ENGL 388/5xx
Professor Beth Ann Rothermel
Bates 103, #572-5336 E-mail: brothermel@wsc.ma.edu
Office Hours: Mondays,
Required Texts and Supplies:
"Ethnographies are documents that pose questions at the margins
between two cultures." John Van Maanen.
Ethnography: Telling the Stories of Culture
This is a course especially designed for students in a variety of disciplines who are interested in writing. But what exactly is ethnography? In your course bulletin you will see it defined as "cultural description," but I feel that it could be better defined as telling and interpreting the stories of particular groups of people. In the course you will learn much about what ethnography is, reading, for example, sample ethnographic works about the cultures of small towns or low-wage workers. You will also have a chance to "do ethnography," exploring a "culture" or field of study of your own choosing, such as a club, team, work place, or volunteer organization to which you belong. Working individually and in teams, you will be guided through the various stages of research. In a supportive environment, you will learn how to frame provocative research questions, collect, record, and interpret data, and to write and revise compelling narratives from your observations. Instructor feedback and peer critiques will also help you to refine your work.
· Bibliography for Further Reading
Specific Course Goals:
At the end of this semester you should be able to:
Attendance: This class requires collaborative learning. Attendance is vital and absences will affect your participation grade. Much of the work that we will be doing in this class involves discussion. Your success, as well as the success of your peers, depends upon your regular participation. This is especially true on days when response papers and rough drafts are due. Failure to attend class on these days will most certainly affect your grade. Students missing more than two classes may be asked to withdraw from the course.
Assignments: Response papers, short essays, and progress reports; a field-work portfolio; peer critiques; and one microethnography in multiple drafts (10-12 pages in length for undergraduates; 18-20 pages in length for graduates).
Assignments handed in late will be marked down (up to five points per day). Failure to hand in rough drafts and peer critiques done for your final ethnography will lower the grade on your final draft considerably (see section on grading). All drafts should be typed and double-spaced. Papers should be documented using the MLA or APA citation system. You will always need at least 2 photocopies of your rough drafts. Consider this an additional course expense. Students should also retain a photocopy of all their final drafts. Conferences with the instructor will be arranged when necessary. Any exceptions to the above guidelines must be discussed with me in advance of due dates.
Grading:
For a total of 1000 points.
The capstone microethnography will receive two grades: the first grade will be fore the final product (see above); the second grade, for process, will be added into your participation grade (the process grade reflects the effort you have put into drafting and revising). Note, however, that failure to pass in rough drafts on the date when they are due will not only leave you with a lowered process grade, but will also lower your final product grade.
When I compute grades at the end of the semester, numbers will correspond to the following letters (i.e., 925 and above equals A, 900-924.9 equals A-):
Scholastic Dishonesty: Scholastic dishonesty will not be tolerated. See the college's policy on plagiarism in the current course catalogue.
The
All readings are due at the beginning of each week unless otherwise specified. Additional readings may be assigned. There will be at least one out-of-class homework assignment each week (to be assigned each Thursday and turned in the following week). Homework assignments should be typed unless otherwise specified.
January
19: Getting acquainted. What is this
thing called ethnography and who is doing it anyway? HW:
Read chapter one in Sunstein, pp. 1-53. Complete
writing activity in
26: The aims of ethnography and an overview of the process. Locating study situations. The field-work portfolio. The history and development of ethnography. HW: Read chapter two in Sunstein, pp. 55-104. Read handouts (sample student works). Written homework TBA.
February
2: More on the history of ethnography. Ethics and ethnographic methods—the ethnographic gaze. Selecting a study situation. Film and discussion. HW: Reading Mama Day (pages TBA) and selections from chapter three in Sunstein (pages TBA). Tentative project proposal and artifact assignment.
9: Due: Tentative project proposal and artifact assignment. Artifacts—material culture. More on the field-work portfolio. HW: Finishing Mama Day. Response paper and field-notes assignment.
16: Due: Response paper. More on collecting observations and making a record. Working with archives. HW: Chapters five and six in Sunstein, pp. 217-344 (specific selections from these chapters TBA). Written homework TBA.
23: Geography of a scene; language
and culture. HW:
March
2: More on language and
culture. HW: Finishing
9: Due: Response paper for
16 and 23rd: No class—spring break and conference.
30th: Due: Response paper for Nickel and Dimed. Book discussion. Focus on actors. Locating cultural themes. HW: Short essay. Field-work reflection assignment.
April
6: Due: Short essay. Film and discussion. Returning to the field. Stories and interviews. Sign up for portfolio conference. HW: Read chapter eight in Sunstein, pp. 417-473. Written homework TBA. Portfolio conferences will be held during the week following this class meeting.
13: Cultural themes in our own work. More on analyzing data. Assessing what you do and don’t have. HW: Beginning to draft the microethnography.
20: Writing up fieldwork. The limits and possiblities of ethnography. Ethnography and voice. HW: Drafting the microethnography.
27: Due: Down draft of microethnography (bring four copies to class). Writing workshop. HW: Drafting the microethnography, second draft.
May
4: Due: Second draft of microethnography. Schedule final portfolio conference. Writing workshop. HW: Working on final draft of microethnography. Final portfolio conference.
Final draft of your microethnography is due in
my office no later than May 12th at