Ethnography

Your Ethnography should reflect the observations you will be making this term based your field work. It is not a research paper. The field work must take place in a situation that has been, and remains, a part of your everyday life. It should not focus on a series of events but rather it should be organized under the themes that will emerge as you become immersed in your day-to-day field notes. Remember that while anthropological field work observes the usual routines of ordinary life, it also takes into account unusual activities. You should observe, not ask questions. Take notes on your observations.
Field work explores the daily, weekly, monthly and yearly cycles of a culture. We learn by comparing and contrasting various cultures to our own. For example, Bohannan’s article on the Tiv and Lee’s piece on the !Kung demonstrate how what is routine for one culture can teach us about that culture and our own. These articles also illustrate there is more than one way to interpret the same event.
Cultures must be explored in context. In other words, the physical environment of your culture must be explored. As you get deeper into your field work, you should define the borders of the culture you are exploring. These borders may not be easily identifiable but, even if this is the case, you can learn much for why they are not. You will look at the material culture (sights, sounds, smells, colors, buildings, language, etc.) and non-material culture (beliefs, symbols, values, language usage, etc.). All aspects of culture you will find are constantly changing and the boundaries between the two are fluid.
Internal differences within the culture you select should emerge as a part of this fieldwork. In other words, not everyone who belongs to a group shares all aspects of that culture. Finally, there are no right or wrong answers to the questions your observations will raise. The only way to get this wrong would not to do the fieldwork on a regular basis.
By systematically observing a culture you are a part of, you will learn more about that culture and yourself.
For the first part of your ethnography, you should simply take notes – no conclusions. The second phase, while still making observations, organize your notes into themes. The final phase is to write it up. Provide an introduction on setting and how you fit in. Discuss under your themes your observations. Finally a wise conclusion.
Since this paper is based on your observations, there should be no footnotes or sources – only those of your fieldnotes.

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