Marriage: An Economic Nightmare. Raising the Capital to Marry. Conclusions: Marriage, the Economy, and the State -- Ch. 3. Networks: The Political Lifeline of Community. Earning a Living. Development: Education Networks. The Bureaucracy and the State -- Ch. 4. Informality: Politics and Economics in Tandem. Informal and Formal Economic Activity in a Shabi Community. Family Enterprises. Informality Meets the State.

The Shab and Informality: Wages and Wealth. Informality: The Economic and Political Consequences for the Nation -- Ch. 5. Politics as Distribution. Private Voluntary Organizations: A Mediated Distribution Point. Elite Politics, the State, and the Shab.

Intentionally excluded from formal politics in authoritarian states by reigning elites, do the common people have concrete ways of achieving community objectives? Contrary to conventional wisdom, this book demonstrates that they do. Focusing on the political life of the shab (or popular classes) in Cairo, Diane Singerman shows how men and women develop creative and effective strategies to accomplish shared goals, despite the dominant forces ranged against them.

Starting at the household level in one densely populated neighborhood of Cairo, Singerman examines communal patterns of allocation, distribution, and decisionmaking. Combining the institutional focus of political science with the sensitivities of anthropology she uncovers a system of informal networks that constitutes another layer of collective institutions within Egypt and allows excluded groups to pursue their interests.