ethnography refers to both a genre of writing (with its own conventions and styles) and to a set of research methods. In this mid-term exercise, we will deploy the two parts of this definition together: you will put in practice some ethnographic research methods (observation and interpretation) and, based on the data you collect, write a short ethnographic account of your experience.
As you observe the situation you proposed to study, try to find the cultural and social norms and meanings behind them. Ask yourself questions such as: How is the lecture different from what you are used to? Do the students act differently? Does the professor behave or talk differently? Do people talk to each other on the train or do they mostly look at their phones? Do you feel it would be rude to do something unexpected? Do you find the café you choose to be quiet or noisy, does it smell familiar, are the colors what you expected? Take notes if you feel that is appropriate.
Think of the voice you are using, the verb tenses and adjectives. Also, think about the ethical responsibility towards your representation of other people (would you like to be represented in such way?).
chose a setting that allowed for creative
ethnographic exploration and imagined possibilities
of observing the social and cultural context of the
chosen situation
effectively uses ethnographic voice to
convey what they observed and learned from their
field experiment. They use verb tenses and adjectives
to appropriately describe what they observed and
succeed in making something strange familiar, or
something familiar strange to the read
ey write from
observation of public events or from auto-
ethnography. They also represent their subjects with
appropriate respect and care for their standing