Graphic evidence to illuminate exactly how families are reorganizing themselves in order to maintain kin-based care in this context. I show how a novel way of negotiating for the care of orphans has emerged that no longer privileges patrilocality. While other regional studies have also noted a move away from ideals of patrilineality in fostering patterns (Adato et al. 2005; Howard et al. 2006; Oleke, Blystad Rekdal 2005), this article looks at how deeply embedded patrilineal ideals persist despite practices that seemingly subvert them. Among get Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide (human, rat, mouse, rabbit, canine, porcine) Basotho families, there has been a gradual shift towards increasing care by maternal relatives, the majority of whom are grandmothers. Paradoxically, the process of negotiation and justification that occurs when families are deciding on the locality of care for orphans highlights the continued adherence to the principles of patrilineal descent, while in practice, care has emerged as the strongest motivation for new patterns of social organization. Kinship continues to be intrinsic to the very notion of care; as a result, few orphans are cared for outside of the family. Increasingly, it is the willingness to care, or what Borneman calls ‘processes of voluntary affiliation’ (1997: 574), as demonstrated by everyday acts of caring, that have become most important in influencing patterns of child circulation. This, in turn, impacts the very nature of relationships BAY 11-7083 site between kin (Klaits 2010). At the family level, there has been considerable flexibility in caregiving patterns. At the structural level, there has been an increase in matrilocal care that remains to be understood as part of a patrilineal system of fostering. The gap that exists between Basotho’s kinship ideology and their caring practices can be explained, in part, by the differentiation Bourdieu makes between ‘official’ and ‘practical’ kin. Whereas ‘official kin’ is the representation of kinship for the public sphere by the group as a whole, ‘practical kin’ is ‘directed towards the satisfaction of the practical interests of an individual or group of individuals’ (Bourdieu 1977: 35). People actively forge relationships based on their practical needs, in spite of the tenets of ‘official kin’ doctrine. While Basotho may frame their negotiations as structured by an inflexible set of rules, in reality they are working within a series of competing ideologies, or, as Comaroff puts it, a ‘repertoire of potential manipulations’ (1978: 4). Far from being a simple dichotomy between stated norms and practices, relatedness is processual in nature, allowing caregivers to navigate an array of seemingly conflicting possibilities structured by patrilineal ideals, which are inevitably constrained by the political-economic and social context of which they are a part. Caregivers work within these constraints, often emphasizing idealized rigidity rather than flexibility, in order to make the desired forms ofAuthor Manuscript Author Manuscript Author Manuscript Author Manuscript3Lesotho has a 23.6 per cent HIV-prevalence rate, the second highest globally (UNAIDS 2012). J R Anthropol Inst. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2015 April 08.BlockPagerelatedness appear more or less novel, traditional, or incompatible, depending on their intended outcomes. This article will explore how and why a decline in customary patrilineal practices has not been matched by their lessened importance. As many of the following case studies show, bridewealth payment is particularly p.Graphic evidence to illuminate exactly how families are reorganizing themselves in order to maintain kin-based care in this context. I show how a novel way of negotiating for the care of orphans has emerged that no longer privileges patrilocality. While other regional studies have also noted a move away from ideals of patrilineality in fostering patterns (Adato et al. 2005; Howard et al. 2006; Oleke, Blystad Rekdal 2005), this article looks at how deeply embedded patrilineal ideals persist despite practices that seemingly subvert them. Among Basotho families, there has been a gradual shift towards increasing care by maternal relatives, the majority of whom are grandmothers. Paradoxically, the process of negotiation and justification that occurs when families are deciding on the locality of care for orphans highlights the continued adherence to the principles of patrilineal descent, while in practice, care has emerged as the strongest motivation for new patterns of social organization. Kinship continues to be intrinsic to the very notion of care; as a result, few orphans are cared for outside of the family. Increasingly, it is the willingness to care, or what Borneman calls ‘processes of voluntary affiliation’ (1997: 574), as demonstrated by everyday acts of caring, that have become most important in influencing patterns of child circulation. This, in turn, impacts the very nature of relationships between kin (Klaits 2010). At the family level, there has been considerable flexibility in caregiving patterns. At the structural level, there has been an increase in matrilocal care that remains to be understood as part of a patrilineal system of fostering. The gap that exists between Basotho’s kinship ideology and their caring practices can be explained, in part, by the differentiation Bourdieu makes between ‘official’ and ‘practical’ kin. Whereas ‘official kin’ is the representation of kinship for the public sphere by the group as a whole, ‘practical kin’ is ‘directed towards the satisfaction of the practical interests of an individual or group of individuals’ (Bourdieu 1977: 35). People actively forge relationships based on their practical needs, in spite of the tenets of ‘official kin’ doctrine. While Basotho may frame their negotiations as structured by an inflexible set of rules, in reality they are working within a series of competing ideologies, or, as Comaroff puts it, a ‘repertoire of potential manipulations’ (1978: 4). Far from being a simple dichotomy between stated norms and practices, relatedness is processual in nature, allowing caregivers to navigate an array of seemingly conflicting possibilities structured by patrilineal ideals, which are inevitably constrained by the political-economic and social context of which they are a part. Caregivers work within these constraints, often emphasizing idealized rigidity rather than flexibility, in order to make the desired forms ofAuthor Manuscript Author Manuscript Author Manuscript Author Manuscript3Lesotho has a 23.6 per cent HIV-prevalence rate, the second highest globally (UNAIDS 2012). J R Anthropol Inst. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2015 April 08.BlockPagerelatedness appear more or less novel, traditional, or incompatible, depending on their intended outcomes. This article will explore how and why a decline in customary patrilineal practices has not been matched by their lessened importance. As many of the following case studies show, bridewealth payment is particularly p.
