Fieldwork seminar: Fieldwork in the Humanities - January 2014
A series of PhD seminars at ToRS
Seminar, Wednesday 29 November, 10.15 – 12.00 room 10.4.05 @ KUA2
The Construction of Field and Method
Chairs: Catharina Raudvere and Esther Fihl
Agenda:
- a short introduction by Catharina
- presentation by Peter Bengtsen “The construction of field and method” followed by discussion
Abstract: The focus of my Ph.D. project is street art as an art world (as defined by the American sociologist Howard S. Becker, an art world is a social context in which a certain phenomenon becomes recognised as art). Apart from the street, a lot of my research has taken place in an online context – I have monitored and interacted on different online forums where street art enthusiasts discuss the boundaries of what I call the street art world. Given that my field of inquiry has to a large degree been an online space rather than a geographical place, and that I have been interested in street art (and therefore de facto have collected empirical material) long before I entered academia, I have been faced with a number of questions related to the concepts of field, fieldwork, and methods. I would like to take the opportunity to discuss some of these considerations at the seminar.
The field is often described as something the researcher goes to, stays in for a period of time, and then comes back from in order to write about it. However, in a globalising world, the notion of field is much more complex and difficult to define (not that it was ever easy!). For instance, in virtue of contemporary communication technologies, researchers are often in touch with informants before the period of time of the research determined as “fieldwork”, and often stay in touch afterwards. Two questions I propose to discuss at the seminar, then, are how the notions of the field and fieldwork make sense given these circumstances, and where and how we draw the line in terms of collecting empirical material.
Another question relates to the methods which we use while conducting what we call fieldwork. A range of methods (e.g. interview, participant observation, go-along) have become established and are often taken for granted as parts of conducting fieldwork. However, while we may describe what we do in these established terms, there is no doubt that what we actually do varies greatly depending on the individual researcher and the specific context in which the research takes place. Consequently, it is my contention that methods are constantly emerging and morphing as a result of our practice and the response we get from it. As a second point of discussion at the seminar, I therefore propose to deliberate on how methods emerge as precisely methods.
Two articles for preparation will be distributed during the first part of January.
ECTS: 1,8 for paper presentation and 0,3 for active participation.
Most welcome, Catharina and Esther