RJ8: Thoughts on Fieldworking (Chap. 1 and 2)

The first two chapters of Fieldworkinglay a good basis for the practices of the developing ethnographer.  Chapter one focuses heavily on the principle of objectivity, which is definitely a characteristic required of any fieldworker before he can ever even begin his research.  It also focuses on the theme of relentless research.  Due to the nature of ethnography, one can easily see that a researcher must be willing to work late and get his hands dirty if he expects any results.  Chapter two introduces a principle of what I see as “research differentiation.”  When someone takes field notes, when done correctly, the researcher can find lots of insight and information where another researcher will probably just see gibberish.  Through the process of repeatedly analyzing and rewriting the notes, one can find the truest core of meaning in his research, and thus the portion that can be added to his publication that any reader will make sense of and learn from.  Objectivity, determination, and “research differentiation” (I’m sure there’s a better term for someone who doesn’t like math): necessary ethnographic research skills.

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