David Nugent is Professor of Anthropology at Emory University. His previous books include Locating Capital in Time and Space (SUP, 2002) and Modernity at the Edge of Empire (SUP, 1997).

"Nugent's deep and discerning dive in the archives has—and not for the first time—surfaced striking new conceptual treasures for the analysis of state-making. The Encrypted State enlarges and enriches our understanding of how 'flailing' states disguise their disorder with the pretense of routine and, behind the scenes, paranoia. A superb and lasting contribution."—James C. Scott, author of Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed "This brilliant, inspired book reshapes the debate about 'the state' in a number of disciplines, challenging virtually all the prevailing orthodoxies about states in their relation to societies. Nugent's theoretical insights are hard-won, arising organically from deep immersion in empirical, archival research."—Akhil Gupta, UCLA "When states 'state' they often do so not as well-oiled rational bureaucratic machines but rather in hysterical, delusional, and paranoid ways. Based on fascinating archival sources, Nugent's study of a state ruled by fear sheds new light on the regional history of Chachapoyas and the political history of modern Peru. Above all, it makes a deeply original contribution to the literature on state formation."—Paulo Drinot, University College London

• Introduction: The Routine and the Remarkable in State Formation1. Sacropolitics2. The Descent into Madness3. The Consolidation of Casta Rule4. Being (and Seeing) Like a State5. Divided Elite and Disordered State6. The Sacropolitics of Military Conscription7. The Sacropolitics of Labor Conscription8. Glimpses of Danger and SubversionConclusion: Behind the Mask of the State

David Nugent is Professor of Anthropology at Emory University. His previous books include Locating Capital in Time and Space (SUP, 2002) and Modernity at the Edge of Empire (SUP, 1997).

"Nugent's deep and discerning dive in the archives has—and not for the first time—surfaced striking new conceptual treasures for the analysis of state-making. The Encrypted State enlarges and enriches our understanding of how 'flailing' states disguise their disorder with the pretense of routine and, behind the scenes, paranoia. A superb and lasting contribution."—James C. Scott, author of Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed "This brilliant, inspired book reshapes the debate about 'the state' in a number of disciplines, challenging virtually all the prevailing orthodoxies about states in their relation to societies. Nugent's theoretical insights are hard-won, arising organically from deep immersion in empirical, archival research."—Akhil Gupta, UCLA "When states 'state' they often do so not as well-oiled rational bureaucratic machines but rather in hysterical, delusional, and paranoid ways. Based on fascinating archival sources, Nugent's study of a state ruled by fear sheds new light on the regional history of Chachapoyas and the political history of modern Peru. Above all, it makes a deeply original contribution to the literature on state formation."—Paulo Drinot, University College London

• Introduction: The Routine and the Remarkable in State Formation1. Sacropolitics2. The Descent into Madness3. The Consolidation of Casta Rule4. Being (and Seeing) Like a State5. Divided Elite and Disordered State6. The Sacropolitics of Military Conscription7. The Sacropolitics of Labor Conscription8. Glimpses of Danger and SubversionConclusion: Behind the Mask of the State

David Nugent is Professor of Anthropology at Emory University. His previous books include Locating Capital in Time and Space (SUP, 2002) and Modernity at the Edge of Empire (SUP, 1997).

"Nugent's deep and discerning dive in the archives has—and not for the first time—surfaced striking new conceptual treasures for the analysis of state-making. The Encrypted State enlarges and enriches our understanding of how 'flailing' states disguise their disorder with the pretense of routine and, behind the scenes, paranoia. A superb and lasting contribution."—James C. Scott, author of Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed "This brilliant, inspired book reshapes the debate about 'the state' in a number of disciplines, challenging virtually all the prevailing orthodoxies about states in their relation to societies. Nugent's theoretical insights are hard-won, arising organically from deep immersion in empirical, archival research."—Akhil Gupta, UCLA "When states 'state' they often do so not as well-oiled rational bureaucratic machines but rather in hysterical, delusional, and paranoid ways. Based on fascinating archival sources, Nugent's study of a state ruled by fear sheds new light on the regional history of Chachapoyas and the political history of modern Peru. Above all, it makes a deeply original contribution to the literature on state formation."—Paulo Drinot, University College London

• Introduction: The Routine and the Remarkable in State Formation1. Sacropolitics2. The Descent into Madness3. The Consolidation of Casta Rule4. Being (and Seeing) Like a State5. Divided Elite and Disordered State6. The Sacropolitics of Military Conscription7. The Sacropolitics of Labor Conscription8. Glimpses of Danger and SubversionConclusion: Behind the Mask of the State