From beginning to end: Kahn to Humphreys and Watson

I must applaud the structure of this independent study and sequence of the assigned readings. Thank you Mr. Zack.

I really enjoyed reading this piece, Ethnographic Practices by Humphreys and Watson. I couldn’t help but notice the relevance it had to our first week’s reading, Putting Ethnographic Writing in Context by none other than Seth Kahn.

As AJ mentioned in his blog post “Honest and (un)Merciful” ethnographic writing is—on the surface—similar to journalism. Humphreys and Watson explain the relationship between the two.

Fieldwork is the experience and exploration of a culture.

From the fieldwork comes the written account. “Ethnography is the account.”

Like Kahn, Humphreys and Watson delve into the importance of preserving confidentiality and protecting the subjects. Humphreys and Watson describe 4 typographies of ethnographic writing (the plain, the enhanced, the semi-fictionalized, and the fictionalized).

We are fed four examples that capture the applicability of each type. I appreciated the “Charity begins at home” example. Although the account of Charity was semi-fictional and based on the amalgamation of other individuals, it can be characterized as true (under heavy disguise). They used the fabrication of Charity to conceal the identities of employees which explains one responsibility as an ethnographic writer that Kahn touches on.

On a side note I admire Humphreys’ and Watson’s style of writing. During the introduction—regarding the basic structure of the article they wrote together—they add the jazz performance analogy of trading fours (the lead).  The conclusion includes an excerpt from an autobiography of Duke Ellington. It’s a curious coincidence that I included Duke Ellington for my Geertz blog post weeks ago.

This independent study has proven with strange accidents and (my) inconsistencies, yet with a harmonious fluidity, invaluable. 

I thank the three of you.