Course Description
The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to discussions over, as well as qualitative practices for, the study of 'culture.' In its broadest sense, this course offers both philosophical reflections upon and active 'ethnographic' exploration of the production of knowledge within the academic discipline of socio-cultural anthropology. It is hoped that by the end of the semester, you will have a working knowledge of a qualitative method that focuses on intepreting dynamics of power and everyday lives in our (post)modern world, and that you will have developed basic field research and proposal-writing skills.
Over the course of the semester, we will review the historical development of anthropological fieldwork, qualitative research styles and techniques (participant-observation, interviewing, taking fieldnotes, applied anthropology, etc.) and genres of representation and writing (essays, articles, monographs, biography/autobiography, oral history, fiction, journalism, memoirs, dialogue, photography, film, CD-ROM, etc.). We will do this through readings and discussions on historical and contemporary writings concerning the production of ethnographic knowledge and evidence, as well as readings on power, gender and experience. At the same time, you will undertake several field and in-class exercises in order to learn 'hands-on' about the mechanics of fieldwork (observing, note-taking, mapping, interviewing, indexing, writing, collecting and analyzing visual materials, etc.). This will enable us to discuss the interplay between theoretical questions and the choice of fieldwork domains, ethical issues involving power and confidentiality, issues related to identity and subjectivity, the complexities of doing anthropology 'at home,' and the role of ethnography in the contemporary world. The final course product will be a proposal to undertake an ethnographic research project in Vermont, and we will spend time discussing how to write an effective research proposal, as well as how to design and implement a project based on ethnographic methods.
Some specific questions we will address include: What is ethnography? What preparation is assumed necessary to undertake ethnographic work? What role has ethnography played in creating, reinforcing and/or undermining Western concepts of 'culture' and 'difference?' What is the relationship between fieldwork and the production of theory? What impact have recent critiques of ethnography had on disciplinary conceptions of fieldwork and representation? What role do the fieldworker's social position, gender, ideological commitments, etc. have in research design and the production of knowledge? How do we represent and theorize experience? What technologies are necessary or possible to undertake qualitative fieldwork? What are the ethical implications and complications of ethnographic research, at home' and 'abroad?' How have writers experimented with ethnographic representation, and what success have they had in raising questions and insights regarding fieldwork, knowledge, etc? What are the uses and prospects for a critical ethnography of power and everyday life in our (post)modern world? How does one go about proposing to do a project based on anthropological fieldwork?
The following texts are available for purchase at the University Store:
Required Books:
1. Hammersley and Atkinson (1995) Ethnography: Principles in Practice. Routledge.
2. Clifford and Marcus, eds. (1986) Writing Culture: The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography. University of California Press.
3. Wolf (1992) A Thrice-Told Tale: Feminism, Postmodernism and Ethnographic Responsibility. Stanford University Press.
4. Behar (1993) Translated Woman: Crossing the Border with Esperanzašs Story. Beacon Press.
Recommended Book (You do not have to purchase this book; however I recommend it for those of you who would like to expand your personal libraries):
1. Sanjek, ed. (1990) Fieldnotes: The Making of Anthropology. Cornell University Press.