In his book “Body and Soul”, Loic Wacquant discusses the way he approached his research on boxing and the ‘universe’ around it: “The other virtue of an approach based on participant observation (which in this case, is better characterized as an “observant participation”) in a run-of-the-mill gym is that the materials thus produced do not [...]
Archive for January, 2009
30 Jan
if i was a journal
I would do everything I could to capitalize on discussion of articles published inside of me. Why let the discussion float across other publications? Why limit responses to three or four? Why not have a general comment section for quick immediate feedback on articles, and a separate collection of more developed reviews to which academics [...]
28 Jan
getting back on track
The semester is in full swing and I’m challenged to maintain a strong focus on my thesis while engaging in other classes. And as much as I’d love to keep a relaxed, care-free strategy of writing about what interests me, I do need to produce a thesis. My supervisor has been extremely patient with me [...]
23 Jan
What is anthropology? A Carnival of Answers.
Looking purely at this blog would be a terrible way to understand the question “what is anthropology?”. I will shed light on the question, usually by making it extremely complicated. A better way to learn about anthropology would be to read the “Four Stone Hearth” posts that circulate along blogs. It is a collaboration between [...]
23 Jan
more on science (should be titled ‘derailed’)
[Recommendation for other anthropology students: when it comes to debates surrounding the 'science' in anthropology, try to avoid it. It's dangerous, slippery terrain that might go no where. Also, do not under any circumstance cite wikipedia.] And where do we find our answers? WIKIPEDIA. Woot. Definition 1: “Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning “knowledge” or [...]
20 Jan
The joy of pseudo-science
[I should edit this and really distinguish cultural anthropology from "anthropology", but instead I won't since it reflects the confusion in my mind well.] Call me a sucker, but I’ve always been one to jump into the “is anthropology a science?” debate. For most of my undergrad degree, being that I was in an arts [...]
19 Jan
multi-sited fieldwork – reading notes on Marcus (revised)
Pardon the load of spew I’m dumping on the blog. I’ve been encouraged to write an hour a day, and I thought I’d try blogging it. This of course means I’m at the stage of the research where I need to produce vast quantities of writing, so increasingly I’ll be using this blog as a [...]
19 Jan
More friction – Wadley reviews Tsing
I just found an interesting review of Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing’s book, Friction: An Ethnography of Global Connection. In it the author criticizes Tsing’s literary style, arguing that it will fail to convince the right audiences: “Despite the interesting stories she weaves together on topics of considerable environmental and social significance, Tsing’s motivation to be “a hair [...]
19 Jan
Why do you need an audience? (popularizing scholarship)
Academia is often referred to as an ‘ivory tower’, where walls seperate wizards from commoners. Wizards you see, like to speak to other wizards. Of course this is a huge generalization and many academics… sorry wizards… have broken out from the walls to find recognition outside. But should they have to? As my research has progressed [...]
7 Jan
writing ethnography class
The new year has begun, and I could easily have missed it. I return home to my official studies on the 12th, but classes began on the 5th, so I asked some classmates to keep me up to date and they were kind enough to let me know I have a 20 page paper on [...]
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