The Role of the Reflexive Ethnographer
Works Cited Missing
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).
Reflexivity is way in which anthropologists try to get rid of this scientific and rigid anthropology; it is a move towards an emotional and self-reflective anthropology. Reflexivity denies the structuralism which Malinowski and Levi-Strauss attended to. In addition, reflexivity tries to diminish the authority which anthropologists such as Malinowski and Levi-Strauss claimed to have. Thus, reflexivity is an attempt to humanize rather than structure a society. Although reflexive anthropology aims to liberate itself from authority, it often does just the opposite; ethnographers such as Behar and Kondo use their supposedly humane approach to anthropology to position themselves within the field of anthropology. However, their attempts to recreate anthropology by emotionalizing it produce interesting and somewhat effective ethnographies. Visweswaran, another female and self-proclaimed reflexive anthropologist, explores what it is to be a reflexive feminist anthropologist in a field that is dominated by men. Reflexivity is thus a hot topic for past and present ethnographers to discuss.
With the help of the women’s movement and the rise of feminism, female anthropologists were able to publish their own ethnographies. However, women ethnographers conti...
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...ocially allowed to be anthropologists: “Anthropologists would only become articulate about borders thanks to the writing of Chicanas like Gloria Analdua and Sandra Cisneros--who had to invent their own borderland anthropology in poetry, myths, and fictions because it didn’t exist in the academy” (Behar 174). The solution to anthropology, according to Behar, is reflexivity. By being reflexive, Behar writes, one can “respond vulnerably” to others’ writing. Ergo, she pleads for an anthropology that breaks your heart. Behar’s authority lies in this pleading. In this essay, she is implying that she is more vulnerable or more feeling than other anthropologists or literary critics. This establishes her authority as the reader sides with her emotional state.
In summation, reflexive anthropology is an anthropology which looks upon the self in relation to the Other.
Modern day reflexology is based on techniques developed by Dr. Eunice Ingham, an American physiotherapist, who mapped out reflex zones into charts, “our feet and hands are essentially mirrors of our bodies” (First Class). Reflexologists believe that the hands and feet “reflect” what is happening in the body; however, it is never used to diagnose or treat a specific medical disorder. The purpose or reflexology is to “promote health and well being on a physical, emotional and spiritual level” (University of
As a scholar invested in the progression of the field of Native American material cultural studies, I consistently recondition my understanding of both epistemology and the appropriate ways to approach cultural circumstances of the so-called “Other” through personal encounters and the shared experiences of my contemporaries. My own ethical position is forever fluid, negotiated by both Native and non-Native sources as I attempt to find ground in what exactly I intend to do (outside of an occupation) with the knowledge I accumulate. Perhaps the most vulnerable facet of existence in the world of academia is the ease that comes in the failure to compromise one’s own advancement for the well-being of those being studied. Barre Toelken is an encouraging exception to this conundrum, considering his explicit analysis of both Navajo and Western ethics in the case of the Hugh Yellowman tapes. His essay argues for an approach that surrenders the fieldworker’s hypothetical gain to the socio-emotional needs of subjects’ epistemological structure and, most intriguingly, he treats ethnographic materials as praxis rather than data. After years of apprehension with the objectifying habits of cultural anthropology, a discipline internally dithered by the bickering of Science vs. Humanities, I am finally moved to disengage from such authoritatively based methods altogether as a result of Toelken’s example.
A phenomenologist, David Abram, in his book The Spell of the Sensuous, discusses that human is “inter-subjective.” (Abram, 36) Phenomenology is a method of getting to truth through observing how phenomena present themselves to the senses and to the mind, as Abram defines, “phenomenology would seek not to explain the world, but to describe as closely as possible the way the world makes itself evident to awareness, the way things first arise in our direct, sensorial experience.” (Abram, 35) Phenomenology poses the terms inter-subjectivity to describe what is real. Subjectivity refers to the essence of the “I”—first-person perspective. Inter-subjectivity is the perspective developed between, called a kind of “We-ness”. In phenomenology, reality is a collective construction—it is not subjective to the individual or is objectively determined by things, but rather it is inter-subjective.
After Germany lost World War I, it was in a national state of humiliation. Their economy was in the drain, and they had their hands full paying for the reparations from the war. Then a man named Adolf Hitler rose to the position of Chancellor and realized his potential to inspire people to follow. Hitler promised the people of Germany a new age; an age of prosperity with the country back as a superpower in Europe. Hitler had a vision, and this vision was that not only the country be dominant in a political sense, but that his ‘perfect race’, the ‘Aryans,’ would be dominant in a cultural sense. His steps to achieving his goal came in the form of the Holocaust. The most well known victims of the Holocaust were of course, the Jews. However, approximately 11 million people were killed in the holocaust, and of those, there were only 6 million Jews killed. The other 5 million people were the Gypsies, Pols, Political Dissidents, Handicapped, Jehovah’s witnesses, Homosexuals and even those of African-German descent. Those who were believed to be enemies of the state were sent to camps where they were worked or starved to death.
Beginning with ethnohistory, which includes anthropology, the beginnings of the different studies of mankind are introduced, when the book then jumps to a postcolonial perspective the views of the future are pointed to the mistakes of the past. Each theory has a purpose to explaining the views and studies of different historians around the world. This essay will compare my views on ethnohistory combined with anthropology versus the views of postcolonial history.
Anthropological researchers have considerable moral and ethical standards by which their work must be conducted in order to preserve the accuracy and the posterity of the information gathered during the study and also to the persons or cultures of which they study. These two important parts of anthropology – the research and those being researched – can be conflicting. The Code of Ethics of the American Anthropological Association presents itself as a body of guidelines for discussing these ethical and moral conflicts. This allows for researchers in the field of anthropology to have a foundation for understanding what decisions must be made regarding these ethical and moral conflicts and to whom the disclosures of those decisions should be made.
In summary reflexivity relates to judgements made from one's own personal experiences. By being reflexive and recognising that I am part of the research data and through exploring my own practice with the intention of understanding my practice, I show how I am part of the research. With this new knowledge I continue knowing differently that my story is my data and as such the application of reflection/reflexivity, in such a way as Bolton, Freire and Cuncliffe suggests, will make it all the richer and more valuable.
Hitler had thought that the Jews did not believe in the “right” thing so he tried to eliminate the race. He did not want them to believe in what they did and still do. He thought that the Jewish race was inferior and did not mean anything. The way that Hitler treated the Jews were crimes against humanity and I know that many non Jews saw that but did...
Ethnography Works Cited Missing Anthropology is defined, in the most basic terms, as the study of other cultures. This field can subsequently be divided into more specific sections, and contain more precise defining characteristics, but this definition is essentially all that is needed. Anthropology is a science that attempts to look at other cultures and draw conclusions to questions that are raised while studying. An anthropologist is someone who accepts what is presented before them and is driven by an urge to understand each presentation as thoroughly as possible. Once the concept of anthropology is accepted, one must identify the means of reaching the goal of this field.
Reflexivity is a qualitative method of research that takes an ethnography one step further, displaying the personal thoughts and reflections of the anthropologist on his informants. Ethnographies generally take an outside or foreign perspective of a culture, like reading a text, and reflexivity introduces a new component of inside description. Here, the anthropologist may describe personal interactions and experiences with natives and use this inside information to make additional conclusions about the people being studied. The ethnographer may also reflect on his ethnic connections with his informants, or his acceptance into the society, explaining that it provides valuable, inside knowledge of the culture and ultimately leads to a greater understanding of the native people as a whole.
The implicit one, it is a more primitive one, which represents just the state of awareness of something, which can be found also in others advanced species of animals, like dogs and cats. They become aware of their surroundings and possible danger. It represents the awareness of your existence, the separation of oneself from the others and the world. The reflexive Consciousness is more advanced, and it is specific to the human being. It is the awareness of the self, where an individual take action in a more responsible way, to be aware of what you feel, what you want, what you think. It represents the entire activity of the brain, stimulated by our attention. When someone is paying attention or observes something, it’s an act of the reflexive
Reflexology is an ancient method of healing that originated in Egypt and the Orient. More than four thousand years ago, man discovered this treatment for imbalance, and recorded their discovery in drawings on cave walls. It is suggested that reflexology evolved from acupuncture and acupressure. Reflexology flourished in the United Kingdom in the nineteenth century, but did not appear in the United States until the early 1900's (http://lagunabeachca.com/reflexol.htm).
One reason is that recycling can help save the earth from waste and trash build-up. For example, fifty percent of roofing and construction on houses is made from recycled aluminum cans. Using recycled materials to produce new products costs less money and less energy than new materials. It can also save valuable landfill space. People have trash everyday. Pretty much anything is recyclable. If you throw them away, it?s a waste of natural resources, a waste of energy, and a waste of money. Instead people should take the time collect these things and put some effort into helping in the world we live in.
For example, In 1947, the Executive board of the American Anthropological Association refused to take part in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, due to the constraints of Cultural Relativism (Textbook 300). By embracing the concept of Cultural Relativism, anthropologists take on the role of an “observer” that records data rather than taking on an “interventionist” role (Powerpoint 4). As a result, anthropologists prevent their own bias and judgement being applied to the culture they are studying. Historically, there have been instances, such as genocide, in which anthropologists have spoken out against (Textbook 300). But for the many other human rights issues, such as domestic abuse, anthropologists have not spoken out in consideration of the principle of cultural relativism (Textbook 300).
Therefore, recycling can protect natural resources, preserve energy and lessen pollution. If people want to save planet Earth for generations to come, then recycling is necessary. On Debate.org, the question “Should there be mandatory recycling?” was asked and 84 percent said yes, while only 16 percent said no (“Should There Be Mandatory Recycling”). Recycling is very important to the planet and can make a huge difference in so many ways. Recycling is a way of life and once a person has made the choice to follow through with the steps, recycling can become second nature. Every small contribution adds up to how the society shapes the Earth’s future. How will someone make a difference?