Essay about Postmodernism, Deconstructionism, and the Ethnographic Text

As proposed by Carbaugh and Hastings, in this process, an ethnographer is required to develop detailed theories about cultures based on his/her research and compare them to existing theories to find similar patterns. To simplify the process, it is divided into three steps: prefieldwork, fieldwork, and posfieldwork. In prefieldwork, an ethnographer is generally tasked to read three correlated readings. The first task allows communication anthropologists to shift their focus and consider communication as a concept of “sociocultural life,” and to comprehend ethnographic theories. The second set of readings enable an ethnographer to familiarize oneself with analytical and logical problems, which, in ethnographic studies, involve issues of facework, narratives, terms for talk, relational dialectics, norms and rules, address terms etc. The final set of readings gives an investigator the opportunity to learn about patterned communicative practices that already exist in his/her research field, as well as shared beliefs of their possible fieldwork candidates. Moreover, these are the initial steps that ethnographers generally take as these steps help them prepare to conduct research, learn about the subject and participants in advance, and finally, generate interests in particular fields which influence

Ethnographic research is the scientific description of specific human cultures, foreign to the ethnographer. Each ethnographer has his or her own way of conducting research and all of these different ideas can be transmitted and understood in a number of different ways. Because there is no one set idea of how an ethnographer should go about his or her research, conflicts arise. In Reflections on Fieldwork in Morocco, Paul Rabinow uses a story like process to discuss his experiences during his research in Morocco. This makes it easier for the reader to understand his ideas then just having a technical book about the many different aspects of Moroccan life that he may have discovered. In Writing Culture: the Poetics and Politics of

The methodology used in both the research and the writing deviates from a typical ethnographic structure

As we begin to go on an excursion through literature, it is important to understand the concept of what an ethnography is. Ethnography is known to be a descriptive type of work that analyzes culture and customs of individual people. James Clifford has implemented this work into his studies and has influenced many others to do the same. I saw through the books I have read, ethnography makes these books become vivacious for a reader.

Also, throughout this ethnographic piece it is evident that there is some divide in the way men and women are treated. This relates to Mascia-Lee’s piece on Gender and Anthropology as it examines the borders that (usually, women) are faced with throughout the field of anthropology. On page 20 of this article, it discusses the implications that borders and limitations impose on the levels of sexual stratification throughout the anthropology world. (Masica- Lee, 2000)

For clarity, we can look at postmodernism as a theory of society, culture and history and postculturalism as a theory of knowledge and language (Agger, 1991, p.

In sociological theory there are many concepts discussed that are utilized in the analyses of society and culture. Some of the main concepts are Postmodernism, Historical Materialism, Structuralism, Interpretive Sociology and Poststructuralism to name a few. These theories are relevant to the research of understanding certain or specific cultural texts. These concepts provide problems and solutions associated with some of the research approaches fore-mentioned. Analysing the main dimensions will be covered by discussing the appropriate concepts separately and by individually contrasting the classical and modern theories with Quentin

…..is a postmodern text as it emphasises the form rather than the content. It demonstrates a belief that language does not simply mirror the world, but aids us in reconstruction. Postmodernism is sceptical about the universal truth as well as the language that claims to be authoritative and objective. The stylistic technique of a metafiction and intertextuality and reinforce readers that they are not reading a universal truth of perspective or experience, but a variety of texts

While others claim that photography captures the inner soul of a person, or deliberately defines it as painting or writing with light, but in my case, it is just simply a newfound love hobby. I undeniably adore and look up to expert photographers I encounter down the road may it face-to-face or the other way around. In my heart, I silently desire that someday, with hard work, determination, and perseverance, I will become professional and famous as they are. Since my husband bought a Digital Single-Lens Reflex (DSLR) as an anniversary gift, my penchant for photography commenced and ignited. Let me detail the essential truths behind my passion over photography.

This paper seeks to compare and contrast the writing styles of four different ethnographic resources in order to determine the most effective ways of communicating qualitative research findings for my own research paper. I have determined that a captivating and clear style of writing will be most effective in presenting my own research findings on how participants give meaning to farmers markets as a physical space, facilitating social interaction. I will draw on the following four ethnographies: Skinner’s “The ‘PB’ and the Aestheticization of Violence in Northern Ireland” (2008), Titchkosky’s “’To Pee or Not to Pee?’ Ordinary Talk About Extraordinary Exclusions in a University Environment” (2008), Woodward’s “Hanging Out and Hanging About: Insider/Outsider Research in the Sport of Boxing” (2008) and Zaman’s “Native Among the Natives: Physician Anthropologist Doing Hospital Ethnography at Home” (2008) to reveal effective writing styles. In some of these writings, what may seem like weaknesses could in actuality be conscious decisions to focus on what are more important aspects of their paper, which provides me with lessons for my own research paper.

The role of the reflexive ethnographer has been constantly defined and redefined since the beginning of the study of anthropology. The use of reflexivity has and will always be questioned in anthropology. Malinowski, who was a pioneer in the field of anthropology, discouraged the use of reflexivity; he, instead, believed that anthropology was scientific and could produce “concrete evidence” (Malinowski 17).

When the ethnographic observation is conducted through covert observation, the data collected must allow the inadvertent participants to remain anonymous by creating fake names and avoiding faces when taking pictures. This will protect the results of the current study as well as my reputation for future studies.

Postmodernism is a universal movement, present in every art and discipline. In architecture, postmodernism is precise as well as ambiguous thereby in need of an explorative pursuit for a consensus of what is meant by the movement in this perspective - between the works of Charles Jencks, a primary theorist of this architectural turn; Heinrich Klotz, a leading architectural critic; and William Curtis, an architectural historian. The progression of this paper is highly influenced with Jencks’ studies as his works are often times referenced as well by both Klotz and Curtis in their individual interpretations and further accompanied with either supporting statements or contradictions.

activist-minded anthropology as witnessing to be very compelling. (Just as compelling, although not as well-examined, was the later slippage of calling research ‘policing’.) As she highlighted, listening will carried different meanings - and therefore result in different actions - for both. For the former it entails processing the data through a lens of supposed scientific objectivity (which often benefits the university and its supporters); for the latter it is a moral obligation to act upon it in such a way that both acts as a testimony and overtly returns something to its source. For Ajani, in simply laying out her participant’s biography without needing to document the fact-finding of it (as a colleague implied she should have), what was returned was a level of belief and trust which in turn (may have) empowered the woman as a victim. I found it was in this moment that she moves away from the idea of being a theoretical authority and becomes a participant in “ethical engagement”

Anthropology is field where research plays the biggest part in dissecting and understanding a topic. Surveys and questionnaires, are not as effective in this field as it would have been in engineering is because, anthropology deals with people. According to me people would not be slight bit interested divulging the details of their life with a stranger, whom they just met on a piece of flimsy paper. Even if they are willing to do that, they may only give a vague sketch of their life or the worst case scenario, where the participants are illiterate. Thus Field work regardless how excruciatingly long and hard it is, it is very important because it gives the holistic view on a topic as an outsider as well as an insider.