AC Cars and the Hyperreal Village

In chapter twelve, Shankar investigates a school which has been beautified as part of a corporate social responsibility project. Shankar tries to understand the purpose of such projects through the theoretical openings provided by the “hyperreal.” In turn, Shankar reveals the ways that fieldworkers must grapple with their own positions within projects that they recognize as ultimately of very little value to those in the communities they wish to serve.