Malinda Rhone

My name is Malinda Rhone and I am a first year graduate student in the Social/Cultural Anthropology PhD program. My path to anthropology was a fast one. As an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, I enrolled in an introductory course in anthropology and have been fascinated by the subject ever since. In 2001, I graduated from the University of Virginia and received my B.A in Anthropology with the intent of pursuing a graduate degree in anthropology. So here I am in 2003 in pursuit of a Ph.D.

My research interests are varied. My senior thesis "The Vanishing Indian in the Story of Virginia" explored the representation of Native Americans in a museum exhibit. This allowed me to explore my interests in the politics of representation and the conflicts and challenges that are involved in these types of endeavors. It enabled me to begin to examine the intersection between history, culture and power (a topic I am still interested in). In the broadest terms, I am interested in race and identity and how concepts of race and ethnicity shape our interaction, society and culture(s). I am interested in questions surrounding the past and present politics of race and identity in America. I hope to explore the role that a historical conception of race plays in how cultures define themselves, how and where they locate their sense of identity in the past and how they may seek to define themselves in the future.